Stop Child Labor and Child Soldiers

When I was a monk in Burma I was able, with great difficulty, to travel to back areas normally never seen by foreigners. I personally witnessed child slave labor camps. Imagine your kids being removed from your famliy at eight or ten years old. They are taken to road works and forced to crush large boulders into gravel while armed soldiers lurk from nearby shaded spots.

This is really happening.

Here is a news report:

By Daniel Trotta

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Myanmar is filling the ranks of its depleted armed forces with children as young as 10 and may try to capture even more boys after the recent crackdown on pro-democracy protests, Human Rights Watch said on Tuesday.

The former Burma is so desperate to replenish its army after desertions and attrition that children are bought and sold by military recruiters. They are beaten and held as virtual prisoners while the government denies it is happening, the report said.
end

What can you do:

Put your Christmas shopping dollars to work by supporting organizations that are able to organize, lobby, and provide support.

Two such organizations are the US Campaign for Burma (http://www.uscampaignforburma.org)
and
www.Avaaz.org