Shop to Stop Slavery

Press Release:

Shop to Stop Slavery Releases 2010 Ethical Christmas & Holiday Gift Guide Learning how to be a socially conscious shopper this holiday season has just been made easier by Shop to Stop Slavery.

Jacksonville, FL, November 8, 2010 — ShoptoStopSlavery.com, a new concept website devoted to raising awareness about human trafficking, has released its very own, unique 2010 Ethical Christmas & Holiday Gift Guide. The premier edition of the guide aims to help shoppers make ethical choices in the gifts they offer this holiday season.

Many of the products purchased in the Western Hemisphere are produced by slaves or exploited groups of people. Robin Rossmanith, founder of Shop to Stop Slavery, states “It is a shame that the items that bring joy to our children, friends and family members are created in a manner that brings suffering to others.”

Consumers who are concerned about making socially conscious shopping choices can make a difference by purchasing items with the “fair trade certified” label or those shown to be made ethically. Through such purchases, they are supporting manufacturers and brands that are committed to not exploiting others. Luckily there are many options available for fairly made product purchases. However, sometimes consumers have to spend hours researching to find the right gift.

The 2010 Ethical Christmas & Holiday Gift Guide is a compilation of almost 100 US based stores that carry fair trade and/or ethically made products. The guide includes links to stores for easy access by the viewer. The Ethical Christmas & Holiday Gift Guide will make socially conscious shopping easier for the consumer. The gift guide can be viewed at www.ShopToStopSlavery.com/Gift-Guide and is also available for download.

The 2010 Ethical Christmas & Holiday Gift Guide was created by Robin Rossmanith, founder of http://www.shoptostopslavery.com. Robin has a background in retail sales, as well as extensive knowledge of human trafficking. After discovering that 27 million people worldwide are living in slavery and a shocking number of them were right here in the United States, Robin Rossmanith, a Jacksonville, Florida mother of 3 school age children, committed herself to becoming an activist for the cause. Robin became the co-chair of the Northeast Florida Human Trafficking Task Force, in 2010, leading individuals and agencies in a community wide effort to prevent human trafficking, rescue and restore victims and prosecute traffickers.

Also in 2010, Robin began ShoptoStopSlavery.com, a website dedicated to informing consumers about products made with forced labor and providing opportunities for consumers to purchase slave free goods. Shop to Stop Slavery seeks to engage everyone in the efforts to end human trafficking. “Even the seemingly little things, like the Christmas gifts you buy, can make a big impact towards ending the exploitation of those people worldwide who are most risk.”

For additional information, contact Robin at 1-904-838-5339 or online at www.ShoptoStopSlavery.com.

ShoptoStopSlavery.com is a blog created by anti-human trafficking activist Robin Rossmanith, outlining ways to increase awareness and help eliminate modern day slavery. As the co-chairperson of an anti-human trafficking task force, she has become intimately aware of the risks posed by these types of crimes.

To get a copy of the 2010 Ethical Christmas & Holiday Gift Guide, go to www.ShoptoStopSlavery.com.

International Sanctuary

According to their website: International Sanctuary works to rehabilitate girls rescued from sexual slavery, provides them with marketable training, and empowers them with the skills they need to sustain themselves, pursuing better futures filled with hope. he girls are paid 100% above fair trade wage.

Each girl has a bank account where her earnings are deposited and saved for her future when she transitions out of the home. The Fair Trade Federation is an association that was established as a global movement to build equitable and sustainable partnerships in order to alleviate poverty. Fair trade wage is calculated according to each country's economic scale. Fair Trade products ensure that items were not made by slave labor. The additional funds cover the material cost, shipping, and tax.

The concept of Purchase with Purpose™ is that consumers should have the opportunity to use their money in a powerful way. When you buy from iSanctuary, you not only receive the merchandise, you also change lives. Purchasing a product from iSanctuary provides a foundation for survivors futures. Proceeds offer rescued girls vocational training, education, and monetary savings upon their transition from the aftercare home.

To view their products, click here.

Nomi Network Fall Collection

The Nomi Network has released its new fall collection. The items are designed in New York and made in Cambodia with recycled rice-paper material by survivors of sexual trafficking and women at-risk. Click view the fall collection and other items, click here.

Buy Her Bag Not her Body is created by Nomi Network, a non-profit organization working to eradicate sexual slavery and the trafficking of women. They have created a partnership between the fashion industry and cause-driven, well-designed merchandise made by at-risk women and survivors of sexual exploitation, providing them with fair, sustainable employment opportunities. 100% of the profit is reinvested into training and career development programs for women.

For more information about their work,visit www.nominetwork.org.

Reaching Out to Youth: Comic Book on The Stories of Trafficking Survivors

HTP Readers - We have a special post for you! Olga Trusova, a Fulbright Fellow who researched issues of trafficking, education and prevention in Ukraine and Dan Archer, a comics-journalist from California and founder of www.archcomix.com have teamed up to produce Borderland, a comic book based on the stories of trafficking victims to help raise awareness particularly among youth. Please see more information from the authors below as well as a way to get involved!

