Interview: Virginia Delegate Adam Ebbin Fights for Anti-Trafficking Law | Change.org News

by Amanda Kloer · February 23, 2011

This week, a bill that would create one of the first laws in the state of Virginia to criminalize human trafficking and provide resources for trafficked victims will be voted on by the state senate. I caught up with Delegate Adam Ebbin, who introduced the bill and has been championing the fight against human trafficking in Virginia. He shared his hopes for the future of anti-trafficking efforts in Virginia and his gratitude to the hundreds of Change.org members who have supported this legislation.

Kloer: Based on your record, you obviously care a lot about supporting human trafficking victims. Why is human trafficking an important issue to you?

Delegate Ebbin: The more I’ve learned about this horrific crime — and the difficulty law enforcement has had uncovering and prosecuting it in the state of Virginia — the more involved I’ve become in efforts to put an end to it. When you hear about the experiences of victims who are beaten, raped, threatened, manipulated, and locked up, it’s hard not to be moved.

Kloer: Virginia has been called one of the weakest states in the country in terms of anti-trafficking legislation. How will HB 2190 improve services for trafficked persons?

Ebbin: Right now, unfortunately, victims are often afraid to come forward, and when they do, law enforcement and social services don’t know whether to treat them as criminals or victims. My bill will direct the Department of Social Services to develop a plan for identifying trafficking victims, assisting them in applying for state and federal benefits, and coordinating the efforts of state agencies and non-profit organizations in delivering health, housing, education, job training, and legal services.

Kloer: Congratulations on the recent passage of HB 2190 through the Senate. Do you think Governor McDonnell will sign it?

Ebbin: I have worked hard this session to draw Governor McDonnell’s attention to the problem of human trafficking, and these efforts paid off when the Governor released a statement praising bipartisan legislative efforts to combat trafficking in the state of Virginia, so I’m very optimistic that he will sign this legislation.

Kloer: Over 500 people have signed a Change.org petition asking the Virginia legislature to pass this important bill. What would you like to say to your supporters?

Ebbin: I want to thank the hundreds of supporters who signed the petition on Change.org, and countless others who sent emails, wrote letters, and made phone calls to Virginia legislators urging them to end this horrific crime and provide aid to its victims. It made a difference in securing unanimous passage of this key legislation. Because human trafficking takes place under the surface, by its very nature both the crime and its victims are hidden from law enforcement as well as the public consciousness. I’ve often encountered skepticism from fellow legislators that human trafficking is actually a serious crime. That’s why grassroots campaigns to educate our public officials and fellow citizens are so important to building momentum for action.

You can support Delegate Ebbin and human trafficking survivors across Virginia by ensuring HB 2190 and its sister bill HB 1898 (which would give trafficked persons resources and help ensure law enforcement arrest traffickers, not victims) become law. Support the campaign today, and share this petition with all your friends who live in Virginia.

Photo credit: Ken Lund

Amanda Kloer is a Change.org Editor and has been a full-time abolitionist in several capacities for seven years. Follow her on Twitter @endhumantraffic

Source: chnage.org

Interview: Virginia Delegate Adam Ebbin Fights for Anti-Trafficking Law | Change.org News

Related articles

• Interview: Attorney General Coakley Fights for Massachusetts' First Trafficking Law (news.change.org)

Interview: Attorney General Coakley Fights for Massachusetts' First Trafficking Law | Change.org News

by Amanda Kloer · February 28, 2011

Massachusetts is one of the few states in the U.S. without a single state law making human trafficking a crime. But after years of watching proposed laws fizzle and die in the state legislature, Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley is championing a bill that would provide critical services to victims and help local law enforcement put traffickers behind bars. Change.org caught up with Attorney General Coakley and interviewed her about human trafficking in Massachusetts and the Change.org campaign supporting her bill that over 1,000 members have signed.

Kloer: Why is human trafficking in Massachusetts an important issue to you?

Attorney General Coakley: As Chief of the Middlesex District Attorney’s Child Abuse Unit and then as Middlesex District Attorney, I have seen the damage sexual abuse can have on its victims. I also have seen the ways in which perpetrators groom and manipulate their young victims for further abuse. This process puts children at high risk for continued abuse through commercial sexual exploitation and entry into “the life”. In my work as Attorney General enforcing our civil rights and wage and hour laws, I also have seen the wide array of people from different backgrounds who are at risk of being exploited for someone else’s monetary gain. This is unacceptable in the 21^st Century. We must work to end this exploitation, protect victims, and hold those who engage in this type of behavior accountable.

Kloer: Massachusetts is currently one of the few states without specific state laws that criminalize human trafficking. Why hasn't there been legislation on the books yet?

