Friday, March 28, 2008

Trafficking & the 2012 London Olympics



By Jill Sherman


From the Times Online:


The imminent arrival of thousands of construction workers for the 2012 Olympics [in London] could cause a surge in prostitution and the spread of sexually transmitted infections, health experts say. Olympics chiefs are being urged to address the impact of the predominantly male construction workforce, which is likely to total more than 100,000 over the next four years.

More than 1,000 people are already working on preparing the site, with a further 2,000 scheduled to begin arriving within weeks as work starts on the stadium.

Health organisations are warning that thousands of prostitutes, including trafficked women, are likely to arrive in the run-up to 2012. They are calling for extra staff in sexual health clinics to address a predicted rise in sexually transmitted infections and for preventive measures, such as sex leaflets in various languages and condom distribution.

The Terrence Higgins Trust (THT), the HIV and sexual health charity, is calling for an urgent meeting with the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) and the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games. Clinicians assessing the impact of the Sydney 2000 Games found a big increase in demand for sexual health services and a corresponding increase in sexually related diseases, mainly among casual workers, the trust said.


Figures
  • 100,000 construction workers are expected on or near the Olympic site in the next four years.
  • An estimated 10,000 sex workers were operating at the Sydney 2000 Olympics.
  • In Sydney 70,000 condoms for athletes went so fast that 20,000 more were ordered. Even these ran out before the Games ended Read the full article
Read the full article

1 comment:

  1. Anonymous6:36 AM

    September 29th at Cadogan Hall (london)

    The International Orchestra for Freedom are playing to raise awareness on Human Trafficking.

    Key Note Speach - Purna Sen - Head of Human Rights at The Commonwealth Secretariet
    Secondary speach- Abigial Stepnitz - Director of the Poppy Project

    Music:
    Siddique-Prayer for Humanity
    gulda -Cello Concerto
    Tchaikovsky - Symphony No.6

    Charity partners: The A21 Campaign, Stop the Traffick

    Tickets and info: www.cadoganhall.com

    Should be a really high impact event.

    Hope we can all go and take a stand on this issue.

    Julene

    ReplyDelete