Millions of children are in slavery. Girls as young as six work as maids in the Philippines, children break rocks in Ghana's quarries, young boys are abducted from their homes in South Asia and forced to be camel jockeys in the United Arab Emirates and girls are forced into prostitution in the United Kingdom.

The United Nations General Assembly is holding a Special Session on Children from 8 to 10 May. Heads of government, senior officials, as well as representatives from non-governmental organisations will decide what steps need to be taken in order to improve children's lives and assess progress made since the 1990 World Summit for Children. Despite commitments made ten years ago, child slavery is growing. One area of particular concern is trafficking.

"Hundreds of thousands of children are being enslaved through trafficking. Governments need to make combating this abuse a priority and ensure that the best interests of the children are at the centre of any anti-trafficking policy if the fight against trafficking is to be effective," Mary Cunneen Director of
Anti-Slavery says.

Governments around the world need to demonstrate political will in protecting children. International law developed to protect children, such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which the United States and Somalia have yet to ratify, and the International Labour Organization's Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention No. 182 need to be ratified and universally enforced. The key forces that lie at the root of this exploitation also need to be addressed, such as poverty, if children are going to be safe from slavery and work that is harmful to their health and well-being.

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