Vietnamese men sentenced for trafficking Chinese children

Deutsche Presse Agentur
Published: Wednesday August 30, 2006

Hanoi- Two Vietnamese men were sentenced to prison terms of four and five years for trafficking Chinese children to Cambodia, a judge said Wednesday. Nguyen Van Cuong, 35, was sentenced to five years and Lam Thanh Hong, 34, to four years for their part in a ring of child traffickers that sold mostly young girls to brothels.

The two were arrested last October, according to Nguyen Duc Sau, chief judge of the city' criminal court.

They were found guilty Tuesday of bringing 19 Chinese children through Vietnam and selling them to other brokers, who took them to Cambodia, presumably to brothels, Sau said.

Cuong was caught with two children in Ho Chi Minh City last October, but the judge said the leaders of the trafficking ring remain at large.

A Vietnamese border official said earlier this week that trafficking cases of women and children are on the rise, with 167 known cases in the first six months of this year, up more than 60 per cent.

Vietnam and China held a joint conference in Hanoi this week focusing on catching traffickers and educating families to protect their children.

© 2006 DPA - Deutsche Presse-Agenteur