Human Trafficking Getting Worse In Thailand's Fishing Industry - Thailand Forum

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By Wannapa Khaopa
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Human trafficking in Thailand's fishing industry has worsened with the number of victims soaring three times higher, the Mirror Foundation revealed yesterday.

Up to 138 humantrafficking cases were reported to the foundation last year - three times more than the number of cases reported in 2008, Ekkalak Lumchumkhae, head of the foundation's antihuman trafficking centre said at a press conference yesterday.

Since the fishing industry suffers from a severe shortage of workers - 10,000 as last reported by the Federation of Thai Industries - human traffickers it as an opportunity to make money by deceiving locals and aliens from border countries to work in extremely harsh conditions.

Moreover, Ekkalak said the shortage of workers was likely to get worse.

The centre blacklisted four seaports with severe problem of human trafficking: Songkhla, Chon Buri, Samut Sakhon and Samut Prakan.

Human trafficking in other sectors, such as prostitution and begging, remained unchanged over 2008 and 2009, the centre's report said.

"People are accustomed to seeing child beggars who are mostly Cambodians on pedestrian bridges and prostitutes waiting to pick up customers in public areas," Ekkalak said. "I don't want people to ignore this, but to notify the authorities."

Sompong Srakaew, director of Labour Rights Promotion Network (LPN), said the number of beggars in Bangkok had dropped because the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration managed to stop them from coming to the capital. However, they begged in Pattaya, Nakhon Ratchasima and Songkhla instead.

AntiTrafficking Coordination Unit Northern Thailand manager Duan Wongsa said locals had not discussed the demand or the attitude of people who use prostitutes, and also asked if it was possible to campaign against the use of young girls.

Ekkalak pointed out that some local politicians and government officials had a hand in human trafficking, but the police were not brave enough to charge them under the AntiTrafficking in Persons Act 2008. "The act is not enforced properly," Ekkalak said.

All of them called on related state agencies to come up with aggressive plans to deal with the problem.

"The Social Development and Human Security Ministry is providing training to improve its personnel's capacity to operate antihuman trafficking jobs, but in practice they do not work well enough. We want related ministries to come up with aggressive plans," Duan said.

-- The Nation 2010-06-04

Human Trafficking Getting Worse In Thailand's Fishing Industry - Thailand Forum\\

Bluetree Launches Charity Aimed at Ending Child Sex Exploitation

Cover of God of This City

Thu, Nov. 12 2009 05:40 PM EDT

Bluetree Launches Charity with Ties to Hit Song
By Ethan Cole|Christian Post Reporter

This year's bestselling new artist, Bluetree, launched a charity this week aimed at ending child sex exploitation.

The charity, StandOut International, is connected to the Ireland-based band’s hit song, “God of This City” – both of which were inspired by their trip to Pattaya, Thailand.

During the mission trip, Bluetree performed worship songs on stage at the Climax Bar, a club which doubles as a brothel in the Red Light district of the city. What the band saw at the club and in Pattaya inspired them to write “God of This City” and to help those exploited and without a voice.

“We created StandOut International to help end child sex exploitation on a global scale, while loving, educating and releasing those rescued into the fullness of life that God has for them,” said Bluetree deejay Pete Kernoghan, in a statement.

The band members said from the start they were not interested in writing feel-good worship songs that cause “a few goosebumps” during Sunday service but don’t inspire change and action once the service is over.

“We really want ‘God of this City’ to be more than a song that we just proclaim in the safety of our churches,” said Kernoghan. “We want to see the hope of the song worked out in the lives of millions of children who are exploited throughout the world today.”

Reports estimate that there are 12 to more than 30 million people affected by human trafficking in the world today, with half of all trafficking victims being children, according to the 2008 State Department Trafficking in Persons Report. Each year, 1.2 million children are trafficked for child labor, and another 1 million children are annually trafficked into the global sex trade, according to the 2006 International Labor Office report entitled, "End of Child Labor Within Reach."

StandOut International’s mission is to channel funds it receives to organizations working on the grounds helping children who are sexually exploited. It also wants to inspire people to pray, go on short-term mission trips and organize events to raise awareness about the issue.

“Let ‘God of this City’ inspire you into action,” Kernoghan said. “ Join us and ‘stand out.’”

The album, “God of This City,” is one of the best selling Christian recordings this year. It has been sung by American Idol winner Kris Allen and been recorded by Chris Tomlin and Passion.

On the Web: http://www.standoutinternational.co.uk/

http://www.christianpost.com/article/20091112/bluetree-launches-charity-that-inspired-hit-song/