pedophiles the gambia

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A tourist wades into the bounding main with a small African kid in The gambia - where child sex abuse is rife

Gambian children are existence sold to British paedophiles for as petty as £2-a-time by their desperate parents, Sun Online can reveal.

Huge numbers of predators are taking advantage of lax laws in the poverty stricken African land to commence on sick child abuse holidays where they openly target little boys and girls.

Sun Online saw first manus how poor Gambian children tin can be vulnerable to British paedos when we visited the beach resorts that dot Kololi on the state's picturesque Atlantic coastline.

Our reporter was constantly shocked by the number of unaccompanied African minors he saw being cared for by eye-anile, Western men who did not appear to exist their biological fathers.

gambia pedophiles child british man

A man with a British accent holds a scared toddler in his arms

The encounters witnessed included a girl aged between 6 and eight having lunch with a balding, white haired man in a eating house filled with similarly aged tourists.

The same day we saw a stoutly built man in his 50s or 60s wading into the ocean gripping the hand of a tiny African child in white swimming shorts.

Equally unsettling was the sight of a Gambian toddler watching wide-eyed with fearfulness every bit a eye-aged white woman got into a fist fight with a young black prostitute at a popular embankment bar.

It was 11.30pm at dark and the air was thick with cigarette smoke. The kid, no older than two, was being held closely by a white man with a British accent.

Children sold for £2

Our investigation comes equally experts warn that the economic crisis unleashed past the collapse of travel house Thomas Cook is helping turn the former British colony into a "paedophile paradise" where perverts tin can operate unchecked.

Thomas Cook flew 45 per cent of The gambia's 100,000 annual visitors from the UK to the capital Banjul until it went into liquidation nether the weight of its debts in September.

The gambia map pedophiles

In an exclusive interview, Lamin Fatty, the National Coordinator of the Child Protection Alliance in Gambia, reveals that both male and female tourists are targeting African minors.

He warns: "Sex is cheap in my state and children are existence sold for as footling as 150 dalasis, or just over £two in your currency. Some of the parents know their children are being abused and they accept it considering they are so desperate for nutrient in their bellies.

"Others are too naïve to realise. They call back the Westerner is paying their bills and helping their boy or girl out of the kindness of their heart, while in reality they have bad intentions.

"Child abuse is going on all the fourth dimension in The The gambia and the government is not doing enough to put a stop to it.

The Gambia pedophiles

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2 school-historic period girls play at the anxiety of 2 men, their mums nowhere in sight

"Our children are being approached straight on the beaches or the street and child abusers from all over Europe including the UK are coming hither for this.

"I want to make clear that this does not just involve men simply as well developed women who are paying for sexual activity with teenage boys in The Gambia.

"We have laws that are supposed to end this from happening only they are not beingness enforced so we have become a paradise for paedophiles."

Locals 'desperate' later on Thomas Melt collapse

As tourism makes upwardly one-third of the land'south GDP, there are fears that businesses will become bust and locals will go hungry following an estimated 50 per cent drop in economic action that has already hit beach resorts.

Lawyer and children'due south rights abet Malick Jallow told Sunday Online: "While some tourists will always want to help poor Gambians, others will see this situation as an opportunity to exploit young children.

the gambia pedophiles britain

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Lamin Fat, National Coordinator of the Children'southward Protection Brotherhood, said this boy shouldn't exist in a bar so late at night, adding: "We practice non encourage physical affection with minors"

"The trouble is that the abuse is sometimes carried out with the blessing of the parents because they are so in demand.

"The perception is that white people, or 'toubabs' every bit they call them, take stacks of cash and these parents are often excited that their child has attracted the attention of a white man.

"It actually makes them feel proud then they give their permission for the boy or girl to go with the person and when the police try to question them they will non co-operate."

'She didn't wait comfortable at all'

Onetime Thomas Cook rep Anne Heap, 53, from Wigan, said: "These people are every bit poor as poor tin be — it's rare to run across a child wearing shoes — and there isn't whatever other trade for them outside tourism.

