Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Trafficked victims

Since I wrote my paper and podcast on sex-slavery, I am pretty familiar with the topic. However, I had to narrow the global topic down considerably for a five-paged paper, so I choose to focus on sex-slave victims in America, what laws we have to prevent trafficking and what we are doing to rescue victims.

I found a documentary on Youtube called "The Real Sex Trafficking". While I don't expect everyone to watch the full thing, I feel like the first part gives a good clear cut understanding on how girls are tricked into being sold, and how the sex-slave industry functions.

The story is about a husband whose 4 and a half month pregnant wife was sold into slavery and he is desperately looking for her. Enjoy.





Global Hot Spot: The Balkans and Eastern Europe
. In the readings, Mara Radovanovic said that her organization, Lara, which tries to help women trafficked from the former Soviet Union has made progress with the Bosnia police. She said that they now keep a lookout for potential victims at the border, and have successfully saved 60. She also said that in a Bosnia town they have gotten the support of the politicians and public to promote the end of sex-trafficking, and it now has a bad public opinion. From this movement, most bars where for sex-slave prostitution occurred were closed.

If this same practice of uniting for human rights took place in other cities, wouldn't that save thousands of lives?

The problem with this, is that it seems hard to get the government, the police and the community to work towards the right cause in many countries.

When you can take a life and sell it, then that is profitable business, especially in countries lacking strong economic support. You have a free item that can make you a thousand dollars. The woman has no say.

When a police officer takes a bribe and looks the other way he is doing the world an injustice.

Finally, when a government fails to crack down on sex slavery because of corruption another woman suffers.

It is the sad cycle of forced sex-slavery being repeated, and foreign laws only seem to complicate the issue.





Question for Rik: Does the ICC have means for finding and arresting the individuals that have warrants but are at large, such as the top 5 leaders in the Lord's Resistance Army. Does the ICC have to work with local government and police to capture these men?


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