Border guards in the northern border province of Ha Giang have saved seven children and five young women from being abducted into China.

However, they are just a few of the 36 Vietnamese children and 10 teenage girls allegedly kidnapped by just one ring of criminals and sold to childless families or into prostitution.

"Our success counted on the help of Chinese border soldiers," said Nguyen Xuan Hong, Commander of Ha Giang Border Guards.

"Kidnapping has long been a problem in three communes in Meo Vac District, Xin Cai, Son Vi and Thuong Phung bordering China," he said.

The border running through Meo Vac District is 40km long and traverses rough terrain. Guards say that it is very difficult to cross.

Inspectors lived in caves for weeks to follow the action of the kidnap ring. "Our mission was pretty harsh during winter," said Tran Phuc Hung, head of border investigation.

Culprits allegedly involved in the ring included Vang Mi Tinh, 28, and Vang Mi Gio, 26, of the Mong ethnic group. Others allegedly involved included Ly Mi The, Ly Po Si, Mua Thi Va and Trang Thi Gia.

Since the ring was destroyed late 2008, the border region has become more peaceful. In the first three months of this year, only one kidnapping has been reported.

Tough mission

Hong said that those under his command were never satisfied with their achievements. "Catching culprits is not so important as finding the missing people," he said.

Nguyen Van Phuong, head of the border guards’ mobile scout team, said criminals had become very bold, often targeting young boys and young women.

One mourning mother, Lau Thi Chia from Xin Cai Commune’s Po Chai Village, was powerless as she watched two men took her four-year-old son away.

"That night my husband was not at home. When my three children and I were sleeping, two men broke the door, entered my house and took my four-year-old son away," she said.

"I shouted for help, but one man crushed my neck with his hands."

Chia said those two particular men just wanted boys." If they had intended to take my two girls, I could not have stopped them," she said.

In another incident in Po Chai Village, kidnappers used weapons to stand over two girls, 16 and 18 years old. The took them away as their mothers watched. The incident happened last December in broad daylight as the victims were at market.

According to the border guards, criminals often co-operate with their peers from the other side of the border to transport victims into Chinese territory. Children are often sold to families that want a boy child, while the women and girls are sold to brothels.

The guards said they were deeply distressed to find that many of the culprits in human trafficking cases turned out to be close relatives of the victims, including grandfathers, uncles or cousins. One case even involved a mother selling her child.

A grandfather sold two grandsons for living expense in April, 2007. In another incident, Lung Thi Dinh sold her two-year-old son for money to buy tiles for the roof.

However, Hong insisted that the major reason for so many abductions in the region could be attributed to a very low awareness by local residents on how to protect their children.

Hong said ethnic minority people often let their children out of their sight. They were also easy going and often let relatives and trading partners stay overnight in their homes.

"We’ve screened many documentaries about the tactics of abductors and hosted mobile courts to raise the alarm, but this has not done much to help," he said.

Meo Vac District’s People’s Committee recently installed free telephone in three communes so residents can immediately report abductions to border guards.

"The sooner we receive information, the better hope we have of catching the culprits," Colonel Hong said. All the guards agreed that punishment for abductors must be heavier than the maximum of 20 years as at present as a warning to others.

"The Criminal Law’s articles 119 and 120 on the trafficking of children and women make it difficult for the prosecution and courts," said Nguyen Cong Hong, the Ministry of Justice’s deputy director of Laws, Criminal Affairs Department.

Hong said an amended law proposed to raise the highest punishment to life imprisonment instead of 20 years imprisonment as at present.