An 'adoption catwalk show' in Brazil which saw orphans as young as four years old parading in front of prospective foster parents has been linked to a slave market amid an outpouring of public fury.
About 18 Brazilian children trooped on to a stage inside a shopping center in Cuiaba, Mato Grosso state, hoping to catch the eye of potential adopters.
The local adoption agency billed the event as 'a night when suitors - people that are fit to adopt - can get to know the children that are eligible for adoption.'
However, the spectacle of orphans being made to pose on the catwalk has been slammed, with some even branding the treatment of the children to that expected of animals or slaves.
The president of the Mato Grosso Adoption Research and Support Association (Ampara) that organized the event said the local children's judge had authorized the show.
A spokesman for the Pantanal Shopping Centre said it "epudiates the objectification of children" yet believed that the event was to raise awareness about adoption in the state.
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