Adults are not alone in migrating from one country to another in order to earn more money. Children in the Balkans also work abroad, entrusting their lives to strangers.
Foreign business representatives often turn up in the Balkans in order to negotiate with disadvantaged families. Picking them out is not difficult: a long line of houses in ruins, stuck in the Cold War era; hunger, water shortages and despair. In short, misery. The businessmen knock on doors and talk business. One party is interested in finding cheap labour; the other is interested in the salary that would be brought to the household. Sometimes the father asks if he alone could go to do the work. However, they reply that a child would be better.
The family quickly gives in. The child is to follow these strangers to unknown lands. If something bad happens to the child, nobody knows who will take responsibility. It is not discussed. However, a child from Kosovo, Albania, Moldova or Romania risks ending up in the sex trade, a practice which endures despite the efforts of all these States.
What’s more, many Albanian children have become victims of trans-border sex trafficking, migrating to Greece and Italy. UNICEF supports several Albanian organisations with the aim of helping children to return to school. However, while organisations try to counteract this scourge, the traffickers keep a watch on schools in Elbasan, because they know that the great poverty of this town will be good for business. Because of this, the Albanian government has a great responsibility. Beyond its negotiations with the European Union, Albania must defend the wellbeing of its children.
Written by: Asli Kaya
