The Director of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in Plateau State, Grace Pam, has raised the alarm over strange deaths among trafficked children in the state.

Speaking at a one-day workshop organised by the Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Center (RULAAC) in Jos yesterday, she said trafficked children had become victims of organ harvest.

“We have found out that in some local governments in Plateau State, parents willingly offered their children to be trafficked for just peanuts. Our findings also showed that most of these children being trafficked ended up as victims of organ harvests.

“The traffickers deceived parents with claims to take these innocent children for domestic work while their main intention was to go and harvest their organs.

“The traffickers then returned them to their parents after harvesting their organs and the parents will accept them without knowing. Shortly after returning these children, they develop certain complications and later died.

“I, therefore, use this opportunity to call on parents all over the state to stop this habit as such practice amounts to human rights abuse.

“We know child trafficking is a poverty-induced crime by poor parents, but the parents should know that the child they traffic out becomes vulnerable to inhuman crime of organ harvest.”

Pam appealed to the state governor, Simon Lalong, to set up a special task force to monitor the activities of traffickers in the state with a view to protecting the rights of citizens.

The Plateau State Police Command however said it was not aware of such incidents as no case had been reported to the police. (Daily Trust)

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