Today is the first International Day of Prayer and Awareness against Human Trafficking. But what can YOU do about it? Monica shares 5 ways that we can all counter trafficking.
Today, 8 February 2015, is the first International Day of Prayer and Awareness against Human Trafficking.
An initiative of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Travellers, it occurs on the feast of St Josephine Bakhita who was kidnapped by slave traders, sold into slavery five times, experienced daily beatings and was used as a human canvas for 114 intricate patterns drawn on her with a razor.
Human trafficking is the third most profitable “business” after drugs and arms trafficking.
It generates $32 billion per year through the exploitation of an estimated 21 million of our brothers and sisters who are used as slaves.
It takes many forms, but each act attacks the integrity of the person for profit, pleasure or possession.
As Catholics, we are called to affirm with our words and actions that no person may ever be used as a means.
We may think it is beyond our means to do anything about such a large problem, but here are five concrete things you can do to fight human trafficking.
1. Pray
We are all being asked to pray for an end to trafficking this Sunday, and we would do well to pray often for an end to this attack on the human person. Some suggestions include:
- Pray for those who are trafficked, that they will receive strength, find freedom and experience true love;
- Pray for those who exploit others, that they will be captured and converted;
- Pray for those who work against human trafficking, that their efforts may be fruitful; and
- Pray for ourselves, that we may stand in solidarity with all who are exploited.
2. Be vigilant
We should be vigilant for signs of human trafficking. It is not just a problem in overseas countries, it exists in Australia. Statistics are unknown, but it is reported that those who are trafficked into Australia are either done so for sexual slavery, forced marriage or forced labour.
A recent report from the Australian Institute of Criminology tells us that victims of trafficking are more likely to seek help from informal sources, such as neighbours and other people in their community.
That means you and I.
The Australian Federal Police also provide signs that someone you know might be a victim of trafficking.
3. Buy fair trade certified products
Products certified as free trade bear this or a similar symbol:
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Sometimes we think that buying “fair trade” will be a difficult task, and we will need to seek out specialty stores. But they’re even in your supermarkets. For example, certain Cadbury products are certified as free trade. We can just be a little more selective when buying our products (particularly items like tea, coffee and chocolate). Every contribution counts. The Australian Fairtrade site provides a handy search tool.
4. Ask for change
You could encourage your favourite brands towards fair trade certification – a short email or post to their Facebook page asking whether one of their products is fair trade certified could encourage them to address these issues.
Australian Catholic Religious against Trafficking in Humans (ACRATH) often highlights when more organised campaigns are occurring. A recent one asks companies to reinvest some of their profits into fighting trafficking. Another lobbied the government for changes to Subscribe to ACRATH’s updates and stay involved.
5. Support Catholics on the frontline
Around the world, Catholics (and usually Catholic religious sisters) are on the frontline in this area.
- The Sisters of Mary Immaculate in India don civilian clothes and head out to brothels, rescuing girls and women who have been trafficked. In a single night, the sisters helped 37 women to safety. Sister Sharmi D’Souza says that in four years and with the help of sisters trained as lawyers, 30 traffickers have been jailed.
- Consolata Missionary Sisters in Rome go out late at night to speak to foreign women who have been trafficked into prostitution and offer them assistance. In 20 years, 6000 women in Rome alone have been freed.
- The Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Uganda provide a place of refuge for women rescued from exploitation. They are taught job skills, resulting in every single one of them finding employment after they leave. We have told the story of one of these sisters, Sister Rosemary Nyirumbe, before.
- With the co-operation of Fr Jeff Bayhi (coincidentally, a priest who we have spoken about in relation to a different story), Consolata Missionary Sister Eugenia Bonetti has helped educate law enforcement officials in Louisiana, leading to 500 arrests of traffickers in two years and taking the state from one of the worst places in the United States for trafficking to one of the best.
- And as mentioned, ACRATH do great work in Australia. ACRATH builds networks to share information and resources nationally and globally, facilitates action at pastoral and structural levels, and provide counselling, rehabilitation and reintegration programs throughout Australia. Its members use their frontline experience to provide input into government strategies.
We can all support their work – with our talents, with our prayers and/or with our money.
Ending this atrocity is not beyond our reach. We can all play a part in applying a healing balm to this “wound on the body of contemporary society”.
“Human trafficking is an open wound on the body of contemporary society, a scourge upon the body of Christ. It is a crime against humanity.” – Pope Francis, Address to Participants at the Conference on Combating Human Trafficking
Originally published at Catholic Talk
(Cover Image Source)
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