Borderland comic is coming soon!
As many of you know, we have been working on a comic called Borderland over the past year. In Borderland, we wanted to explore the human trafficking equation from a new perspective—to challenge our understanding of this complex issue. Borderland tells seven stories about human trafficking based on real testimonies from survivors. From a pastry maker in Warsaw to a waitress in Istanbul, the underground world of human trafficking touches every aspect of modern life. Often in surprising and unlikely ways. We are thrilled to announce that Borderland will be printed and distributed to schools and youth in Ukraine by the International Organization for Migration this fall. Now we are looking for ways to reach a similar audience in the United States. Please, take a speak peak at the first story from Borderland on our website: http://www.borderlandcomics.com and pre-order your full copy on Kickstarter: http://kck.st/dfcJUS

Support Borderland on KickStarter
By pitching in you can help us raise $8,000 on KickStarter to support and complete this project. We have two goals: to print and distribute a hard copy of the comic in the U.S., complete with extensive footnotes, research notes and further links; and to create an interactive iPhone/iPad app to promote awareness of the issue to a younger, tech-savvy U.S. audience. By pledging as little as $5, you can help make this happen and, as a bonus, will get various goodies such as a signed hard copy of the comic book, posters, behind the scenes pack, your name in the acknowledgements page, and more. Go to http://kck.st/dfcJUS and pledge!

About the Authors
Olga Trusova, a Fulbright Fellow from Stanford University, spent a year conducting research and collecting authentic stories told by victims of human trafficking in Eastern Europe. Dan Archer, a comics-journalist from California, a founder of www.archcomix.com and 2010 John S. Knight Journalism Fellow, has turned these testimonies into comics to create a comic book anthology project titled Borderland. The project began with a belief that as consumers of various goods and services, people should be aware of where those goods and services come from and at what cost. The U.S. government has tremendous influence on foreign governments and their policies, therefore it is important to bring its citizens' attention to such a powerful issue through an innovative combination of comic art and interactive technology. By reading Borderland, you help make the change!

I also had a chance to interview Olga Trusova, one of the co-authors, about this effort. Here a few of her responses:

EG: What about your research in Ukraine led you to believe that a comic book would be a good way to spread the message about trafficking?

OT: About a year ago I came to IDEO's Social Impact Lab with a question of "How might we prevent human trafficking?" that I was trying to answer as an upcoming Fulbright Fellow in Ukraine. A lot has happened since our initial brainstorm and I'm glad to share that one of the solutions proposed by IDEO folks back then has now become a reality! I decided to focus on comics and interactive storytelling as a way to engage with young audiences in order to raise awareness about this issue. It will be printed and distributed by the International Organization for Migration in 136 schools across four regions of Ukraine in the first pilot this Fall.

EG: Even though it is through a comic book medium, do you feel young students are able to understand human trafficking despite the complexity and difficulty of the material?

OT: I've conducted a number of focus groups with students in Ukraine and found that they were very excited to see comics about Ukrainians in Ukrainian. A lot of them were familiar with manga and American comics, so it was an easy medium for them to understand. I was also glad to see how many discussions sparked after the feedback session (with "Lera's Story" in particular, students were wondering why Lera felt unhappy in the end, how she got her job, why she wanted to find her mother in the first place, and so on). That is really the point of this comic - to promote an open dialogue about a taboo subject in a society that is highly affected by this horrific issue. While NGOs put together comprehensive materials with statistics, hot line info, and case studies, youth don't really relate to such dry documents and often prefer to read comics and play video games. Yet they are the ones who will be making life changing decisions soon. My goal was to start a mind shift in how we think about human trafficking in addition to teaching kids tips and tricks on how to avoid it.

EG: Will the stories be redone in any way for a U.S. audience compared with the Ukrainian series?

OT: In Borderland, I wanted to explore the human trafficking equation from a new perspective—to challenge our understanding of this complex issue. The comic will be available in Ukrainian, Russian, and English for a wider reach. This way it'll be used as a preventative tool among youth in Ukraine on the one hand, while on the other - it'll serve as a way for spreading awareness in the West.

Education Professionals and Anti-Trafficking

In her book, The Slaves Across the Street, Theresa Flores recounts her experience of sex slavery while attending school. She notes that, despite extreme behavioral changes and other indicators, none of her teachers or other school professionals reported or spoke with her about her situation. Though Flores experienced violence at school from her controllers, went from a straight A student to a struggling student, and was threatened and manipulated in front of teachers by her traffickers, no teacher intervened.

Flores' case shows what can go horribly wrong when education professionals are not aware or trained to recognize human trafficking. They are also in a position to make an incredible difference when they are aware and trained. Benjamin Skinner tells the story of Little Hope, a young girl who was held as a domestic slave in Florida after being brought to the US from Haiti. In his book, A Crime So Monstrous, Skinner describes the horrible abuse endured by the young girl, who ultimately was able to escape her situation through a connection she made with a teacher at a modeling school.

Trafficking survivors, whether they are survivors of labor or sex trafficking, face extreme challenges that do not end after they get out of the trafficking situation. Many were unable to pursue education before leaving slavery, and many want to and need to pursue more education in order to gain economic independence. Education professionals need to also be trained to work with and meet the unique needs of survivors.