AG Coakley: It’s disappointing that Massachusetts is one of the last states to criminalize human trafficking, and that is why we are working so hard to fix that. Human trafficking is not just a federal issue, and we need strong state laws so that we can protect victims here on a local level. It will also help us work with our federal partners more effectively to achieve justice for victims of these horrific crimes.

Kloer: How will this new bill help prevent human trafficking in Massachusetts?

AG Coakley: We know the best way to address trafficking is by addressing all three aspects of the problem. We need to hold those who traffic or benefit from the exploitation of people for profit accountable, develop services and a response for the victims, and address the demand for these services that creates a marketplace in which traffickers can prosper. We’ve proposed two felonies to hold perpetrators responsible their activities. We’ve proposed increases in penalties for those who purchase men and women in the sex trade and create the demand from which pimps and traffickers profit. Those penalties include mandatory minimum sentences for repeat offenders and higher sentences when children are victims. Finally, we are proposing a task force to bring stakeholders together to share information and develop multidisciplinary responses to the issue and support for victims.

Kloer: If passed, this proposed bill would become one of the strongest state anti-trafficking laws in the country. How were the different components of the law developed?

AG Coakley: We are grateful for the significant interest and support this legislation has received from legislators, advocates, and public safety professionals. This bill has strong support in our legislature, starting with the lead sponsors of the bill, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Eugene O’Flaherty and Senator Mark Montigny. In addition, we have received the support of a wide array of stakeholders including all 11 District Attorneys, local and state law enforcement agencies, labor unions, and victim advocates. It is because of the cooperation of all of these stakeholders that we have been able to put together such a strong bill. It is also why I am confident that we will get this bill passed so that we can join the 45 other states who have anti-human trafficking laws.

Kloer: Over 1,000 Change.org members have sent letters to the Massachusetts legislature in support of an anti-trafficking law. What message would you give to them and other grassroots supporters of the bill?

AG Coakley: First, a sincere thank you. You are helping bring about important change to protect victims of exploitation in Massachusetts. Second, I can promise that we’re not going to stop working until we get this bill passed so that we can better protect victims of these heinous crimes.

Attorney General Coakley left Change.org members and Massachusetts residents this final message,

"We are truly thankful for the work and support folks have already provided, but we still need your help. We ask everyone to continue to stay involved, contact your legislators, and work with us to get this important bill passed. Your support will truly make a difference, and we are not going to stop working until we get this done. Thank you once again."

Support Attorney General Coakley's efforts to fight human trafficking in Massachusetts by asking the state legislature to pass the proposed bill and make human trafficking a crime.

Photo credit: Martha Coakley

Amanda Kloer is a Change.org Editor and has been a full-time abolitionist in several capacities for seven years. Follow her on Twitter @endhumantraffic

Source: change.org

Interview: Attorney General Coakley Fights for Massachusetts' First Trafficking Law | Change.org News

Related articles

• Interview: Virginia Delegate Adam Ebbin Fights for Anti-Trafficking Law (news.change.org)
• Groundbreaking Georgia Trafficking Bill Heads to First Hearing (news.change.org)

