1.30.09 TRAFFICKING NEWS

Nelson Mandela said “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Fight trafficking every day by educating yourself and those around you. -liz

Georgia legislator fights sex abuse with strip club tax

GEORGIA, US- For some people, it may be a sin tax. For others, the proposed state fee to be charged to strip club patrons is a resource for fighting one of Atlanta's most dire threat to young women across the city. Sen. Jack Murphy, a Republican state legislator from Cumming, Georgia, is introducing a bill in this year's session that will add a fee of up to five dollars to patrons of strip clubs. The money, he announced Thursday morning at a press conference with State Sen. Renee Unterman (R-Buford), would be used to offset the costs of state services that help exploited children. The pair made the announcement as part of the introduction of this session's legislative agenda for the Joint House-Senate Commission on the Sexual Exploitation of Minors. Unterman, who is chair of the Senate Ethics Committee, reportedly told local press that she is concerned because "young girls are prostituted on Georgia’s streets, on Craigslist, through escort services and in major hotels."

For the full story please see examiner.com Link

Clinton and Boxer on Women's Rights

1.26.09 TRAFFICKING NEWS

Nelson Mandela said “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Fight trafficking every day by educating yourself and those around you. -liz

Hearing continues in child prostitution case

UPPER DARBY, PA- A preliminary hearing is set to continue today in Delaware County for a woman suspected of running a child prostitution ring. 34-year-old Liberian immigrant Ophelia Cheayee is in jail, charged with molesting a 13-year-old girl from Liberia. That girl and four other teenage girls from Liberia lived in Cheayee's Upper Darby house. Police have been trying to determine if Cheayee lured the girls from West Africa, then forced them into prostitution.

For the full story please see abclocal.go.com Link

1.23.09 TRAFFICKING NEWS

Nelson Mandela said “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Fight trafficking every day by educating yourself and those around you. -liz

Police discover new mode of human trafficking

JAKARTA- Police have discovered a new mode of human trafficking, eration by kidnapping and drugging, National Police spokesman Insp Gen Abubakar Nataprawira said here on Friday. "In the past, human trafficking was carried out by flattery and offering the victims a job, but now the perpetrators get their victims by kidnapping and drugging," Abubakar Nataprawira said. He made the statement commenting on human trafficking from Indonesia to Malaysia through border crossing point of Entikong, West Kalimantan. In the case the police arrested two suspects while two others escaped arrest. The case surfaced after a secondary school female student, identified by her initials as SS, was kidnapped by five masked men in Lampung on June 6, 2008 when she was on her way home from school.

For the full story please see www.antara.co.id Link

 

Some visitors from Asia find the pay brothels offer too good to refuse, writes Ruth Pollard.

"WE WANT to recruit ladies, we guarantee a minimum pay of $1000 per week," the advertisement in a Chinese-language newspaper reads. It is likely "Jenny" and "Susan", the two Chinese women murdered in Auburn late last year, saw these ads and found their way to one of the many brothels in south-western Sydney, the money too good to refuse and the security it bought their families far greater than anything they could earn back home. Like most migrant sex workers in Sydney, it is understood they were here on valid temporary visas that allowed them to work a certain number of hours each week without breaching their conditions. And they would have come from a culture that criminalises prostitution, where corruption of police and public officials is rife. As NSW police continued to appeal for information that could lead them to the killer of the women - discovered on November 13 in a flat in Queen Street, Auburn - they appear to have faced a wall of silence from other sex workers unused to trusting authorities to properly investigate crimes.

For the full story please see the www.smh.com.au Link

1.22.09 TRAFFICKING NEWS

Nelson Mandela said “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Fight trafficking every day by educating yourself and those around you. -liz

Figure It Out: Reporting on Trafficking in Women

Media coverage of trafficking of women and children, migration and sex work is confused and inaccurate. Media wrongly uses the terms ‘sex work’ and ‘trafficking’ synonymously, perpetuating stereotypes and stigmatization and contributing to the violation of women’s right to free movement and livelihood options, say these author. If media reports were to be believed, there would be no young girls left in Nepal. Oft-quoted figures such as 5,000-7,000 Nepali girls being trafficked across the border to India every year and 150,000-200,000 Nepali women and girls being trapped in brothels in various Indian cities, were first disseminated in 1986 and have remained unaltered over the next two decades. The report that first quoted these statistics was written by Dr I S Gilada of the Indian Health Association, Mumbai, and presented in a workshop in 1986. Subsequently, a version of this report was published as an article in the Times of India on January 2, 1989. The source of this figure remains a mystery to date. Unfortunately, such a lack of clarity is more the norm than the exception when it comes to reporting on trafficking in women and girls.

