PUERTO VALLARTA (PVDN) - For decades, child protection issues have loomed over Mexico, with an alarming lack of attention from government authorities on all levels. This longstanding inaction is starkly highlighted by a troubling statistic from the non-profit organization, Reinserta: at least 30,000 children and adolescents have been recruited by organized crime syndicates.
Reinserta, founded by Saskia Niño de Rivera and Mercedes Castañeda Gómez-Mont, disclosed this shocking reality on World Day Against Trafficking in Persons. In addition to the 30,000 minors coerced into criminal activity, the organization estimates that another 20,000 fall victim to trafficking annually.
"Child sexual exploitation, trafficking, and corruption of minors are painful and unresolved issues in our country's legal sphere," Reinserta stated in a social media announcement.
The 2021 Reinserta study, "Girls, Boys and Adolescents Recruited by Organized Crime," reveals that organized crime outfits favor children and adolescents for their availability, malleability, and reduced legal ramifications. These children dutifully follow orders, have fewer demands than adults, and can readily transport and operate weapons and contraband.
Criminal organizations exploit this young demographic to perform over 22 types of crimes, including drug trafficking, kidnapping, human trafficking, corruption, and piracy, per the Network for the Rights of Children in Mexico (REDIM).
Information cross-referenced from REDIM, the United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef), and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) reveals a grim reality: approximately 30,000 Mexican minors are functioning as spies, combatants, messengers, cooks, and victims of sexual exploitation.
"Many are abducted by various forces, others join out of manipulation for economic gain, and some join due to poverty, exclusion, and discrimination," noted Reinserta's report.
The non-profit emphasizes that these minors are not only perpetrators of crime but also victims—victims of the circumstances in which they find themselves, which are attributable to the State and society at large.
On July 31, Reinserta implored authorities to urgently address this problem, emphasizing that the lifelong repercussions for these minors are catastrophic.
Mexico recently acknowledged child recruitment through the creation of the National Observatory for the Prevention of the Recruitment of Children and Adolescents (ONPRENNA). However, Reinserta argues that government efforts to protect and eliminate trafficking and corruption of minors are woefully inadequate.
Reinserta's closing statement calls for a stronger criminal justice system. "Despite the law stipulating that using minors for any type of crime is deemed trafficking, not a single person has been charged with this crime. A robust education system and safe schools are needed, so crime is not an alternative for Mexico's children," the statement concluded.