Last fall, the Department of Education released a factsheet for education professionals, including information on human trafficking, trafficking in the US, and what to do if you suspect trafficking is occurring. The factsheet also provides a list of redflags and potential indicators for trafficking, including indicators education professionals are in a unique position to be able to see or likely to encounter:

A victim:

• Has unexplained absences from school for a period of time, and is therefore a truant
• Demonstrates an inability to attend school on a regular basis
• Chronically runs away from home
• Makes references to frequent travel to other cities
• Exhibits bruises or other physical trauma, withdrawn behavior, depression, or fear
• Lacks control over her or his schedule or identification documents
• Is hungry-malnourished or inappropriately dressed (based on weather conditions or surroundings)
• Shows signs of drug addiction

Additional signs that may indicate sex-related trafficking include:

• Demonstrates a sudden change in attire, behavior, or material possessions (e.g., has expensive items)
• Makes references to sexual situations that are beyond age-specific norms
• Has a “boyfriend” who is noticeably older (10+ years)
• Makes references to terminology of the commercial sex industry that are beyond age specific norms; engages in promiscuous behavior and may be labeled “fast” by peers

This factsheet is a useful first step for educators, but like with most efforts in anti-trafficking, additional work is necessary. Education professionals need to be trained and supported to recognize and report trafficking and support potential victims and survivors. In some cases, they may be a victims only connection away from their traffickers.

Ending Child Trafficking through Prevention

From the The Atlanta Journal-Constitution by Jonathan Todres:

As Haiti grapples with numerous tragedies following its recent earthquake, another horror story has emerged: Many children left homeless there now risk being trafficked. Only this is not a natural disaster, but one created entirely by humans.

Child trafficking is not new to Haiti, or to any other part of the world. It is a global phenomenon that victimizes millions of children, including many here in the United States. . .

Over the past decade, the United States and many other governments have taken significant actions to combat human trafficking, but their approach is flawed. Little attention is paid to the ultimate goal — prevention. In all my research over the past decade, I haven’t found any evidence suggesting that child trafficking has declined. . . In fact, it might be increasing.

Although the international community has agreed upon a sensible, comprehensive three-pronged approach to combating trafficking, often referred to as the three P’s — 1. punishment of perpetrators; 2. protection of victims; and 3. prevention — in reality governments have focused primarily on the first step and, to some extent, on the second. . .

Prevention, however, has been largely ignored, even though without it we will be caught in an endless cycle of chasing perpetrators and providing victims services after the harm to children has already occurred.

Read the full article here.

Like Todres, I think that we need to increase the discussion about prevention, both because it is often ignored or dealt with lost and because it is vitally important to completely eradicating slavery. As Todres notes, this conversation must include efforts to address the ways we contribute to slavery, particularly in our choices as consumers. Todres' points about engaging many different sectors, from health-care workers to law enforcement to corporations to the education sector, are also well taken. I would argue, though, that we must also make sure that survivors themselves and people at risk for trafficking take a leading role in this discussion. Prevention may not be the most glamorous of the "three Ps," but it's one that we must more seriously and actively address if we want to end slavery.

Photo taken by Kay Chernush for the State Department.

The Sao Sary Foundation

In an earlier post, I wrote that by the time someone has been trafficked, we've already failed. The Sao Sary Foundation (SSF) of Cambodia aims to prevent trafficking before it occurs by protecting children from violence, exploitation, abuse and discrimination. On the most recent Trafficking In Persons Report, Cambodia was rated as a Tier Two Watch List Country, meaning that "Government of Cambodia does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Despite these overall efforts, the government did not show evidence of progress in convicting and punishing human trafficking offenders – including complicit public officials – and protecting trafficking victims."

SSF works strategically to prevent trafficking in Cambodia by identifying children who are at high risk. For example, while SSF supports boys and girls, "a special emphasis is placed on protecting girls older than ten years old, as statistics show that they represent the highest risk of being trafficked, primarily for sexual exploitation. Moreover, girls are the most likely to be deprived of the chance to attend school."

According to their website, SSF's mission is to achieve lasting improvements for children living in poverty in Cambodia's poorest communities, through a process that unites people across cultures and adds meaning and value to their lives by:

• Enabling deprived children, their families and their communities to meet their basic needs and to increase their ability to participate in and benefit from their societies.
• Inspiring deprived children, their families and their communities to socially and economically empower themselves to be agents of change in their own lives and for a more equitable world.
• Preventing and responding to violence, exploitation and abuse against children- including commercial sexual exploitation, trafficking, child labour and harmful traditional practices, such as female genital mutilation/cutting and child marriage.

SSF provides a variety of services under their Child Protection Program and Livelihood Program, including food security, safe-drinking water/sanitation, basic/emergency needs assistance, and a range of educational programs. One particularly exciting progam is Together for Rights, which works to "mobilize young Cambodian people at-high risk for being trafficked that are under care by the Sao Sary Foundation to become human rights activists."

Unfortunately, according to Vichetr Uon, Executive Director and Founder of SSF, "Sao Sary Foundation is facing an immediate crisis - due to lack of timely funding we may have to terminate our Child Protection Program which currently assists 50 vulnerable children in care ranging from room and board, medical care, education, and vocational skills training. Our program affords them the opportunity to be children and not have to worry about the burdens of finding work to support their families. Such desperation makes them vulnerable to being trafficked."

Click here to donate. Click here for information about volunteer opportunities. Click here for in-kind donations information.

Determinants of Trafficking: Understanding the problem and the actors

The starting point for understanding the problem of trafficking and finding a solution is to figure out what we think and know about the problem. So this is where I started.

Recently, I read a report which said, half the districts in India are affected by human trafficking. I have read similar reports on different countries across the globe, and each report claims the problem exists because people know either nothing or very little about trafficking. While this may be true, what confused me is the fact that even though there are people or groups who know more than others, it is not always easy to figure out what those people or groups precisely think about the problem.

