1,000 children sexually abused

More and more cases of children being raped are being reported, including those under five, and many are killed after being raped, it said.

In many instances teachers sexually abuse students, fathers rape daughters over a long period of time, and men rape their stepdaughters.

The problems of trafficking and kidnapping children have become rampant.

In the northern provinces of Ha Giang, Dien Bien, and Lai Chau, local criminals work with foreigners to take advantage of the remoteness of mountainous areas to kidnap children for trafficking to China.

In southern provinces like An Giang and Tay Ninh, forcing girls aged 14-15 to work as prostitutes at brothels in neighboring Cambodia is increasing.

Criminals are even trafficking children and babies in the guise of adopting children from poor families.

Nguyen Hai Huu, head of the MOLISA’s Children Protection and Caring Department, attributed the increase in the crime to financial difficulty, which makes it impossible for some families to care for their children.

This leads to ill-treatment, sexual abuse, violence, exploitation, and children turning to crime.

He also blamed the erosion of human values, the negative impacts of pornographic and violent movies, and the increasing rate of divorce.

There are not enough organisations to care for children and protect them from these problems, he said.

The ministry will continue to study and develop mechanisms and policies to stop violence against and the abuse of children, he promised. - VOV