Insidecostarica.com | Proposal to Go after Clients of Sex Trafficking Victims

Monday 28 February 2011

By Marcela Valente BUENOS AIRES (IPS) - An Argentine government proposal to crack down on clients benefiting from the trafficking of persons for the purposes of sexual exploitation has unleashed a heated debate between feminist organizations that support the idea and sex workers who are opposed to it. The proposal by the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights has the support of organizations whose aim is to abolish the commercial sex trade. These groups want prostitution to be condemned as a form of exploitation, and are calling for measures like the promotion of alternative sources of employment. The concept of going after the client has received the backing of the United Nations and the Organization of American States (OAS), which will study it to recommend its inclusion in the national laws of each country. The idea is to discourage demand by sending clients convicted of hiring the sexual services of a trafficking victim to prison. Women's rights and human rights groups seeking to abolish the sex trade back the idea, although they express doubts because of the difficulties of implementing it. Monique Altschul with the Fundación Mujeres en Igualdad (Women in Equality Foundation) told IPS that her organization agrees with the government's proposal, which is similar to Sweden's law against the purchasing of sex services, and said "it would be difficult to implement, but not impossible." In Altschul's view, which she shares with many other members of feminist groups, prostitution is not decent work, especially in the case of sexual exploitation resulting from trafficking, a modern-day form of slavery. Trafficking in persons is "the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion…for the purpose of exploitation," according to the United Nations Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, which has been signed and ratified by Argentina. "Prostitution is not decent work, because people are subjected to humiliation, and they never know what to expect in each transaction," Altschul said. "And in the case of trafficking, it is obvious that sexual exploitation is involved." Many women's rights groups thus believe that not only the clients of trafficking victims should be penalised, but anyone who pays for sex. But the Association of Women Prostitutes of Argentina (AMMAR), which has more than 4,000 members, is opposed to the proposal and has promised to make its voice heard at the next OAS General Assembly, to be held in June in El Salvador. "This confuses trafficking, which we condemn, with sex work, which is an option followed by some women, as consenting adults," Elena Reynaga, president of AMMAR, told IPS. She also complained that the "abolitionist" groups have not listened to their concerns. "They don't respect us, they don't listen to us," Altschul said. "Bans only hurt us and expose us more than we already are." The groups that want to abolish the sex trade argue that no woman really chooses prostitution of her own free will, and that women fall into it because of a history of violence and abuse, and a lack of opportunities. But Reynaga rejects that argument. "Domestic workers or women who are scavenging for cardboard on the streets didn't have opportunities either, but no one is going after them. There are many women who did not have the chance to study, and we had to make choices." The problem is that in Argentina trafficking in women is a hot issue. In its annual report, the U.S. State Department warns every year of the lack of effective measures to combat human trafficking in this South American country. The organizations working against trafficking say women are lured or seized in other countries in the region, mainly Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay and Peru, as well as in Puerto Rico and the provinces of northern Argentina, the poorest parts of the country. The media periodically report on raids of brothels in provinces in central Argentina, which turn up women from Paraguay or the impoverished northern provinces who denounce that they were deceived with promises of a good job, and ended up being sexually exploited. There are also hundreds of reports filed of missing girls and women, who are assumed to be victims of trafficking rings. In 2008, Congress passed a law to prevent and criminalize the crime of trafficking. But the legislation has many flaws and the United Nations Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially women and children, Joy Ngozi Ezeilo, called for its "urgent" reform. In a statement issued after her fact-finding mission to this country in September 2010, the special rapporteur said the current law stipulated that victims over the age of 18 had to prove they did not initially consent to engage in the activities they were subjected to. Ngozi Ezeilo also called for stiffer sentences for convicted traffickers and improved assistance for and follow-up of victims, including adequate witness protection before and after trials. "Trafficking in persons in Argentina is unfortunately growing in scale and repercussions. It is complex, dynamic and hugely underestimated, especially internal trafficking," the special rapporteur said in her statement. In the meantime, other measures have been taken. The Attorney General's Office recommended that prosecutors seek to cancel the operating licenses of businesses that offer prostitution services, and some newspapers have stopped carrying sex-oriented ads. Classified ads run in the main national and provincial newspapers frequently refer to the women's place of origin, young age or youthful looks, such as "hot Paraguayans," "blonde Brazilians," "new bunny fresh from the countryside," "just in from the north," "erotic little doll," or "wild university girls." Both the abolitionist groups and the sex workers' associations agree that the underlying problem is corruption among politicians, judicial workers and police, who boycott and stymie measures aimed at cracking down on trafficking. For example, when prosecutors show up at a brothel, they find that the place is "clean" because the police who were supposed to cooperate in the raid have already tipped off the owners. Reynaga also said the laws are used to harass sex workers. "The police haul us in and bring charges against us, and force our clients to pay them bribes." She also questioned the concept of clients being able to distinguish between sex workers in the trade of their own accord and victims of trafficking. "What, do they expect the clients to ask the women? "The problem is corruption -- that is why the networks are mushrooming. The police already have tools and don't use them -- or rather, they use them against us."

Source: insidecostarica.com

Related articles

• Interview: Attorney General Coakley Fights for Massachusetts' First Trafficking Law (news.change.org)
• Sex slaves in Melbourne's north (sleepingbeautyslavery.wordpress.com)

infoZine - Action Against Human Trafficking May Spark Conflict and Progress in 2011 - Kansas City, Missouri News

Friday, February 04, 2011 :: Staff infoZine

By Sara Dorn - The U.S. law that protects victims of human trafficking expires this year, and the government is preparing to issue its next report about whether countries around the world are improving their behavior on the subject.

Washington, D.C. - infoZine - Scripps Howard Foundation Wire - 2011 marks a year of crucial decisions in the fight against human trafficking.

The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 is up for reauthorization this year. The legislation was the first federal law to combat human trafficking. Its goals are to prevent human trafficking, protect victims and prosecute traffickers.

Human trafficking is defined as holding a person in involuntary servitude whether for forced labor, to satisfy a debt or prostitution.

The 2011 Trafficking in Persons Report will be issued in June and has potential to reflect poorly on several major U.S. allies. The 2010 report was the first to list the United States for not collecting better data or prosecuting more cases.