As I read more, I want to know what everyone thinks of the problem. To keep this exercise structured, I have broken down the study into multiple parts. Today's post is an attempt to understand the factors that influence activities of victims, exploiters, and buyers.

PART I: Determinants of Trafficking: Understanding the problem and the actors

It is crucial to understand all the actors involved in human trafficking as well as the dynamics between the actors and between the actors and the environment.

There have been many articles written on human trafficking, but there is no consensus on what the necessary conditions are to create and maintain human trafficking, i.e. what causes human trafficking and what keeps it going? The answers of course range from political factors such as war and conflict to social factors such as gender discrimination. Perhaps we can never have a uniform answer to these questions. It seems that only now we're beginning to agree on a definition of trafficking so it is hard to believe we will be able to find a set of common determinants of trafficking so soon. Hence, I am very interested in learning what everyone thinks about the questions below and where we differ in our ideas - I hope this exercise will help us see the problem from different perspectives. The goal of this post is to start a discussion on determinants of trafficking and to learn from others' views.

1. What conditions are necessary for trafficking to occur? What (plausible) assumptions can we make about the type of factors that influence trafficking and what makes these assumptions plausible?
• For example, in terms of economic drivers, we know poverty and high level of unemployment are some of the (essential) conditions traffickers look for in recruitment areas , but they may not be causes of trafficking, but rather conditions for it. There may be poor communities which may not be be suitable for 'recruitment' because those communities, for example, may not have well connected criminal networks.
  Categories:
1. Personal: literacy, communication channels, home environment, etc.
   
2. Economic: debt, high levels of unemployment, etc. :
   
• For example, we've read globalization may have created conditions that make it easy for criminal networks to flourish and hence for trafficking to occur. In this case, we would attempt to understand precisely how globalization creates these conditions.
  
3. Political: war, conflicts, exclusion by caste or some other group, etc.
   
4. Social: gender discrimination, marital status, etc.
   
5. Geographic: forced migration due to scarcity of water, etc.
2. How are the necessary conditions for trafficking (from question 1) created and maintained?
3. Who can we classify as exploiters (trafficker, pimps, etc) ? What assumptions can we make about the exploiters?
   
4. What assumptions can we make about the buyers? Who (and what process) creates the demand?
• We've read that trafficking enables "commodification" of humans. We also know that the demand for any commodity is much more complex than just the need of the buyer. Hence, what are these other variables that make understanding this demand and the buyers so difficult and complex?
5. Are we missing something? Who else plays a role and how important is it?

Input from everyone would be extremely helpful and I look forward to a discussion about the questions in this post.

Human Trafficking and the EU

On October 19th, European Union marked the EU Anti-Trafficking Day. As the European Union inches closer to adopting a treaty that could, among other things, increase the EU's anti-trafficking work, it makes sense to consider the reality of trafficking in the EU as well as the EU's role in addressing trafficking as a supranational entity.

According to an article in the AFP, "the United Nations said on Sunday [October 18th] there could be around 270,000 victims of human trafficking in the European Union and urged greater efforts to combat the illegal trade." The article goes on to report that "Authorities in Europe were aware of only a tiny proportion of the victims, said the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), estimating there were 30 times more people affected than were known about."Human trafficking is also extremely underprosectued in Europe, according to the United Nations. Bernama.com cites a "report by the Press Trust of India (PTI) [on a] study that finds that fewer people are convicted for human trafficking in Europe than for less-frequent crimes like kidnapping."

While such incredible disparities between the number of victims and the number of victims identified are a universal norm around the world, action at the EU level is vital for effectively combating slavery in Europe. Near the end of October, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Special Representative for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, Eva Biaudet, and the Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, Ambassador Janez Lenarcic issued a statement underscoring the importance of the EU in addressing trafficking. A press release from the OSCE quotes Biaudet as saying "Fighting trafficking means having zero tolerance towards exploitation, particularly exploitation of women and children. . .If we fail to combat the increased tolerance of exploitation, the effects of the global crisis will be felt in our socio-economic development for decades to come."

The statement highlights different EU-level policies and programs that have a role in combating slavery. The report also addresses the role of the economic crisis in increasing the number of people vulnerable to trafficking, pointing to the EU's role in economic development and immigration policy, both of which impact people's vulnerability to trafficking situation. They applaud the EC Proposal for a Council Framework Decision on preventing and combating trafficking in human beings, and protecting victims for its efforts to establish an EU-level policy that focuses on victims' needs, while addressing prevention and prosecution.

The EU also hosted the Towards EU Global Action against Trafficking in Human Beings Conference in late October. Its goals were:

• "to strengthen the EU policy ands action against trafficking in a the external dimension where action previously has not been taken comprehensively,
• to contribute to development of the EU’s increasingly important partnerships with third countries and in that context a particular challenge, i.e. trafficking,
• to consult with all concerned stakeholders in view of the Action Oriented Paper,
• to collect and collate best practices and concrete proposals for action against trafficking in partnership between the ERU and third countries."

In her welcome statement to the conference, Beatrice Ask, Minister for Justice, stated "But the work done so far is not enough. We need to broaden our approach. The main purpose of this conference is to strengthen the co-operation between government administrations, international institutions and NGOs in countries of origin, transit and destination. There is a mutual dependence between us in order to effectively fight and prevent trafficking in human beings. We have to work together, and we need to step up our efforts."

Minister Ask's words are applicable to all of us involved in working to end modern-day slavery.

