Hopegivers International Applauds India's Child Exploitation Crackdown
by Allie Martin
January 31, 2006
(AgapePress) - - An advocate for child safety in India is praising members of the government for taking steps to curb crimes against children in that country. He says the authorities are at long last starting to get aggressive in their efforts to end child exploitation. According to Dr. Samuel Thomas, president of the child rescue ministry Hopegivers International, for years lawmakers and law enforcement authorities in India did not actively prosecute those involved in illegal child trafficking and child labor -- or even those profiting from the sale of children's organs. However, he says now that international laws easing restrictions on free trade have been passed, the authorities have become more vigilant.
"I'm thankful that God has put the right people in the government who are stopping this," Thomas says. "Before, even if the government wanted to do this, the majority of the people were against them, or nobody cared. Everybody knows about this." Yet, even if the Indian authorities did monitor this kind of criminal activity, he asserts, "nobody cared because the majority of the people are crooks that are in power in the government."
But finally, the government has begun to vigorously prosecute and appropriately punish those arrested for crimes victimizing children, the ministry leader says. For instance, he notes, "If anybody is found selling children or selling their organs, [these perpetrators] will be put in prison for life."
According to Hopegivers' spokesman, pressure from police, religious organizations, and government agencies have contributed to the crackdown on crimes against children. He says he praises the Lord to see lately how "God is moving and keeping people of intelligence, character, and moral values in our government."
Hopegivers International, which focuses on rescuing children from the streets of India, operates 87 "Hope Homes" and other "Hope Centers" to serve homeless and needy youngsters. The ministry operates nearly 200 schools as well and has set a goal of having at least one million children fully sponsored and growing up in its model facilities by the year 2020.
Allie Martin, a regular contributor to AgapePress, is a reporter for American Family Radio News, which can be heard online.