"Modern slavery, often hidden and unrecognized, persists today on every continent and, most tragically, right here in the United States," Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said at the President's Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Human Trafficking meeting Tuesday at the State Department.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton delivers remarks to a table of cabinet-level officials at the President’s Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons meeting on Feb. 1. SHFWire photo by Sara Dorn

Clinton, Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr., Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis and other cabinet-level officials came together for the annual meeting that outlined the department's plans to battle human trafficking.

"The innovations offered at today's meeting show that leaders across the Obama administration are making anti-trafficking efforts an important priority," Luis CdeBaca, ambassador-at-large to monitor and combat human trafficking, said at a special briefing after the meeting.

Officials at the meeting discussed conducting a government-wide review of victims' service programs and increasing awareness in government agencies and schools. Clinton announced the State Department will begin an annual briefing for visiting diplomats and their domestic workers and that the Bureau of Diplomatic Security will establish an anti-trafficking unit to support its field offices.

"The last 10 years we have established the structures and laws and commitment of the government to fight this. There have been bursts of activity within administrations - a few people go to jail, but nothing's sustained. I think we should be very impatient, and I think we have an opportunity to change that trend," CdeBaca said at a discussion sponsored by the D.C. Bar Association on Thursday.

CdeBaca, David Abramovitz, director of policy and government relations at Humanity United, and Neha Misra, senior specialist on migration and trafficking at the Solidarity Center, spoke and answered questions to an audience of lawyers, human trafficking abolitionists, students and others at Patton Boggs LLP, a law firm.

The 2011 Trafficking in Persons Report will be issued in June. It rates all countries that fail to fully comply with anti-trafficking standards. Tier 1 countries comply with the minimum standards. That is the U.S. rank.

Below that is Tier 2 and the Tier 2 Watch List, countries that face possible demotion to Tier 3 if they are on the watch list for two consecutive years. These countries may be making efforts to comply but fall short in several areas, including an increasing number of victims, lack of evidence of their efforts and possible government involvement in trafficking.

At Tier 3, countries face sanctions such as the U.S. government withholding certain assistances or funding and the International Monetary Fund and World Bank withholding their services.

"Now, this is an uncomfortable position for them to be in and for us," Clinton said. "And as I travel around talking to heads of state and governments and ministers, they watch this very closely, and they often raise questions about their position on this list."

Source: infoZine
infoZine - Action Against Human Trafficking May Spark Conflict and Progress in 2011 - Kansas City, Missouri News

infoZine - Critics Questions Motives, Effectiveness of U.S. Human Trafficking Report - Kansas City, Missouri News

Saturday, February 26, 2011 :: Staff infoZine

By Sara Dorn - If it’s wrong to enslave women for prostitution, force domestic servants to work long hours for no pay or recruit children to be soldiers, it shouldn’t be difficult to prosecute those who commit these horrific crimes, pinpoint the countries where they occur in excess and fully abolish slavery.

Washington, D.C. - infoZine - Scripps Howard Foundation Wire - But as the U.S. prepares to rank approximately 175 countries’ human trafficking status in the annual Trafficking in Persons Report, some say the task of sanctioning allies and suggesting that countries improve their legal systems is often flawed.

Take the case of the United Arab Emirates. U.S. recommendations backfired and increased the country’s human trafficking problems, said Mahdavi Pardis, an associate professor of anthropology at Pomona College and an expert in human trafficking in the United Arab Emirates.

“They should stop encouraging policies that make life harder, like increased imported police officers and increased prosecutions of sex traffickers,” Mahdavi said.

Mahdavi said when countries hire police officers from other countries to combat trafficking the police are rarely well-educated about the issue, and the United Arab Emirates does not have the proper resources to train them. She said prosecution volume is not an accurate depiction of a country’s anti-trafficking efforts. Frightened victims are sometimes unwilling to testify against their traffickers, making it difficult to prosecute. Legal systems vary among countries, so U.S. standards may not be adequate for other states.

Ambassador at Large to Combat Human Trafficking Luis CdeBaca says the U.S. has been a world leader in combating human trafficking. Photo courtesy of the State Department

Ambassador at Large to Combat Human Trafficking Luis CdeBaca rejected that argument as an excuse. He said in an interview that the TIP Report’s suggestions had the opposite effect in the Philippines, another “microstate” with an inefficient legal system. He said there is no justification for not prosecuting traffickers.

“The Philippines argued for a while that ‘we have a huge backlog in our courts, and you keep putting us on these low tiers.’ We’ve made it very clear to them that’s not an excuse, so they’ve issued a new directive saying TIP cases go to the front of the line,” CdeBaca said.

Some speculate whether the TIP report rankings are based on human trafficking or on which countries are friends and foes of the U.S. Countries are ranked on four levels: Tiers 1 through 3, with Tier 1 the best ranking.