For the full story please see www.morungexpress.com Link

 

Study: Mongolia Must Battle Increase in Human Trafficking

MONGOLIA- Yesterday a human trafficking trial began in the Songino Khairkhan District’s court. A Mongolian national, M.Purevbat, is charged with kidnapping girls and forcing them into the sex trade. According to the charges, Purevbat may be responsible for the disappearances of 100 girls. If convicted, he could face 5- 15 years imprisonment.  According to a report titled “Country Gender Assessment-2008”, which was completed by the National Network of Mongolian Women’s Organizations, together with Asia Development Bank, SDB and CEG, protection against human trafficking, for its victims and witnesses protection have not originated yet in Mongolia.  The report says that the lack of protection for victims and witnesses serves as a major deterrent for reporting trafficking and forced prostitution. They also highlighted the serious need for legal reform to ensure compensation for psychological and mental health damage and for broadening legal, social and psychological support to victims, as well as the need for more public awareness and capacity-building of government institutions.

For the full story please see the ubpost.mongolnews.mn Link

Happy Birthday.

There are so many voices that speak on behalf of children that are at risk or survivors of child sex slavery and exploitation (and the voices are growing!), but I wanted to highlight the blog Seasons of Light . Apparently, there is a birthday today and for every comment left, $1 is donated to Love146 (up to $146)! Seasons of Light is great blog to find out more info. on child sex slavery and exploitation. What better way to celebrate a birthday than to give out more Love!

1.21.09 TRAFFICKING NEWS

Nelson Mandela said “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Fight trafficking every day by educating yourself and those around you. -liz

London Olympic mega-brothels a worry for clerics

LONDON, UK- Church of England dioceses are to call for a government crackdown on human trafficking in the run-up to the London 2012 Olympics to prevent a repeat of the "mega brothels" set up in German cities for the 2006 World Cup. Church members will discuss the matter at a General Synod next month following a motion set down by the dioceses of Newcastle and Winchester. "We do not want this same kind of thing for London 2012," said the Revd. Canon Michael Webb of Newcastle Diocese. "Anything like slavery is wrong, but as Christians we are concerned that this is not how God treats people." The dioceses called for the government, police and officials to combat the "evil trade" of trafficking and forced prostitution through legislation and enforcement.

For the full story please see Reuters.com Link

 

A Chinese gang has been caught kidnapping and selling children.

 

CHINA- A gang in China has been caught for stealing children and selling them on their thriving black market in distant Chinese provinces. After a five-month investigation, 13 suspects have been arrested, with the gang leader, Su Tonghua, 21, reportedly at the helm of the kidnappings. Members of the motorcycle gang were said to have kidnapped children while riding their motorcycles; some cases were reported to have occurred in broad daylight. The kidnappings allegedly took place between September and December, and were reported by the Beijing News to include a three-year-old boy who was taken from the front door of his home and a two-year-old girl who was taken during her sleep. In fact, the majority of the kidnappings were of children between the ages of two and three.

 

For the full story please see the cordweekly.com Link

1.17.09 TRAFFICKING NEWS

Nelson Mandela said “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Fight trafficking every day by educating yourself and those around you. -liz

Leominster Man Acquitted of Charges

WORCESTER, MA- A Leominster man accused of raping and assaulting a 15-year-old girl and forcing her to have sex with other men for money was acquitted yesterday by a Worcester Superior Court jury. The jury of six men and six women found Irfan R. Bhatty not guilty on charges of rape of a child with force, two counts each of statutory rape and inducing a minor into prostitution, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, three counts of assault and battery, and deriving support from a child prostitute. The verdicts, which followed about four hours of deliberations over two days, were returned shortly after noon yesterday.

For the full story please see telegram.com Link

 

‘6,780 Pakistani children victimised in 2008’

As many as 6,780 children were victimized in Pakistan in 2008, including 4,251 boys and 2,529 girls, Lawyers for Human Rights and Legal Aid (LHRLA) President Zia Awan said on Friday. He was addressing a press briefing at the Madadgaar Helpline Office, a sister concern of the LHRLA. Awan said that 516 cases of child victimization were reported in Karachi alone. Among major cities of Pakistan, Multan was topped the list with 1,041 cases; Gujranwala had 820 cases; 749 cases were reported in Lahore; 701 in Sialkot; 699 in Rawalpindi; 598 in Faisalabad; 574 in Peshawar; 478 in Larkana; 415 in Hyderabad; and 189 cases were reported in Sukkur. “This is the tip of the iceberg; the cases of child victimization must be many more,” Awan said. “The situation can be gauged from the fact that as many as 532 children committed suicide in Pakistan in 2008. Child abuse is not only physical, it is also psychological. If the fundamental rights of a child, including his right to education is not observed, it is child abuse.”

