What Happens to Thailand's Sex Tourism During the Riots?

By Jessica Olien for Slate Magazine.

Downtown Bangkok has finally stopped smoldering, but a curfew is still in effect after anti-government protesters looted and burned downtown for over two months. The shaky calm has both Thai officials and millions of men all over the world asking: Is it safe enough for sex tourism yet?

Thailand's sex trade, which pumps millions of dollars into the Thai economy, has taken a big hit since the protests began this spring. Thailand was once paradise for these men—among them fetishists and pedophiles—but the spell has since been broken. No one really wants their exotic intercourse interrupted by machine-gun fire or beer runs inconvenienced by police checkpoints, although some are, of course, willing to live with it if that's what it takes. Frustrated sex tourists are now being forced to cancel their vacations or wait it out in their cheap rented rooms until the party starts up again. . .

Thailand "sexpat" forums are full of speculation on what will become of the country and how it will affect their lives of debauchery. Many of them are living on pensions and retirement. They don't want to move, but the violence seen over the past weeks and the unpredictability of the situation have left them uneasy and looking for alternative locations. Finding another place in Southeast Asia where sex is so easy and the locale for it so accessible is a tricky task. Thailand is a perfect blend of cheap, nonthreatening, and permissive. Thai people are extremely accommodating. As the men like to tell me, they will make your food "not too spicy," and they will giggle at your jokes even if they have no idea what you are saying. By comparison with surrounding countries, Thailand is more developed and has until recently always been considered quite safe. . .

I met a man named Terry who has been retired in Thailand for two years but isn't sure that he wants to hang around much longer. It's become kind of a pain in the ass, he explains. "You never know when the situation may make a turn for the worse, and then what? Go to Laos?" He gestures at the direction of the Mekong River. At about midnight, an adorable little girl who looks like she might be about 6 years old comes into the bar selling flowers. "Where else in the world," says Terry, "could I give that girl 1,000 baht, take her outside and do whatever I wanted to her?"

Click here to read the full article.

I have written in the past about the relationship between human trafficking, the environment, and natural disasters. As the devastation in Haiti demonstrated earlier this year, human traffickers can easily exploit situations of unrest. While the situation in Thailand is human made, many of the same dynamics are at work. This article demonstrates the complex relationship between unrest and human trafficking. Whenever there is a natural or human made disaster, we should consider the ways it is impacting human trafficking.

HRW Releases Report on Child Labor in U.S. Agriculture

Last month, Human Rights Watch released a report called Fields of Peril, a 99-page report that details the risks the child farmworkers face concerning their safety, health, and education on commercial farms across the United States. HRW interviewed 70 children under age 18 who were or are legally employed as farmworkers in 14 states in various regions of the U.S.

As the report details, agriculture is a tricky industry when it comes to child labor. The rules and regulations are different than almost any other industry allowing children as young as 12 years of age to work legally in what are often times very hazardous conditions. In fact, the report cites that from 2005-2008, there were 43 minors who died from work related injuries in crop production. "The risk of fatal injury for agricultural workers ages 15 to 17 is more than 4 times that of other young workers."

In addition to these risks, the report exposes readers to the long-term health consequences often suffered by children working in agriculture who are often exposed to pesticides, suffer from injuries from repetitive motions, work despite injuries, and work despite extreme cold or heat. Crop workers on U.S. farms suffer from heat fatalities at a rate of 20 times higher than any other U.S. civilian workers.

The abuses they suffer do not end there: many must work long hours furthering their health and safety risks and affecting their school performance (if they are able to go to school at all); many children stated their employers do not provide sanitation facilities and drinking water on-site (despite the fact OSHA requires these be provided to farms with more than 10 workers); girls also experience significant sexual harassment and violence.

Although the report focused on the interviews it collected, which were only with minors who were legally employed in the agricultural field, Fields of Peril also interviewed service providers who work with undocumented minor agricultural workers, both unaccompanied and those with their parents. Unaccompanied minors, however, are a growing population according to service providers who work with farmworkers.

Those who are undocumented or whose parents are undocumented live under constant fear of deportation or separation from their families. This fear, according to a service provider interviewed for the report, trumps any desire to report abuses: "Even people who are documented have family members who are undocumented so they are afraid to speak up."