“It’s at risk of becoming a business-as-usual, white-noise, show-and-tell instrument for politicians,” said Michael Horowitz, director of the Hudson Institute's Project for Civil Justice Reform and Project for International Religious Liberty. “This is creating a sense that this kind of slavery will be with us forever, and there is nothing we can do about it, and the people that can to do something about it have other motives than ending slavery.”

Horowitz is a neoconservative who drew attention to the issue of sex trafficking in the late 1990s. His movement sparked the TVPA, which he helped write, the first comprehensive U.S. law against human trafficking.

Countries on the Tier 2 Watch List for two consecutive years are likely to be downgraded to Tier 3 and face sanctions. 2011 is the first year that countries could be demoted to Tier 3 under this provision, because it was added under the 2008 TVPA reauthorization. Russia, China and India have all been on the Tier 2 Watch List for two consecutive years, so it’s likely they will join Iran, Saudi Arabia and North Korea on Tier 3 and be denied non-humanitarian non-trade-related assistance by the U.S.

Mahdavi said she believes Iran’s ranking represents something other than trafficking problems.

“The ranking system is opaque, and it feels very Islam-phobic,” Mahdavi said. “Iran is ranked in Tier 3. They don’t have people coming in or out of the borders, they don’t have a high number of migrant workers and they don’t have a lot of trafficking. They do have a well-developed civil society, so why are they ranked in Tier 3? Every policy-maker I ask that can’t understand and that really undercuts the reliability of the TIP.”

CdeBaca said prostitutes in Iran are being criminalized and some are hanged. He said prostitutes should be viewed as victims before a country decides if they are guilty of a crime, since many of them are sexually exploited and forced into prostitution.

“That’s the question. How politicized are these decisions? I think the insertion of the automatic downgrade will probably generate a new number of countries in Tier 3, and the way those countries are dealt with is highly politicized,” said Joe Parker, professor of intercultural and international studies at Pitzer College.

The report is based on information from academic experts, nonprofit organizations, foreign embassies in the U.S. and other knowledgeable parties. The U.S. Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons faces obstacles in seeking information from some countries where it does not have a presence, such as North Korea and Iran, CdeBaca said.

In such cases, the office relies on information from outside sources, including non-governmental organizations heavily funded by the U.S. government.

“We end up funding NGOs who are more than willing to tell us the truth as they see it, even if it’s inconvenient to our assumptions or our relationships, and that’s exactly what we want,” CdeBaca said. “If we’re paying for NGOs to tell us what we want to hear, we’re skewing the entire process. … At the end of the day, if our report isn’t accurate it’s not going to help civil society.”

CdeBaca’s staff is receiving the last of the information for the 2011 TIP report, which is due in June.

Related infoZine Human Trafficking Articles

• Springfield Man Pleads Guilty in Sex Trafficking Conspiracy, Admits Torturing Woman Coerced As Sex Slave
  
• Action Against Human Trafficking May Spark Conflict and Progress in 2011
  
• Six People Charged in Human Trafficking Conspiracy for Exploiting 400 Thai Farm Workers
  
• Human Trafficking Rescue Project Uzbek Man Pleads Guilty to Racketeering
  
• Three Indicted in Alleged Trafficking of Haitian Nationals
  
• Texas, Couple Sentenced for Enslaving Nigerian Woman for More Than Eight Years
  
• Hawaii Man Pleads Guilty to Sex Trafficking Charges

ource: infoZine
infoZine - Critics Questions Motives, Effectiveness of U.S. Human Trafficking Report - Kansas City, Missouri News

Pardis Mahdavi: When 'Help' is the Problem: Questioning 'Human Trafficking' Policies in the Gulf

Pardis Mahdavi

Associate professor of anthropology, Pomona College

Posted: February 15, 2011 12:53 PM

Meskerem was living in an abandoned construction site, working odd jobs with very little pay when I met her on the streets of Dubai in 2008. Her story exemplifies the experiences of the numerous migrant men and women who make up the majority of Dubai's work force. Meskerem's father had passed away and left her family in high debt in Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa. She decided to migrate in search of employment as a domestic worker in the Gulf, but was told by her Ministry of Labor that she could not migrate without having to undergo many months of training and would have to pay for her passage and a visa. A short time later, however, her mother met a man, an illegal recruiter, who said he could facilitate travel to Dubai at no cost and find high-income-generating work for Meskerem. Though she was weary of such an irregular means of migration, Meskerem said, "I knew it was risky, but I had no choice. I had to make money, and this was the only way to get it fast." Meskerem was placed in the home of a family who abused her regularly. When she tried to contact her recruiter, she found out that she had migrated on a tourist visa that had expired and was working illegally. Her recruiter told her he could not help her until she repaid her debt to him. Stuck in a bad situation, abused by her employers, with nowhere to turn, Meskerem is a clear case of the force, fraud and coercion that are at the core of the definition of human trafficking. However, because she is outside the sex industry, and was not kidnapped, she may not fall into popular imaginings of "trafficked."

