Children Affected by Violence and How to Help Them
A report by Save the Children detailed that the number of children living in countries facing conflict grew 20% in 2020 to just under 200 million from the 162 million recorded only a year prior. The amount of children in dangerous living conditions has not been this high since 2008, where the number reached a record at 208 million.
Many children live near armed groups and government forces that recruit and utilize children as soldiers, as reported in the “Stop the War on Children: A Crisis of Recruitment.” Approximately 337 million children live in these inhumane conditions, putting them in danger of being exploited and forcefully recruited to fight. Conflicts in Afghanistan, Nigeria, Yemen and Mozambique have contributed to the number of at risk children, and the number is expected to rise as more political conflict unfolds across the world.
However, war and conflict are not the only issues that have negatively affected children. Human-trafficking, especially of children, is on the rise due to the vulnerability some families face during the pandemic, and also because of political conflict. As reported by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), 500,000 human trafficking victims were detected in 2018, but numbers are predicted to be much higher considering the secretive nature of the crime. The UNODC report suggest that for every 10 victims “detected globally in 2018, about five were adult women and two were young girls,” while 15% of human trafficking victims were young boys.
Organizations such as War Child and Operation Underground Railroad continue their fight to protect children from war, violence, and exploitation.
War Child
Founded in 1999 by Dr. Samantha Nutt, War Child has worked tirelessly for over 20 years to help children and their families recover from the effects of war. War Child’s mission is to minimize the losses of children who suffer in war, provide access to education, give legal support, and help families escape poverty.
With an outreach of over 600,000 people worldwide, War Child is dedicated to hiring local staff and understanding local community needs, history and culture to provide the best possible long-term solutions.
To help children and families, War Child launched the “Make Not War” program. This program allows supporters to utilize War Child tools and resources to host their own project. Supporters can be creative by making art, food and other products to help raise money and awareness for children at risk.
War Child has been innovative in finding ways for people to donate and offer multiple donation options. Supporters can choose to donate money, in honour of someone else as a gift, stocks and securities, Aeroplan miles and even cars. Supporters can also host parties and invite guests to donate.
Operation Underground Railroad
Striving towards a similar goal, Operation Underground Railroad (O.U.R.) exists to combat human trafficking and child sexual exploitation. O.U.R.’s goal is to develop strong relationships with law enforcement agencies across the globe to assist in local efforts against human trafficking and sexual exploitation.
In the first few weeks of 2022, O.U.R. has already rescued two young girls from exploitation and has provided them with care from therapists, social workers and legal counsels. The organization has also recently provided therapy for 7 survivors, funded post-secondary education for survivors in Turkey, and delivered school supplies to survivors. O.U.R. continues to work with law enforcement agencies around the world to provide training and special intelligence to fight against human-trafficking.
Supporters are encouraged to attend the “Not on O.U.R.’s Watch” Trail Race virtually or in-person in Sandy, Utah on April 30, 2022. To aid in O.U.R.’s efforts, you can also donate, volunteer, or start a campaign or volunteer group in your city if there is no O.U.R. representative in your local area.