OSCE Conference in Vienna

Link Between Economic Crisis and Escalation in Human Trafficking Highlighted

The global economic downturn may fuel human trafficking because it exacerbates many of the root causes, including poverty, gender inequality, and the demand for cheap labor. As unemployment rates climb, many people are driven into increasingly vulnerable positions. There is already evidence that traffickers are exploiting this as vital remittances and legitimate labor opportunities shrink.













To explore this link, the OSCE organized a high-level conference that opened in Vienna on September 14th. The conference focuses on prevention and examines the ways in which a declining global economy is likely to exacerbate human trafficking.

According to US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who opened the conference with a video address, "new economic pressures are likely to aggravate the problem further, so this conference comes at a time of renewed urgency. It is an opportunity to place a renewed focus on prevention and the root causes of trafficking. Together we must implement a comprehensive approach that both confronts criminals and cares for survivors."

Read the full article

Prevention

By the time someone has been trafficked, we've already failed. Obviously efforts to help victims, empower survivors, and punish perpetrators are extremely vital. At the same time, ultimately we should be working towards a world where trafficking does not occur in the first place. Prevention efforts can be nebulous, though, and even with the best of intentions can do more harm than good. A few weeks ago I attended a panel on preventing human trafficking. Numerous experts who are working in the anti-trafficking movement in various capacities expressed some common themes about what needs to happen to address the roots of trafficking.

Denise Brennan, an associate professor in the Department of Anthropology at Georgetown University, is the author of What's Love Got to Do With It? Transnational Desires and Sex Tourism in Sosua, the Dominican Republic. She is currently working on a book about survivors of human trafficking entitled Starting Over: Life After Trafficking into Forced Labor in the United States. Brennan suggests that efforts to prevent human trafficking must begin with efforts to promote the rights of migrants. From her research she has found that migrants are extremely vulnerable to trafficking because even when they are not trafficked, their basic rights are often violated. Since they are treated as though they have no rights, they are also less likely to come forward to law enforcement when they are exploited. Brennan also argued that migrants rights groups must be a part of the anti-trafficking conversation. She also advocated for increased opportunities for human trafficking survivors to connect with one another and to shape the anti-trafficking movement.

Martina Vandenberg is a partner at Jenner and Block LLP, and she does pro bono representation of women trafficked to the US for forced labor, including civil litigation on behalf of survivors. She echoed many of Brennan's points about migrants rights, and highlighted several prevention efforts that have actually been harmful. First, she argued that efforts to discourage migration do not work and ultimately leave migrants more vulnerable when they do migrate.

Vandenberg also said that anti-prostitution efforts are counterproductive, making women more vulnerable to commercial sexual exploitation. As a corollary, she pointed out that prostitutes can become victims of human trafficking; the idea that if someone once consented to being a sex worker means that she can never be trafficked is both false and extremely harmful. Finally, she argued against efforts to buy people out of slavery, pointing out that such efforts actually increase the demand for slavery.

Vandenberg went on to discuss what should be being done to prevent human trafficking, focusing on the root causes. She emphasized that this work is not glamorous, but it is necessary if we are serious about preventing this human rights abuse.

First, we need to work to fight discrimination against women and girls. Statistically, women and girls still make up the majority of trafficking victims, and due to gender discrimination, they are especially vulnerable to trafficking. On a related note, Vandenberg argues that anti-trafficking efforts must go hand-in-hand with work to address domestic violence. She noted that sometimes money is diverted from domestic violence work to anti-trafficking work, which actually can make people more vulnerable to trafficking when they are desperate to leave a domestic situation and lack options.

In a slightly different direction, Vandenberg advocated for due diligence: we need to seriously look at where US' money is going, particularly in military contracts. She also addressed deterrence, including criminal prosecution and civil litigation on behalf of survivors. Finally, she also discussed the importance about educating migrants about their rights and enforcing labor laws.

Ben Skinner, a fellow at the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, journalist, and author of A Crime So Monstrous: Face-to-Face with Modern-Day Slavery, focused his remarks on a call to action. He argued that slavery is the main human rights issue of our generation, and how we respond to this atrocity will be a sign of our commitment to a more just world. Preventing human trafficking, he suggested, must start with each of us and the daily choices that we make.

On a personal note, I have been thinking about prevention a lot lately. This summer I am interning with an agency doing casework with people who are homeless or at risk of being homeless. These people are extremely vulnerable to numerous forms of exploitation. The Colorado Advisory Committee on Homeless Youth recently recommended that all agencies that work directly with people who are homeless should be trained on human trafficking, because traffickers target this population. Working daily with people who are homeless has again reinforced for me the importance of comprehensive efforts to address poverty, discrimination, and other factors that make people easy prey for traffickers.

Picture taken by Kay Chernush for the U.S. State Department.

Slavery and the Products We Buy

Many of the products we buy and use daily were made with slave labor or involved slave labor during some part of their manufacturing. The chocolate industry has received considerable attention lately for its use of slave labor . A 2000 US State Department report concluded that in recent years approximately 15,000 children aged 9 to 12 have been sold into forced labor on cotton, coffee and cocoa plantations annually in the Ivory Coast alone.

The RugMark Foundation started in 1994 to address the use of forced child labor in the rug industry. According to RugMark, Child labor is a crime committed against nearly 220 million children, or one in every seven, ages 5 to 17, around the world. The RugMark Foundation works to end child labor and provide educational alternatives for children, and the Foundation also acknowledges that many of the children are in situations of forced labor, via debt bondage, abuse, or some other method used to enslave. According to UNICEF, 200,000 children are trafficked yearly in West and Central Africa. Cocoa, coffee, clothing, electronics, jewelry, and many other products are tainted by slavery.

