A Kyrgyz woman who sold her 10-month-old daughter for the equivalent of $75 faces years behind bars on human-trafficking charges, prosecutors in the Central Asian republic said Monday.
The woman, from the northern town Balykchy, sold the child to residents of a nearby village for 4,000 Kyrgyz soms, purely for "monetary gain," the Prosecutor General's Office said in a statement cited by Interfax.
Seventy-five dollars is not a paltry sum in Kyrgyzstan, where the average monthly salary is about $100, according to World Bank statistics.
Although the incident took place in March, the case was only recently brought to the attention of prosecutors, the report said.
See also:
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.