Ghana: 13 victims of human trafficking back home

Ghana: 13 victims of human trafficking back home

Boys reunited with families in Ivory Coast after spending years in forced labor, says UN migration agency

ANKARA (AA) - At least 13 boys who survived human trafficking in Ghana have been reunited with their families in their homeland, Ivory Coast, the UN's International Organization for Migration (IOM) announced Friday.

The boys, aged 9-19, were brought to Ghana from Ivory Coast and Burkina Faso by human traffickers under the pretext of providing them education. The children worked as farmworkers, some of them “for up to 10 years,” the IOM cited Ghanaian authorities as saying.

“Children as young as three were trafficked and they do not know the day, month or year of their coming to Ghana,” an IOM report said.

The boys were reunited with their families on March 15 in Ivory Coast, the IOM confirmed without discussing the fate of the Burkinabe survivors.

“Irrespective of where someone comes from, victims are victims, and must be given the best support possible,” Abena Annobea Asare, who heads anti-human trafficking efforts at Ghana’s Gender, Children and Social Protection Ministry, was quoted in the report as saying.

“I am glad to see this day come to pass where all stakeholders have worked as a team to ensure the successful return. The most rewarding is to see success in the face of adversity,” he added.

During the rescue operation, the Ghanaian police arrested one alleged trafficker who is being prosecuted, the IOM said.

“The children and their families will continue to receive reintegration support in the framework of IOM prevention and protection activities,” the IOM said.

Child trafficking is rampant in Ghana, a West African country where children of all ages work as bonded laborers, especially in the fishing industry and farm sector.

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