These facts make me feel a combination of guilty and helpless at times. Even when I give Human Trafficking 101 presentations to college classes, I know that the computer I am using for the PowerPoint presentation might have been made with slave labor. When preparing for an anti-trafficking conference, the student group I was involved with struggled to find conference materials and food that we knew hadn't been made with slave labor. Even when I am consciously thinking about and working to combat human trafficking, I still struggle with not supporting slavery.

At other times, though, I find this information to be extremely motivating. I may not be able to fight human trafficking alone, but I can make changes in my consumption habits that can make important change. Of course, one person alone changing her/his habits wont make a lot of difference, but collectively we can have a huge impact.

Media, Pennsylvania became a Fair Trade town, starting this process in 2005. According to their site, "In its two years as a Fair Trade town, Media has already inspired nine other towns in the US to follow suit. Together we are raising awareness of how the simple purchase of Fair Trade products can address poverty in the developing world." While fighting human trafficking is not mentioned, purchasing goods that were not made with slave labor and supporting other economic opportunities for people is a step towards ending slavery.

I was recently involved in the start of a similar project in Columbia, MO. The Central Missouri Stop Human Trafficking Coalitions Policy and Prevention Committee teamed up with a local fair trade store to start a Slave-Free Stores campaign, to raise awareness about slavery and how it impacts our lives, and to encourage more stores to work to become slave free. The campaign is in its early stages, but I am excited to see how it progresses. We created two different levels, one for stores that sell only slave-free products, and one for stores that sell some products that were not made with slave labor, since few stores will be eligible for the first group at the beginning (though the Coalition is encouraging stores to go slave free by 2020).

The first level: We Sell Some Slave-Free Products For businesses that are committed to offering slave-free goods. Businesses at this level sell some products that they know were produced without slave labor or exploitation, and plan to continue to work towards becoming entirely slave-free. Second level: We Sell Only Slave-Free Products For businesses that are completely committed to being slave-free. Businesses at this level only sell products that they know were produced without slave labor or exploitation. Participating stores will display the decal shown at the top of this post.

I have heard arguments that if we simply stop purchasing goods that were made in sweatshops or other exploited conditions, we will actual worsen the situation of workers who will now be without any source of income. While I do not completely buy this argument, it is important to be aware that Fair Trade is not a panacea, and efforts to buy slave-free products and buy local can have unintended consequences.

At the same time, using our money to support humane, livable-wage, sustainable, and non-exploitative labor is a vital step in fighting slavery. As long as we keep the demand for slavery up, human trafficking will continue.

United Nations and Inter- Parliamentary Union Join Forces to Combat Trafficking in Persons

From UN.GIFT:

8 April 2009- Yesterday in the Ethiopian capital, the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in the framework of the Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking (UN.GIFT) launched the publication Combating Trafficking in Persons: A Handbook for Parliamentarians.

"Parliaments and parliamentarians have the power to prevent human trafficking by raising awareness and curbing exploitative practices". Said UNODC Executive Director Antonio Maria Costa. The President and Secretary-General of IPU, as well as the Speaker of the Austrian Parliament, were present at the launch.

As public awareness of human trafficking grows, people are demanding that action be taken to end it. As their elected representatives, parliamentarians have a responsibility and the power to ensure that laws and other measures are put in place and implemented to that end. The Handbook is intended to inspire them to enact sound laws and adopt good practices that will strengthen national responses to human trafficking.

The handbook also contains a compilation of international laws and good practices developed to combat human trafficking, and offers guidance on how national legislation can be brought in line with international standards by, for example, defining trafficking in persons and criminalizing all its forms. It outlines measures to prevent commission of the crime, to prosecute offenders and to protect victims.

"I urge you to use this Handbook, not only as a reference, but as a blueprint for strengthening your country's response to this crime" the Executive Director added.

In conclusion, it is clear that parliamentarians have a role to play in the fight against human trafficking. As agenda-setters and voices of the people, they can have significant power and influence in developing anti-human trafficking laws and policies.

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Combating Trafficking in Persons: A Handbook for Parliamentarians is a useful step forward for legislators and compiles a significant amount of information. The Handbook lays out the various definitions of human trafficking and the international legal framework for combating trafficking in persons, the criminalization of trafficking, monitoring and reporting on human trafficking and enhancing the role of civil society in fighting human trafficking. This Handbook could be a useful resource in developing a common methodology for monitoring and reporting on human trafficking. Presently, a major problem with human trafficking statistics is that they are no comparable across countries and the standards of data collection vary significantly.

However, it is important to stress that, even when a country enacts stronger anti-trafficking in persons laws, this does not mean much for trafficking victims if these laws are not properly implemented. While Combating Trafficking in Persons: A Handbook for Parliamentarians may ultimately prove to be a useful resource for legislators for basic facts, more must be done to ensure that laws are not only enacted but fully implemented and actualized.

Education Chips Away at Human Trafficking

From ZENIT:

By Mirko Testa

ROME, JULY 10, 2008- The education of would-be victims is one of the keys to putting an end to human trafficking, affirm religious women working against this crime in Thailand.

