‘The youngest child I rescued from a brothel was just three years old' | VIDEO
A world where even toddlers are ruthlessly hunted down and sold for sex. A digital landscape where, with a single click, millions of explicit videos of babies, young girls and women are readily available at one's fingertips. A society of bystanders who remain silent, completely unbothered, until the day abuse knocks on their own front door.
It was about this profoundly dark era that renowned social activist and author Sunitha Krishnan spoke in Kozhikode, after accepting the MP Veerendra Kumar National Thought Leadership Award. Here is the complete transcript of Sunitha Krishnan’s deeply moving address at the award ceremony:
"I come from a dark world where human beings are brutally exploited for sex. That is where I work. I have been raising my voice for them for years. Yet, even in this modern age, what terrifies me the most is the chilling silence of humanity—the absolute indifference that says, 'as long as it doesn't affect me, why should I care?'
“A three-year-old toddler is the youngest child I have ever rescued from a brothel. Who wanted this baby? It was people among us. Men among us. It is from within their very midst that I stand and speak about these three-year-old, 10-year-old, and 20-year-old victims. This is where I wage my legal battles. This is the world I come from—a trade sector that generates a staggering 150 billion dollars in revenue.
“Even the United Nations has classified this sector as the fastest-growing criminal enterprise in the world. When I first started this work, things were much simpler. It was clear who the criminals were, who was putting children up for sale, and who they were working for. But today, technology has masked their faces. It has provided them with a protective shield. Now, only the victims are visible.
“According to data released by an international organisation, 300 million children across the globe are up for sale. That means 10 children are being sold every single second. A massive array of mobile applications has emerged to facilitate this—the modern face of human trafficking.
“When I investigated these apps, explicit videos of children from our own country appeared at my fingertips within minutes. I stated my requirement, and within three minutes, I received replies from two groups boasting 35,000 members. Menu cards to buy and sell human beings were sent to me, just like menu cards in a restaurant.
“Whether you want disabled children, tribal children or mentally challenged children—everything was readily available there. It cost me just ₹532. Within 10 to 15 minutes, I received the videos of 9,000 Indian children. This is the world we live in. Millions of children across the globe are being traded like this. Yet, after hearing all this, humanity remains silent, brushing it aside with a simple, 'I didn’t know’.
“It is deeply terrifying that we only react when we are personally struck. The current attitude is that we will only raise our voices if our own child is sold. Is this truly what we want? When a three-year-old, a five-year-old, or a 10-month-old baby is sold, who is buying them? It is our son, our brother or our father—it is someone from among us. And that is exactly why we remain silent.
“I gain nothing by making those listening to me sad or distressed. What I want, at the very least, is for you to stand up and raise your hand to say 'No'. We need the realisation that the child being exploited could be from our own home. We are surrounded by people who will fight their own siblings and drag a case all the way to the Supreme Court if they feel they are losing just five centimetres of land. Yet, when we learn that a child has been abused, we suddenly lose our voice."
The audience sat completely stunned and frozen by Sunitha Krishnan's words, before rising to their feet to give her a standing ovation. When Sunitha Krishnan requested the support of Mathrubhumi to give more strength to her mission, Mathrubhumi Managing Director M V Shreyams Kumar promised the gathering that the media house would extend its full and unwavering support to all her future endeavours.