The FACTS: The number of children in the world that have lost their mother or father, are parentless, or have been
abandoned…now exceeds 143 million.
In the past hour…
1,625 children were forced to live on the
streets by the death or abuse of an adult
1,667 children under the age of five died from malnutrition and vaccine-preventable
diseases
115 children became prostitutes
66 children under 15 were infected with HIV
257 children
were orphaned because of HIV/AIDS
Most children are under the age of fifteen and are…
Sleeping on concrete
beds and rancid garbage piles every night – streets, sewers, dumps
Scavenging amongst human waste and excreta
for rotting morsels and scraps to eat
Huffing glue and other substances in order to numb the cold, hunger, pain…and
shame
Prostituting themselves for basic food and shelter
Trafficked and sold into sexual bondage, even at five
years old and younger (see Sexual Exploitation)
Abused and brutalized by sexual predators, local gangs, corrupt police
officers, and slum lords
Victimized by HIV/AIDS-infected men who believe that sleeping with young virgins can cure
the disease
Recruited into lives of thievery, smuggling and drug dealing
Abducted to serve as child soldiers
or the sex slaves of soldiers
Exploited as child laborers or slaves in sweatshops
Executed by local businessmen
and officials who view them as a dirty pests interfering with trade and commerce
Sacrificed in occult/witchcraft rituals
Robbed
of childhoods; Robbed of self esteem; Robbed of innocence;
Robbed of hope
TODAY, 45000 CHILDREN WILL BECOME...ORPHANS.
(statistics
taken from
www.worldorphans.com)