Thailand is again at the Tier 2 level in this year's U.S. State Department Trafficking in Persons Report, released last month. Tier 2 is assigned to those governments that are "making significant efforts to bring themselves into compliance" with the minimum requirements to eliminate human trafficking.

The Southeast Asian nation passed a tougher law against the practice this year -- though enforcing it despite corruption problems among the police is expected to continue to be a problem.

ZENIT spoke with three religious women who are chipping away at the issue from a different side: preventing would-be victims from falling into this modern form of slavery.

They say the key is education.

Sister Anurak Chaiyaphuek, of the Religious of the Good Shepherd, said that women religious in Thailand "have been making untiring efforts to prevent […] children from falling into an abyss of abuse by carrying out our mission among them."

"What we have done so far is founding schools based on national compulsory education in remote areas or up high on the mountains and opening centers for small children and students who have accomplished compulsory education to pave ways for their further studies in the government's public schools in the cities," she explained. "It is our hope that our children will have opportunities to acquire more knowledge and be adorned with spiritual and cultural formation."

Sister Chaiyaphuek spoke of how the religious live with the youngsters, "penetrating their culture and understanding their backgrounds and conditions, helping them in words and in deeds."

"We teach curriculum of life, which we consider rare and invaluable," she said. "Above all, it is a blessing for us."

Self-reliant
Traffickers based in Thailand lure people in from poor, neighboring countries, such as Myanmar. It is also a hub for these modern-day slaves to be transported to other destination countries. Trafficked human beings are forced to work in a variety of often-dangerous jobs, or exploited sexually.

Sister Kanlaya Trisopa of the Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus of Bangkok told ZENIT about a school founded after 15 girls almost ended up locked in the trafficking trade.

"They were luckily saved because the job agents were [put] under arrest," Sister Trisopa said. "We were contacted by the police to take care of those girls, otherwise, they would be sent back to their parents.

"Realizing their fate and knowing that they would soon be victimized again, we didn't hesitate to lend them a hand. We discussed with the girls and their parents and offered our assistance. Some chose to return home with their parents, while others decided to stay with us.

"We pledged to give them vocational training with the hope that they would be self-reliant and able to support their family."

The sisters implemented a curriculum of sewing and handcrafts and a small school was born.

"We felt relieved and happy that they didn't have to seek jobs in the cities and risk potential dangers of human trafficking," Sister Trisopa said.

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Kenya / IOM Launches Anti-Trafficking Campaign

From the African Press Organization:

IOM has launched a 6-month nationwide public information campaign to combat human trafficking in Kenya. The campaign, which uses the slogan “People are Not for Sale. Beware of Human Trafficking,” is funded by Norway and Canada and will be implemented in partnership with the government, media and local NGO partners. “The campaign will include a series of three-minute infomercials broadcast in Kiswahili, the national language, before four prime time news bulletins on Kenya Broadcasting Service,” says IOM Kenya Counter Trafficking Programme Officer Alice Kimani.

“National television will also televise a court drama on human trafficking in its popular Vioja Mahakamani programme. And IOM will get other TV and radio spots where listeners can call in and ask questions about human trafficking,” she adds. The campaign will also work with NGO and other partners to develop and distribute Information, Education and Communication (IEC) materials, organize stakeholder forums and train government counterparts to raise public awareness and encourage people to report cases of human trafficking.

IOM is also helping the Ministry of Labour to set up a website, where counter trafficking information will be posted. The website will offer advice to potential labour migrants on how to avoid becoming victims of trafficking and details of whom to contact if they become involved with traffickers. Kenya is a source, transit and destination country for human trafficking. People are trafficked both internally and internationally. Internal trafficking is mostly from rural to urban areas for domestic work, sexual exploitation and agricultural work.

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Hip Hop Helps Counter Human Trafficking in Brazil

From UNGIFT:

Take music and DJs, breakdancing, graffiti, rhythms and poetry. Swirl it around. The result is hip-hop, which has recently become a tool to fight human trafficking in Brazil. The new video clip "Don't Traffic," by a hip hop group from the outskirts of the capital Brasilia, is reaching youngsters with simple and effective language. "The message uses their own language, including slang," said 25-year-old group member Allison Costa. "These lyrics stick."

The hip hop group was originally contacted by Aldair Brasil, head of the Federal District's Committee to Fight Human trafficking, a permanent form of governmental and non-governmental representatives, including schoolteachers, community leaders, and even firemen. "We asked them to prepare a video clip for youngsters, particularly in vulnerable areas," Brasil says. "we thought it would be much more effective than any seminar or school class. Now we need to spread it throughout the country."

"Don't Traffic" is a low-budget film set in the outskirts of Brasilia and in its central area, close important governmental buildings. According to hip hop artist Costa, this is one way to put pressure on politicians to pass legislation, protect human rights and prosecute criminals.

The film also has a preventative message. It begins with a child, searching for his mother who left home and never returned. "We wanted to tell youngsters, particularly women, that propositions to become a model or to get a better life in other Brazilian cities or abroad may actually be a nightmare in disguise." Costa explains.

The Federal District's Committee to Fight Human Trafficking has been monitoring cases in the region. The majority of cases have involved girls between 12 and 17 years old. In almost every case, the process begins with a family member or close friend. "Traffickers lure victims by giving the family money, paying bills and basic food staples," Brasil explains. "These people also make fake identification cards, prepare model portfolios, everything to stimulate that the victim is heading for real work and, most importantly, an overall life upgrade."