All of these risks create a precarious situation for any minor working in the agricultural industry. It is no coincidence that abuse, fatalities and injuries occur at such a high rate and that even the weak laws that do protect the workers are poorly enforced. Unaccompanied migrant children, in particular, represent a significant risk group for trafficking because the ability to coerce and force these young people is stronger due to a broader set of vulnerabilities. Not to mention the risk of girls being exposed to sexual exploitation. It is interesting that it is still required to show force, fraud and coercion to prove a case of child trafficking for labor as this is not a requirement for cases involving trafficking for sexual exploitation.

The report is definitely worth reading. You will learn more about the kind of labor that often goes into putting food in U.S. grocery stores and restaurants and, eventually, all of our plates. Hopefully, this will inspire many concerned about trafficking in our food system to get involved. The report includes recommendations in the final section. Pay attention in particular to the recommendations to state and federal lawmakers and contact your representatives to put pressure on them to pass these recommendations.

For the full report, please click here.

NYC Let's End Human Trafficking Campaign

Press Release: Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, along with Deputy Mayor Carol A. Robles-Roman and Chief Advisor for Policy and Strategic Planning John Feinblatt, has launched a new Let’s Call an End to Human Trafficking public education campaign encouraging New Yorkers to “See It. Know It. Report It.”

Print advertisements have been posted in both English and Spanish at bus stops throughout New York City’s five boroughs, featuring silhouettes and quotes from ordinary people who may be affected by human trafficking, emphasizing the fact that the crime does not discriminate based on age, race, gender or ethnicity. These ads are accompanied by a new Human Trafficking website, launched earlier this month, where concerned citizens can go to learn more about modern-day slavery and how to prevent it. . . All too often human trafficking is seen as a foreign problem, one that exists only in corrupt and impoverished countries whose commitment to human rights is wavering. This campaign exists to let you know that modern-day slavery is occurring right now in our own neighborhoods. Click here to read the full press release.

I am excited to see cities around the US launch campaigns to raise awareness about trafficking in their own communities, to mobilize action to address this exploitation, and to call attention to the fact that the US is far from exempt from trafficking problems. With the pending release of the 2010 Trafficking in Persons Report, the first report to evaluate the US, it is a useful time to reflect on the reality of trafficking throughout the US and to promote efforts to address it.

Student and Producer Scholarships for the 2010 Fair Trade Futures Conference

From September 10-12, 2010, the Fair Trade Resource Network (FTRN) and ten partner organizations will bring together 751+ entrepreneurs, producers, students, academics, non- governmental organizations, media representatives, consumers, and activists in Boston, MA for the 2010 Fair Trade Futures Conference.

The conference organizers are offering a limited number of scholarships for North American students and for Fair Trade producers/artisans/farmers from outside of Canada and the United States. Each scholarship will pay for one person’s conference registration fees (which include meals). Support is not available at this time for costs associated with travel, accommodations, or other expenses.

The scholarship program seeks to assist Fair Trade artisans and farmers from around the world, as well as North American students, defray some of the costs of attending the conference. Person must be a high school-, university- or graduate-level student enrolled as of March 15, 2010, at an educational institution in Canada or the United States.

July 15, 2010 - scholarship applications due for Round 2.

For more information about the conference schedule click here. For more information about how to register click here.

State Trafficking Laws

The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 was the first piece of federal legislation to address modern-day slavery specifically. It has been reauthorized multiple times, most recently in 2008. Since its enactment, states have implemented their own anti-trafficking legislation, that has been varied in timeliness, scope, and focus; some states have implemented innovative anti-trafficking laws; others have yet to take any concrete action. This month, the writers of HTP report on their own state's legislative efforts.

Meg: Oregon has two different trafficking-related offenses: involuntary servitude and trafficking in persons. "Involuntary servitude" involves forcing another to perform services by means of some kind of threat, and "trafficking" involves involuntary servitude with the addition of financial or other gain by the trafficker as a result of the forced services. Trafficking in persons is a Class B felony, and involuntary servitude can either be a Class B or Class C felony, depending on the severity of the threat or coercion by the offender. Victims of trafficking or involuntary servitude may claim the defense of duress if they are prosecuted for acts performed as a result of the coercion (presumably this refers to prostitution), but apparently they are not immune from prosecution altogether. Engaging in prostitution is a lesser crime (a misdemeanor) than inducing prostitution (a felony). It does not appear that there is an exception for minors. One interesting fact: Oregon passed a law this year that requires the Oregon Liquor Control Commission to distribute information on human trafficking (provided by the Polaris Project) to the establishments it licenses, including stickers with a hotline number that owners will be encouraged to post in a prominent location.

