You should not buy food for these children and you should not buy the trinkets they sell. This teaches them to trust strangers. You may be decent but the next person may be a pedophile that lures them by giving them food or being "kind" to them. Sihanoukville actually has an amazing street child organization, M'Lop Tapang, that helps hundreds of children like the ones pictured. As long as tourists feed them and give them money it is hard for aid organizations to get them to attend school and feeding programs that can better prepare them for a promising future. In Phnom Penh, The Riverkids Project or Friends International help street children like those pictured. You never want to encourage children to engage in acts that may put them at further risk. It is really hard to say no but saying yes to their requests really does them more harm. Consider contributing to locally based organizations when you travel that help the kids you see and feel sorry for. Childsafe.org has great tips for travelers about things you should and should not do when traveling. We teach our children in the US to avoid strangers. We should have the same standards for children when traveling abroad.

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