Judging from the cases monitored by the Committee, most victims are trafficked to other cities in Brazil or to other countries, especially Spain, Portugal, Switzerland and the United States. Although girls from Brazil's poorer regions, like the Northeast, also end up being trafficked to the Federal District.

In 2006, the Committee was recognized as a public utility organization. This recognition has helped in building a network with governmental agencies to urge them to include human trafficking in their programmes, provide improved assistance and protection of victims and conduct proper investigation and prosecution of criminal organisations.

In 2008, the government instituted a National Plan to Counter Human Trafficking, which involved governmental, non-governmental and international organizations, including UNODC. The plan is based on prevention, prosecution and protection of victims.

India: Postmen to Check Human Trafficking in Remote Villages

From the Economic Times:

With their job taking them to the remotest parts of the state, the postmen in Meghalaya will be assigned a new task -- report on human trafficking cases.

An NGO, Impulse, has entered into an understanding with the Indian Postal Services to reach out to remotest villages in the Northeast for disseminating information on human trafficking.

"People in remote villages of the region do not have access to any sort of information, be it on the very notion of human trafficking or available ways and measures for their redressal."

"They are hesitant to go to the police station and report cases of missing children from their localities or villages," the team leader of Impulse, Hasina Kharbhih, said.

The project includes setting up of common service centres in post offices as coordinating locations in the region.

"The postman will distribute pamphlets on awareness. Also upon receiving any information on missing children or person, he will intimate, transmit and guide the information to the coordinator placed at the CSCs."

"The coordinator will subsequently work out a rescue strategy with the law-enforcement agencies and local NGOs," Kharbhih said.

Objective of the project is to create a sustainable harmonising environment for the communities to combat trafficking along with NGOs and law-enforcement agencies by utilising the reach of the Indian Postal Services, Kharbhih said.

About 44,000 children go missing in India annually and only 22 pc of them are traced, most of them victims of human trafficking.

Rescue operations conducted by NGOs show that majority of the victims belong to remote villages like those in some parts of Northeast where the illiterate masses do not have any access to information.

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U.S. : Federal Hammer Hits Migrants Harder

From the LA Times:

The Department of Homeland Security has dramatically ratcheted up its arrests of individuals along the U.S.-Mexico border for various immigration crimes, according to statistics released today by Syracuse University. Immigration prosecutions hit an all-time high in March 2008, with 9,350 defendants charged. The number of March arrests is up 50% from April and up a whopping 73% from 2007. The prosecutions are part of a Homeland Security and Justice Department program called "Operation Streamline." Under the program, illegal immigrants caught along the U.S.-Mexico border are prosecuted on federal criminal charges that require jail time. The average sentence is one month.

In early June, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said the program was yielding "striking" results. "Once they get prosecuted, they stop trying to come in again," Chertoff said, adding that officials have also seen "a reduction in smuggling -- in smuggling organizations and illegal entries in the relevant urban areas." The top three charges in March were: "reentry of deported alien," "bringing in and harboring certain aliens," and "entry of alien at improper time or place, etc." The Syracuse data found that five federal judicial districts along the border dominated when it came to immigration prosecutions. The Southern District of Texas, around Houston, was the most active with 488 prosecutions in March. Texas' Western District court, around San Antonio, was second and the Southern District of California, around San Diego, was third.

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Human Trafficking Campaign Targets Soccer Fans

By Mark Ledsom

From the Guardian:

BERNE, Switzerland, May 26 (Reuters) - Soccer fans at next month's Euro 2008 tournament will be confronted with shocking images of human trafficking in between more traditional adverts for beer, food and consumer goods.

Campaigners fighting for an end to trafficking and forced prostitution presented a graphic 60-second television advert on Monday showing bruised women being dragged by the hair into a dark auction pit and sold into the sex trade. The advert concludes with a message that "hundreds of young women are sold into the Swiss sex industry every year". It will be shown on Swiss national television, at Switzerland's four Euro 2008 stadiums and at public fan zones in Berne, Basel and Zurich.

"Human trafficking is a terrible, grim thing and that is what we wanted to get across with the images used in the film," campaign co-president Ruth Gaby-Vermot told Reuters before Monday's presentation. "We want to make sure that people look at the film, and that they think about what they see and are made aware of the situation."

Fears were raised in 2006 about an increase in human trafficking and forced prostitution in the build-up to the World Cup in Germany. Studies later suggested that prostitution levels may have in fact decreased during the World Cup.

"We have learned from what we saw in Germany and do not expect Euro 2008 to cause an increase in human trafficking or forced prostitution at the event itself," Gaby-Vermot said. "But the tournament will attract millions of supporters including many men who might visit prostitutes back in their home countries. "So it's an ideal target audience to show that forced prostitution is a reality and that the men themselves can help tackle the problem."

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New Technology to Help Indian Government Combat Trafficking in Airports

From NDTV.com:

The home ministry has installed state-of-the-art machines at all international airports in order to check the authenticity of passports, so that human trafficking can be curbed.

''In order to check the veracity of passports, we use magnifying glasses and ultraviolet lamps have been installed at all international airports. The central government has also undertaken issuance of machine readable passports, which are more secure,'' said Radhika V Selvi, Minister of State for Home, in a written reply to the Lok Sabha on Tuesday.

''Moreover, Passport Reading Machines (PRMs) and Questionable Document Examiner (QDX) machines have been installed at all major international airports. Specific training is also imparted to immigration officers to detect forged/false documents,'' Selvi added.

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