Burmese Children Bought and Sold by Army Recruiters

Source: Agence France-Presse

Children as young as 10 are being forcibly recruited into the Myanmar army, bought and sold by military recruiters desperate to swell their ranks, Human Rights Watch said in a report Wednesday.

The junta, plagued by high desertion rates and a lack of volunteers, is enabling the practice with military recruiters and civilians getting cash and other incentives for each new recruit, the rights group said.

"The government's senior generals tolerate the blatant recruitment of children and fail to punish perpetrators," said Jo Becker, children's rights advocate for Human Rights Watch.

"In this environment, army recruiters traffic children at will."

For the full report, please click here.