Current policies and conversations about human trafficking are having a detrimental effect on those they are designed to help. This is because there is a sharp disconnect between stereotypes and images of the typical "trafficked victim" and the reality of forced labor and migration globally. The result: a series of policies that actually operate to the detriment of migrant workers in the Middle East and worldwide.

The United Nations document on trafficking is perhaps the most comprehensive in its definition of the term. However, note the title of the document: the United Nations Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (emphasis mine). Furthermore, note that this protocol is operated through the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (a curious place for a human rights document). Though the definition of trafficking in this document is broad enough to encapsulate all those who have experienced any form of force, fraud or coercion in migration, the focus is narrowed to hyperscrutiny on women and children in the sex industry.

Moving from the UN to other high-impact policies and their domino effects, it is useful to look at United States legislation on trafficking as these laws have set global standards and have had international reverberations. In the year 2000, Bill Clinton signed into effect the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA), which was revised and reauthorized under George W. Bush. This act, and its international component, the Trafficking in Persons Report (TIP), focuses the issue further on women in the sex industry. The TIP, especially, is not only biased by gender, but many have noted that it exhibits U.S. foreign policy biases as well. A global scorecard intended to rank all countries according to perceived compliance with U.S. anti-trafficking standards, the TIP has generated much international controversy. The opaque nature of its compilation has been highlighted, as well as the fact that country rankings align more closely with who the U.S. ranks as friend and who the U.S. ranks as foe than actual trafficking problems.

Until recently, the TIP casts the UAE as a major site of sex trafficking, but does not equally address abuses due to labor violations (which in fact constitute the majority of rights violations given the weakness of labor laws in the UAE). In so doing, the TIP Report silences the many narratives that challenge this narrow conception of human trafficking in the UAE. There are both sex workers who choose to migrate to Dubai in search of better economic opportunities, and there are many men in the construction or service industries (such as taxi drivers, or hotel employees) who suffer serious violations of their rights and are very possibly "tricked" (i.e. trafficked) into their current employment situations. Furthermore, neither of these scenarios accounts for what may be the most prevalent situation facing women in Dubai's service industry, in which they may seek out employment of their own volition, but upon arrival, or during the course of their stay, face instances of unexpected abuse or entrapment, with no avenues to turn to for recourse. Policies on trafficking that focus hyperscrutiny on sex work eclipse the instances of forced labor experienced by migrant workers outside the sex industry in Dubai. Addressing human trafficking according to U.S. anti-trafficking standards requires an increase in the numbers of arrests and raids of women in the sex industry. Far from helping these women, raids and arrests feel more abusive to many sex workers in Dubai, who noted that the bulk of their abuse comes from untrained law enforcement officials during raid and "rescue" efforts.

While it is tempting to argue that the term trafficking should be discarded altogether from discourse and policy, such an eventuality is highly unlikely given the force with which it has taken hold in the last decade. A more productive pursuit would be to reconceptualize human trafficking as one particular form of abusive practices found along a continuum of diverse experiences. We must disengage from the notion that trafficking is rooted in a rising global demand for commercial sex, and confront the problem as yet another component of a massive response to severe global economic inequalities.

Source: The Huffington Post
Pardis Mahdavi: When 'Help' is the Problem: Questioning 'Human Trafficking' Policies in the Gulf

Related articles

• Stylist To The Stars Takes On Sex Trafficking (huffingtonpost.com)
• US, Ukraine fight human trafficking (sfgate.com)
• Interview: Virginia Delegate Adam Ebbin Fights for Anti-Trafficking Law (news.change.org)

Stylist To The Stars Takes On Sex Trafficking

The Huffington Post  Julia Steers  First Posted: 02/18/11 06:31 PM Updated: 02/19/11 08:56
Acclaimed hairstylist to the stars, Michael Angelo is internationally noted for his work amongst fashionistas and celebrities alike. These days however, Angelo is equally likely to turn up at a vocational training salon for rehabilitated child sex slaves in Cambodia as he is to be found behind-the-scenes of a red carpet.
For him, work in international human rights is the perfect balance to his day job, where he is immersed in the dizzying world of celebrity beauty.

"A lot of the conversation is about perfecting a highlight and making sure a lip color lasts for 10 hours," Michael said. "Every once in a while I go home and scratch my head and say 'God is that what I thought about all day?'"

Throughout his career Michael has often wondered, "How do I balance such a superficial world with the reality of life?"

