Over the past five years, Nghe An province has seen 114 cases of child abuse.

The People's Committee of Nghe An province has just submitted a report to the National Assembly's Supervisory Delegation and the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs on the implementation of policies and laws on preventing and combating child abuse from January 2015 to June 2019.

Accordingly, during these five years, 114 children in the province were victims of abuse (108 girls, 6 boys). Of these, 82 children were sexually abused; 26 were trafficked illegally; and 6 were subjected to violence.

The suspect, Tran Minh Giao, committed acts of sexual abuse against a 7-year-old child in Do Luong district. (Photo: Archival image)

Among these, there are prominent cases such as the case of a second-grade child in Nghi Loc district being raped by an eighth-grade male student; seven individuals in Hoang Mai town engaging in sexual intercourse and indecent acts with people aged 13 to under 16; and a teacher at Hung Binh Primary School (Vinh City) committing indecent acts with a fifth-grade student.

Also in the past five years, four children have died, nine have become pregnant, six have dropped out of school, four have suffered injuries, and 91 have experienced other physical and mental impacts due to abuse.

The police force, in coordination with international organizations (Blue Dragon), successfully rescued and handed over 16 children who were victims of human trafficking and abuse to their families.

The investigating agency has initiated legal proceedings in 111 cases involving 148 defendants. The number of criminal cases that have concluded investigation and been transferred to the People's Procuracy at the same level for prosecution is 109 cases involving 145 defendants.

Child abuse cases occurred throughout the province, but were more prevalent in rural, mountainous, and remote areas (73 out of 114 cases, accounting for approximately 64%) – areas with low levels of education and where parents of the victims are often negligent and pay little attention to their children.

Nguyen Van Khanh (born in 2001, residing in Tam Hop commune, Quy Hop district) was sentenced to 6 years in prison for the crime of "Rape of a person under 16 years old". (Photo: Archival image)

More dangerously, in recent years, a new type of crime has emerged in mountainous areas and among ethnic minority communities. This involves perpetrators targeting families with pregnant women, luring them to China to give birth, and then selling the babies to Chinese buyers (for between 80 and 140 million VND per case).

Through investigations in Ky Son district, by October 2018, the police force had verified and clarified 6 cases where women admitted to selling their babies in China after giving birth…

According to authorities, the majority of those who commit acts of child abuse have a certain relationship with the child's relatives or the child themselves, such as parents, friends, neighbors, teachers, caregivers, or acquaintances.

The methods used in these cases are also diverse, but mainly involve perpetrators exploiting relationships with children or their relatives to gain access to and commit acts of abuse against children, including sexual abuse and child trafficking.

The modus operandi of these individuals is that once they have gained access to a child, they use every trick to exploit the child's trust or influence, or to entice them (by giving them money, allowing them to use their phone, inviting them out, giving them food, etc.), or threaten them to commit acts of abuse.

The nature and severity of child abuse cases are becoming increasingly dangerous, with some cases involving children who are abused at a very young age, causing devastating consequences for the children, their families, and society.