children that have been trafficked senior advisor lars lööf childrens unit council of the baltic...

Children That Have Been Trafficked

Senior Advisor

Lars Lööf

Children’s Unit

Council of the Baltic Sea States

lars.loof@cbss.st

http://childcentre.baltinfo.org

Reintegration means:

1. Assuring the right to adequate psychological, medical and social support.

2. Reunification with family carers.3. Noncriminalisation of any acts

committed.4. Vocational training or opportunities

to study.

The four C’s

CCCCCCCC

ontrolontrol

losurelosureompensationompensation

omplicityomplicity

Effects of exploitation and abuse in a child

Diminishes the child’s capacity to be the agent of her/his life.

Possible cognitive distortions

Emotional distress Loss of trust in adults and

in the world

Lack of Control

Lack of Control

The effect of disclosing Should lead to the child’s

recognition that he/she was subjected to something unacceptable and wrong

Should lead to a feeling in the child of not being in any way responsible

Should lead to a reunification with non offending family members

”I’ve always been beaten up”

”I followed him voluntarily”

”My mother thinks I was waiting on tables”

Reintegration must take place in close co-operation

with the exploited child

All attempts at reintegrating a child subjected to trafficking must take into consideration these facts and offer a

Holding: – Continuous– Predictable– Stable– Available

To be involved in commercial sex as a child

Forced to look like you enjoy it Smile at the guy Pretend that you like him

Pressure from others ”It’s OK” ”You’ll get used to it” ”Smile”

Identifying with a part makes you loose yourself

There is a script to follow

Enhances the feeling of complicity ”Anyone can see what I did” ”I can never

return”

Complicity

Is it more difficult to recover as a child?

Being involved in commercial sex is just one part of the exploitation a child is subjected to– The need to resolve other issues may stand in

the way of reintegration efforts Drug dependency, criminality, vagrancy.

Dependency issues– The need to be taken care of

For every child, there should be someone mad about her/him

– The need to belong to a defined group The only possible control of this

experience may be to stay quiet

Closure Realising that it is there but that it

will not hurt you anymore Sharing the burden – so many

children are out there

Compensation Compensation through society’s

admission through sentencing all perpetrators– Both the traffickers and the buyers. Buying

sex from a minor is a crime in most countries in the world.

Financial compensation Going public; fight for the rights of

abused children

Children That Have Been Trafficked

Senior Advisor

Lars Lööf

Children’s Unit

Council of the Baltic Sea States

lars.loof@cbss.st

http://childcentre.baltinfo.org