Jenn: Despite being the headquarters of federal government anti-trafficking efforts and numerous national and international anti-trafficking NGOs, the District of Columbia currently lacks an anti-trafficking law. Today, June 1st 2010, though, legislation will go before the City Council of D.C. to address this deficiency. According to Polaris Project, if passed the proposed legislation would "create the crime of human trafficking, covering both labor and sex trafficking, with appropriately severe penalties. It would provide crucial assistance to victims, including access to a victim advocate to develop a safety plan and it would allow civil cases to be brought by a victim against his/her trafficker." Such legislation is an important first step to additional anti-trafficking policy in D.C. to address the realities of slavery in the Nation's Capital.

SHI Awareness Campaign - Chicago

Shared Hope International is coordinating a campaign in Chicago this June to get the message out that "Kids Are NOT for Sale in Chicago!" If you are in the Chicago area, they would love to have your participation and help in spreading the word. The events will include a rally, a "Voices for Justice" event for survivors and activists, and Truck Stop Campaign rallies. Students are also needed to host "One Night, One Voice" campus awareness nights. For more information about the events, please click here.

Ayuda Seeks New Executive Director

From Ayuda:

Organization Description

Ayuda is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to protecting the legal and human rights of the immigrant community in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area by providing direct legal and social services, referrals, education, and advocacy. Ayuda has a 36 year history of providing critical services on a wide range of issues. The organization has nationally recognized expertise in immigration law, domestic violence, and human trafficking.

Ayuda’s core services include comprehensive legal and social services to foreign-born victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and human trafficking, as well as a general immigration practice. In addition, Ayuda continues to update and develop special programs to serve especially vulnerable populations, including unaccompanied immigrant children and asylum-seekers. Ayuda’s programs are designed to help its clients obtain lawful immigration status, including residency or U.S. citizenship, reunite with family members, and create a safe home for themselves and their children.

Ayuda has staff and offices in Washington D.C. and Sterling, VA. The annual budget for FY2010 ending September 30, 2010, is $1.6 million.

The Position
Ayuda is seeking an Executive Director to report to the Board of Directors, lead a staff of 19 full-time members and numerous volunteers and interns, and to seek, identify, and nurture relationships with the organization's donors and stakeholders. The Executive Director is charged with implementing the organization’s strategic vision; overseeing Ayuda's direct services, advocacy, and other programs; leading the fundraising process and donor relations; managing internal operations in collaboration with the management team; meeting the organization’s financial goals and assuring fiscal integrity; providing leadership in community affairs and collaborative initiatives; and serving as the public voice of the organization.

Key Responsibilities of the Executive Director
• Provide leadership on collaborative efforts in the legal, social service and immigrant communities
• Assure the financial integrity of the organization and work closely with the Finance Committee to monitor financial achievement against financial goals
• Work collaboratively with the Board of Directors and its committees: advise and report on the status of the organization’s activities, particularly on issues of strategic importance; cultivate positive relationships between the Board and staff; and assure support for the operations and development of the Board
• Sustain current and leverage new funding opportunities (national and local, private and public) through relationship-building, networking and increased public visibility
• Provide support to the management team (including the Legal Director, Social Service Director, Development Associate, and Interpreter Bank Director), including assisting them in the development of performance goals, setting benchmarks, and conducting evaluations
• Assess key needs of the organization such as facilities and technology infrastructure in partnership with the management team to promote highest levels of efficiency
• Develop an annual budget in conjunction with key staff and the Board, including mapping out projected expenses and revenue sources

Qualifications/Skills:

• Significant knowledge and experience in immigration, domestic violence, or human trafficking and related public policy issues
• Strong background in non-profit leadership and management
• Success in fundraising, including knowledge and experience with government funding
• Demonstrated success in driving growth and change
• Excellent written and oral communication skills, including public speaking skills
• Demonstrated skills in advocacy, coalition-building and media relations
• Excellent reputation for integrity and high ethical standards
• Proven background in fiscal management and budgeting
• At least 5 years of relevant experience and 3 years of non-profit management experience
• Fluency in Spanish strongly preferred

Salary/Benefits

Competitive salary and benefits package.

To Apply

Send cover letter (including salary requirements) and resume as attached Word or PDF documents to search@ayuda.com with "Executive Director Search" in the subject line.

Please direct all inquiries related to this position to the same email address.

Review of resumes will begin immediately upon receipt.