This reality became strikingly apparent to Michael when he read an article about child sex trafficking in Cambodia, showcasing the work of Somaly Mam, a former sex slave who now works to rehabilitate former child sex slaves and end international sex trafficking.

"I remember this description of the young girl, and how she reeked of filth and sperm and sweat and was wearing a smear of red lipstick across her face and it really struck a chord. And so lipstick became the impetus."

Fixated on the use of this daily beauty tool as a both a symbol of enslavement and as a possible weapon to brandish against sex trafficking, Michael set out to educate a broader audience about the cause, and his critically acclaimed exhibit, The Lipstick Portraits, was born. In order to draw a broader audience to the issue, Michael, also an accomplished photographer, showcased beautiful photos of strong personalities, as opposed to the shocking and often heart wrenching images typically associated with cause marketing.
"The project engages an audience interested in fashion and beauty in a cause. It tempts them in rather than clobbers them over the head."

Michael knew he wanted 100 percent of the proceeds from prints sold to benefit the Somaly Mam Foundation, but had a hard time getting in touch with Somaly to include her in the project.

Undeterred, Michael booked a flight to Cambodia to speak to Somaly in person about the project. Upon his arrival, he was directed to a hair salon, where he was told he would find Somaly. A fitting locale for their first meeting, Michael found himself at one of the Somaly Mam Foundation's vocational training sites, where former sex slaves receive job training to enter different industries, including the beauty industry.

Naturally, "I put down my bag and picked up a pair of scissors," said Michael, describing the crash course in Western haircutting he proceeded to give the girls. His partnership with the Somaly Mam Foundation solidified, the next step was recruiting the 55 prominent celebrities to be a part of The Lipstick Portraits, an arduous task at first, but according to Michael, when Susan Sarandon signed on for the project, it gained formidable momentum.

The exhibit features personalities ranging from Susan Sarandon to Dita Von Teese to model Selita Ebanks. In the photos, Michael explains, they've marked themselves with red lipstick as a sign of solidarity with girls forced to wear red lipstick while being sold as slaves. All of the profits from print sales, catalogues, and t-shirts support the Somaly Mam Foundation as well as raise awareness about a largely ignored issue amongst a powerful circle of influencers.

Michael plans to continue his work in the international human rights sphere and strives to "motivate my whole industry to find ways to contribute."

Tonight, he is in Los Angeles to accept an award for the campaign from the Global Action Forum and next fall, he'll team up with the Body Shop to showcase The Lipstick Portraits during the Clinton Global Initiative to coincide with the delivery of their petition, signed by seven million supporters, to protect children from sex trafficking to heads of state and diplomats in attendance.


Source: The Huffington POst

Stylist To The Stars Takes On Sex Trafficking

735 human trafficking victims given protection since 2008 | My Sinchew

Image via Wikipedia 2011-02-26 14:53

KANGAR, Saturday 26 February 2011 (Bernama) -- A total of 735 victims of human trafficking, most of them women, have been given protection since the enforcement of the Anti-Trafficking In Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act in 2008.

Anti-Trafficking In Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Council (MAPO) secretary, Ismail Ahmad, said that during the period, a total of 450 suspects were detained and 342 charges had been made.

He said this in his speech at the opening of a state-level campaign to make the public aware of the law on human trafficking here today.

He hoped that the campaign would make the public aware of their responsibility to help the government curb human trafficking and smuggling.

Meanwhile, Perlis Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Md Isa Sabu advised parents to monitor their children, especially those who could be easily lured by wealth, to avoid them from becoming "drug mules".

The speech was read by the State Financial Officer, Ramly Dai.

The campaign is organised by MAPO with the cooperation of the state government and the Northern Corridor Entrepreneurs Club, as well an non-governmental organisations in Perlis.

A briefing on the Anti-Trafficking In Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007 will be held tomorrow.

Source: mysinchew.com
735 human trafficking victims given protection since 2008 | My Sinchew

BBC News - World Debate: Trafficking Part s 1 to 5

World Debate: Human Trafficking

Human trafficking exists in almost every country on earth. As many as 27 million people are estimated to live in modern slavery. Can this problem be stopped?

Zeinab Badawi presents this World Debate from the Luxor Temple in Egypt. The panel consists of:

Laura Agustin, Author, 'Sex at the Margins'

Sophie Flak, Executive Vice-President, Accor

Rani Hong, Trafficking Survivor

Siddharth Kara, Author, 'Sex Trafficking'

Ronald Noble, Secretary General, Interpol

Part I
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/9365967.stm

Part 2
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/9366708.stm

Part 3
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/9366871.stm

Part 4
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/9366914.stm

Part 5
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/9366940.stm

Source: BBC 

Related articles

• Stylist To The Stars Takes On Sex Trafficking (huffingtonpost.com)
• Ont. moves to combat human trafficking (cbc.ca)
• Groundbreaking Georgia Trafficking Bill Heads to First Hearing (news.change.org)
• Washington a hot bed for sex trafficking (rt.com)

The Abolitionist Mamas - San Juan Capistrano, CA Patch

By Melissa Hodge | Email the author | February 21, 20110

How a group of local soccer moms raise awareness about modern day slavery.