"Thomas Cook used to ever give usa an extra 10kg luggage allowance so the workers and passengers could bring aid boxes to The Gambia — basic things like wearing apparel, medicine and schoolhouse equipment.

"The commencement matter I thought of when we went under was, 'What is going to happen to people in The Republic of the gambia?' We were the only airline flying direct in that location.I've heard that crime has already shot up equally in that location is not plenty money coming in — the hand that feeds them is gone.

"Sexual activity tourism is already huge in The The gambia — some bars are like brothels — and I practice worry that more than children will go lured into prostitution to feed their families. When I was working there I would see old men walking with girls as immature as 10, 11 or 12. At that place is a night side to The Gambia.

"One fourth dimension when we were flight back to Manchester there was a British human in his 70s with a girl who was only about eight or nine. This was virtually eight years ago. I was then concerned nigh what was going on that I got chatting to him outside the toilet during the flight. I wanted to speak to the girl besides only she never left her seat, she didn't wait comfortable at all. I reported it and edge security later told me the man had been 'apprehended' but I was not able to find out what happened to him or the daughter afterward that."

Tots hand-in-paw with 'paedos'

We came across a number of tourists with young children in the West African resortCredit: My Story Media

There is no proof to propose that any of the men we pictured were paedophiles.

Notwithstanding the experts we showed our dossier of photos to said the police should have questioned them according to Gambian kid protection laws.

Lamin Fatty said: "This does worry me because, if the children are unaccompanied, they should not be lone in tourist areas without their parents.

"It is also forbidden for a child to be in a bar so belatedly at night and nosotros do non encourage concrete affection with minors.

"I work with young girls and boys and I would non hug them or pick them up, information technology is not advisable."

Malick Jallow added: "I would take questioned these men had I seen them myself. As a lawyer and an activist, I would want to know if they have the authorization to be caring for that child. Nosotros take a lot of good Samaritans coming to The Gambia only nosotros also have people who use charity as a forepart to hide their bad intentions.

"The security guards should have questioned these men but at that place is a civilization of inferiority here and they would have been scared to challenge a wealthy Westerner."

British tourists can however wing to Republic of the gambia via Lisbon with the TAP airline or via Casablanca with Purple Air Maroc. There is also a limited direct service run by 'The Gambia Experience' visitor and package deals can be snapped upward for just over £500 a person.

Pensioners taking teens to hotels

Older British women are famed for holidaying in Gambia, where some choice up African gigolosCredit: My Story Media

Health care assistant Lucy Mendy, 33, from Gloucester, was trying to enjoy a wintertime vacation in the country she has come to see as a second home — but says she was shocked by some of the things she had witnessed during her trip.

She said: "I've seen old men taking girls looking as young as xv or 16-years-old to their hotel room.

"Information technology made me experience sick and I wish I could take intervened, but this is not the United kingdom of great britain and northern ireland and I was scared what might have happened if I tried to confront them. People here are then poor, some of them will do anything for money, even if it means giving their bodies to a tourist."

Marjorie said the impact of Thomas Melt closing down was articulate to come across in the resort

Lucy's mum, pensioner Marjorie Botton, 68, also from Gloucester, added: "The collapse of Thomas Cook has hitting people so hard.

"They are getting half every bit many British tourists and that means they might not make enough money to go through the placidity flavour, which starts in April."

Dutch tourist Corina Bouwman also witnessed suspected child corruption during her two calendar week, wintertime vacation in December.

The social worker, 54, said: "I've seen a number of tiny African children walking around with big white men. On each occasion I idea, 'What is going on here? Where is the child'due south mother?' But I didn't want to accuse anyone in case I had misread the situation."

