Taipei, Aug. 7 (CNA) Of all the missing children and juveniles in Taiwan, more than 40 percent are females aged between 12 and 18, which is considerably higher than the ratio among males and a cause for concern, a child welfare organization said in a report released Monday.
According to the "Status Report on Missing Kids and Juveniles in Taiwan" released on the eve of Fathers' Day, there were 509 females aged between 12 to 18 among 1,246 missing children and juveniles reported to the Child Welfare League Foundation (CWLF) during the last 14 years, said CWLF Executive Director Wang Yu-min.
Females also dominate most of the runaway juveniles that left home to meet Internet friends, totaling 89 cases. These cases account for 7.1 percent of all cases and have increased dramatically in recent years, Wang said.
An encouraging fact is that 872 of the 1,246 missing children -- a little over 70 percent -- were found after an average of 154 days. However, less than 50 percent of missing children under 6 years of age were found.
The months that registered the most missing cases are March and September. "The fact reminds every parents that they should pay more attention to children during the winter and summer breaks, " said Wang.
However, the report appears to be woefully inaccurate, as National Police Agency records show that the number of missing children already exceeds 3,000.
A documentary recording the life stories of two families that have not found their missing children after more than 13 years but who have never give up searching, premiered at the press conference in the hope of boosting public support in the search for missing children.