Source: Cosmopolitan UK
Trafficking is on the rise - and now a unique project is tackling the issue head-on.
19 October 2012
Back in February, Cosmo interviewed Sophie Hayes*, 29, a British woman sold into sexual slavery by her best friend. For six months, Sophie was forced to sleep with up to 30 men a night, until her dramatic rescue.
It was a shocking story – and today, it was reported that although more work than ever is being done to crack trafficking operations, the number of people being trafficked to the UK for sex, forced labour or domestic slavery is on the increase.
Although this could partly be due to more incidents of trafficking being identified and reported, it’s a disturbing problem that the charity Stop The Traffik is keen to tackle.
It was a shocking story – and today, it was reported that although more work than ever is being done to crack trafficking operations, the number of people being trafficked to the UK for sex, forced labour or domestic slavery is on the increase.
Although this could partly be due to more incidents of trafficking being identified and reported, it’s a disturbing problem that the charity Stop The Traffik is keen to tackle.
In a unique project, they joined forces with the global initiative UN.GIFT to launch its GIFTbox project – a series of mammoth ‘presents’ standing at over 3m x 3m tall, which deliver the message that ‘things are not always as they seem.’
The front of each box pictures a smiling woman, accompanied by quotes including, ‘Enjoy a little extra cash,’ and ‘Provide financial support for your family.’
Once lured inside, visitors are faced with a powerful image: the monochrome faces of three women peering out from the darkness. Across them stretches a banner of text, which reads: ‘I was promised a life of great opportunity. I was sold to work. I was trafficked.’
It’s a powerful way to show how the equivalent of 35 double-decker buses full of people are trafficked every day – duped into thinking a better life is waiting for them before being sold into sexual or domestic slavery.
The boxes first appeared during Olympics in response to the increase in trafficking that is often seen during sporting events and now, GIFTboxes are being used in communities all around the UK – from schools to businesses – in order to raise awareness.
The front of each box pictures a smiling woman, accompanied by quotes including, ‘Enjoy a little extra cash,’ and ‘Provide financial support for your family.’
Once lured inside, visitors are faced with a powerful image: the monochrome faces of three women peering out from the darkness. Across them stretches a banner of text, which reads: ‘I was promised a life of great opportunity. I was sold to work. I was trafficked.’
It’s a powerful way to show how the equivalent of 35 double-decker buses full of people are trafficked every day – duped into thinking a better life is waiting for them before being sold into sexual or domestic slavery.
The boxes first appeared during Olympics in response to the increase in trafficking that is often seen during sporting events and now, GIFTboxes are being used in communities all around the UK – from schools to businesses – in order to raise awareness.
The project’s aim is to unearth the ugly secret of one of the world’s largest organised crimes and encourages us to do something about it. Trafficking might seem a world away from your front door, but Stop The Traffik is committed to showing people the difference they can make.
To find out what you can do to prevent human trafficking, click here – and watch the video below to see people’s responses to the GIFTbox project.
http://youtu.be/vQO60aCO_0son.
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