Pakistan Church alarmed about child trafficking

(November 07, 2011) Church authorities in Pakistan have expressed concern at the growing threat posed by human traffickers after the escape of a kidnapped altar boy. “Always keep track of your children and make sure they know your cell phone numbers. Kidnappers smuggle, deform them for begging or try to sell them,” warned Father Andrew Nisari, Vicar General of Lahore Archdiocese, on Sunday. He condemned child trafficking and urged prayers for the victims after one such victim, Sameer Samuel, received his First Holy Communion together with 150 others at the Sacred Heart Cathedral. Fr. Nisari described as miraculous the narrow escaped of the 9-year old boy from the hands of his abductors. Samuel was kidnapped outside the Sacred Heart Cathedral on October 23 and spent just over 10 days in captivity before he turned up at a Christian settlement in Attock, a city in the north of Punjab province. Failing to sell him and unnerved by media reports, the kidnapper threw him into the Indus River. He was later pulled out by a priest and taken to the Christian settlement. Caritas Pakistan has demanded strict laws against child trafficking, saying increasing poverty is making women and children extremely vulnerable. It said the issue affects both Christians and Muslims.