View full size

  new  

Credit Melissa Hodge

Photos (4)

Credit Melissa Hodge http://o5.aolcdn.com/dims-shared/dims3/PATCH/resize/273x203/http://hss-prod.hss.aol.com/hss/storage/patch/e767450f2b9552cf85612266362668cc

Credit Melissa Hodge http://o1.aolcdn.com/dims-shared/dims3/PATCH/resize/273x203/http://hss-prod.hss.aol.com/hss/storage/patch/c5fed8f196845b5afd91182dd6c7ffc1

Credit Melissa Hodge http://o1.aolcdn.com/dims-shared/dims3/PATCH/resize/273x203/http://hss-prod.hss.aol.com/hss/storage/patch/3e98a33b036383e2776e28aa9882af13

Credit Melissa Hodge http://o3.aolcdn.com/dims-shared/dims3/PATCH/resize/273x203/http://hss-prod.hss.aol.com/hss/storage/patch/54cf7bcd73d1ca1956b9f45fc862882b

Section Sponsored By

After passing clearance from the guard at a gated entrance, I pull up into a perfectly manicured coastal neighborhood, where the hum of landscapers’ lawnmowers and the occasional personal golf cart heading down to the beach club are the only background noises.

Even though I am a bit late to this gathering, I am greeted with a hug and ushered into the kitchen where I can hear voices of women and the laughter usually shared by friends.
I sit down and accept a cup of coffee, but decline the delicious looking egg strata, as the women are ready to get started.

This isn't your typical house party.

Agendas are passed around and the meeting of the "Abolitionist Mamas" is ready to begin.
Kim Yim, Dawn Mednick, Julie Knights, Lisa Paredes and Tracy Stay are moms just like me: Typical soccer moms with young children, involved in local school events and active in carpools and book clubs.

But they're also members of the "Abolitionist Mamas,” a group focused on bringing awareness to human trafficking, also called modern day slavery.

Yim speaks passionately, with tinges of pain in her voice, about the injustices of slavery. I previously heard her speak at San Clemente Presbyterian Church, where I received an invitation to a meeting with her group. She described how she became committed to the cause after a viewing of the “rockumentary," CALL+RESPONSE.

According to its website, CALL+RESPONSE is a documentary that shows where slavery is thriving from the child brothels of Cambodia to the slave brick kilns of rural India. It ultimately reveals that in 2009, "slave traders made more money than Google, Nike and Starbucks combined.”

Compelled to share this knowledge with anyone who would listen, Yim invited 40 of her friends to a viewing of the documentary at her home. “I invited the same friends to home show clothing parties —why not for this?” she asked.

Fourteen people actually showed up to her home. One came only with the promise that Kim would give them action points after the viewing. She did not want to come to be depressed, she said. She wanted to come to be made aware, but also to leave equipped with useful tools to act. Yim heard the request and has since created a blog abolitionistmama.blogspot.com, of useful tips and ways to be active from listing informative books to social justice websites.

I left the meeting inspired by Yim's activism and was compelled to act. I was taught the importance of purchasing power. I can simply choose to purchase Free Trade/SlaveFREE items such as coffee, chocolate and flowers. I learned that with a simple click of a button on www.chainstorereaction.com, I could send a letter to companies asking them of their policies on slave-free manufacturing. These are simple tools to use from home with the possibility of making a significant impact.

According to Justin Dillon, director of CALL+RESPONSE, “If history looks back on this time and finds a true movement to end slavery, it should remember the moms and countless other activists like them that no one ever hears about ... This is where the battle will be won.”

The Abolitionist Mamas recently renamed themselves, Trafficking Awareness Group of San Clemente, in an effort to create other community activist groups in the south county, i.e. TAG of San Juan Capistrano, and other cities once awareness increases.

Come to find out, there are San Juan Capistrano residents out there that are increasing awareness as we speak.  A CALL+RESPONSE home viewing on Friday, Feb. 25 is listed as a San Juan Capistrano location. See callandresponse.com for more information.
This is a whole new era of awareness, and it's certainly not my mother's Tupperware party. 

Source:  sanjuancapistrano.patch.com
The Abolitionist Mamas - San Juan Capistrano, CA Patch