'White men approach fiddling boys and girls'

Father-of-four Abdullah Labamba, 48, runs a fruit stand next to one of the many hotels that line Kololi'south palm-tree fringed beach and says he has witnessed paedophiles targeting vulnerable child workers selling peanuts for less than £1 a handbag.

the gambia pedophiles britain

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Fruit seller Abdullah Labamba, pictured, says paedos oft target vulnerable child workers selling peanuts

He said: "I've seen white men approach the little boys and girls right here on the beach. I do my best to stop them. "I tell the children, 'Get out of here, this is non a safe place for yous.' The children will run away just they ordinarily come up dorsum. It's shocking."

"Their parents are desperate for money and they know they won't be immune home until they accept sold at least v bags. Some men endeavour to have advantage of that past offer them £50 for the whole handbasket. And then they will ask them to come back to go somewhere private."

Child abuse scourge

Tragically, kid abuse is now endemic in The The gambia, where sixty per cent of the 1.9m population live below the poverty line.

Previous research has shown that paedophiles frequently pose as charity workers and Good Samaritans so they can befriend poor families — and UNICEF has warned that The Gambia is i of Africa'south top destinations for child sexual activity tourism.

The Gambian government meanwhile has tried to cleft down and in 2013 introduced new laws assuasive them to seize hotel properties if children are knowingly driveling on the premises.

They as well pledged to give out "hefty fines" and "stiff sentences" to paedophiles that are defenseless.

But incredibly there has been only i successful prosecution since laws were tightened and that man ended up being pardoned past the president.

Svein Agesandakar pedophile gambia

Svein Agesandakar was jailed for sexual offences against children

Norwegian teacher Svein Agesandakar, 57, was institute guilty of abusing half dozen children, the youngest aged iii, in 2006.

The court heard how he had tricked his way into a difficult-upward Gambian family past posing as a practice-gooder, giving the parents sacks of rice and new shoes in exchange for time alone with their big brood of six kids in a hotel room.

The paedophile had split up convictions for child abuse in Norway but was sentenced to simply iii years in jail.

So, in 2018 President Adama Barrow decided to pardon him for reasons that accept never been explained. The pardon was later revoked amidst a public outcry but experts fearfulness his case has given a dark-green light to other paedophiles.

ECPAT is the only child rights charity that is solely focusing on catastrophe the sexual exploitation of children.

Children in all countries of the world are at risk of trafficking and prostitution, likewise as online dangers such equally grooming, sextortion and the proliferation of child sexual abuse images.

In recent years, the travel and tourism sector has imperilled millions of children worldwide every bit travelling kid sex offenders discover new victims.

To end these crimes, knowledge and evidence must be of the highest possible quality to inform decisions and guide action.

Predator free

In October concluding twelvemonth an official UN investigation found that Gambia's tourist areas keep to exist a dangerous place for children and that predators now stay in motels and individual apartments then they can avoid prying optics.

UN Special Rapporteur Maud de Boer-Buquicchio reported: "The rare instances when complaints are lodged with the police force are not duly acted upon, the gathering of compelling evidence is delayed, and investigation and prosecution is stalled, resulting in victims or witnesses withdrawing their complaints.

"Some cases have also reportedly been dismissed on the grounds that statements by kid victims were allegedly inconsistent."

Our written report comes after the UK government was slammed for declining to protect children overseas from British predators.

A study by the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) plant more needs to exist done to brand sure offenders operating in poor countries similar The Republic of the gambia are defenseless and prosecuted.

Calling for a new national program to tackle the problem, Debbie Beadle, Director of Programmes at the child protection arrangement ECPAT Great britain, said: "We promise that by bringing these institutional failings to light, the UK can get a world leader in tackling the abuse of vulnerable children globally, and that child victims away are no longer 'under the radar' of regime.

Global manhunt for Aussie paedo monster Simon Gordon Davies who ran child sex ring from clemency set up to 'assistance' homeless kids

End Kid Prostitution and Trafficking - ECPAT is conducting primary inquiry, too as bringing together information from diverse sectors and countries around the globe, to form a reliable and professional range of bookish sources.The charity supports the protection of children and empowerment of 113 members in 98 countries - including The Republic of the gambia. You can donate to ECPAT here .