§ Mr. WoodTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps she plans to take to tackle the organised abuse, trafficking and prostitution of children in Cambodia as part of the child-sex tourism industry in the Far East. [107163]
§ Clare ShortWe take the trafficking, abuse and exploitation of children in Cambodia, and the Far East, very seriously. Children from poor and uneducated families are most at risk. Our support for programmes to reduce poverty will have an impact in the longer term. In the meantime we are also supporting more direct action.
DFID has been funding the International Labour Organisation's International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour to combat trafficking of children and women in the Greater Mekong Sub Region for three years and is now supporting it for another five—making a total contribution of over £7 million. The programme covers Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand, Laos and the Yunnan Province of China. It aims to work with governments, NGOs, the private sector and trade unions to promote awareness of the dangers of trafficking, to provide alternative livelihood options and to help governments reach agreements on how to tackle cross border issues.
DFID is also funding a three-year £1.66 million Save the Children Fund-UK initiative that began in early 2003 to reduce the incidence and impact of trafficking of 174W children. This programme includes all the above countries as well as Myanmar. Its focus is on promoting grass roots initiatives to bring families out of poverty.
Through the British embassy in Phnom Penh the UK Government are working with Non Government Organisations to publicise the dangers to families and children at risk, including street children. There is work with the Cambodian police to detect and disrupt paedophile activity. And in the UK, courts now have powers to deal with British citizens who commit sex offences with children abroad.