For the full story please see the thenews.com.pk Link

1.16.09 TRAFFICKING NEWS

Nelson Mandela said “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Fight trafficking every day by educating yourself and those around you. -liz

Man denies forcing girl to become prostitute

WORCESTER, MA- Leominster man on trial on charges of raping and beating a 15-year-old girl, and forcing her to engage in prostitution, denied the allegations on the witness stand yesterday. “We were just friends. We hardly even knew each other. I never had sex with her. I never hit her. I never had her prostituted to anybody,” Irfan R. Bhatty told a Worcester Superior Court jury that later began its deliberations in the case. The girl testified Tuesday that Mr. Bhatty had sex with her when she was 15 and he was 18, beat her with his hands and a pool cue, provided her with drugs, and twice forced her to engage in sex with other men for money that she said she turned over to him.

For the full story please see telegram.com Link

 

2 minors rescued from Bataan brothel

 

CAMP OLIVAS, Pampanga - Government agents rescued Thursday two "angels" reportedly recruited and forced to work by a syndicate as prostitutes in a Videoke bar situated along the shoreline of Barangay Alasasin, Mariveles, Bataan. Lydia, 14, and Anita,16 (not their real names) were working as guest relations officers or GROs at the Kulot's Videoke Bar despite their young age, said Senior Supt. Marvin Bolabola, regional chief of the 3rd Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit (3CIDU), stationed here. Bolabola said Bataan 3CIDU Provincial Office caught the two "angels" receiving customers inside the bar. He said they had received information that Kulot Videoke Bar is used as a front of a prostitution syndicate recruiting minors as sex workers. The information prompted them to launch an operation plan "Sagip-Anghel" backed by personnel from the Provincial Social Welfare Development that led to the arrest of the owner of the bar identified as Nilda Estrada Vergara.

 

For the full story please see the abs-cbnnews.com Link

A Visitor

Last November I had the amazing opportunity to visit our partners in the field. I traveled with a great team of people that I feel fortunate to have met. I think about that trip every day.  After a little encouragement from Love146 staff and friends I am happy to share with you a memory of a very patient US Advocacy Director, a new friend, and a visitor. 

While visiting Siem Reap, Cambodia we stayed in a sweet little hotel whose name has been changed to protect...ehh forget it, I just feel bad telling you what it's called. I had the privilege of sharing a room with Kathy (our US Advocacy Director) and Jesse (member of the team and new friend). I say privilege not only because they are great people, but because without them this experience would not have been half as amusing as it was. 

Getting ready to turn in for the night we were abruptly welcomed to our new hotel with a loud squeaking noise.  Our screams alerted Kathy, who was in the other room to the presence of our visitor. I am shy to admit that I have never slept anywhere with critters before, so I was pretty freaked. To add insult to injury, Jesse confesses that she cleaned up rat droppings when we first checked into our room so that I would not have a heart attack. I tried very hard to be tough, but I really cant hack it when it comes to rats (or their droppings). After a little begging from Jesse and I Kathy very patiently agreed that we would all pack up our bags and go to the hotel across the street. 

Sleepily, (it was 1am) we lugged all our belongings downstairs. To our surprise there was no front desk staff and the whole entrance to the hotel was locked with a metal gate and a padlock. We were locked in!! We noticed that there was a guard outside and we asked him to come unlock us from the rat resort. Another surprise. The guard doesn't speak english. After much efforts to explain our situation I resort to my amazing artistic abilities and draw a rat on a piece of paper and point up to out room. 

Immediately, the guard bursts into a fit of laughter. Apparently we were being foolish girls who had never seen a rat before. The guard called his son who spoke english to come and explain to us that his father was not allowed to let us leave. Not wanting to sleep in the rat resort we fished around the front desk and found the phone number for the owner. The expat owner a)did not believe us that there was a rat in our room and b)tried to explain that it was probably gecko droppings and "not a big deal." WHAT? 

Our story ends happily here. In the rat resort. In new rooms. All a little sleepier, no rat to be heard form again. 

-Liz

1.15.09 TRAFFICKING NEWS

Nelson Mandela said “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Fight trafficking every day by educating yourself and those around you. -liz

More Than 1,200 Alleged Incidents of Human Trafficking Reported in the U.S.

WASHINGTON, DC- In the first 21 months of operation, the Human Trafficking Reporting System (HTRS) recorded information on more than 1,200 alleged incidents of human trafficking, the U.S. Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) announced today. The HTRS contains data collected by 38 federally funded human trafficking task forces on alleged incidents of human trafficking that occurred between January 1, 2007, and September 30, 2008. The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (TVPA), and its reauthorizations in 2003, 2005, and 2008, define a human trafficking victim as a person induced to perform labor or a commercial sex act through force, fraud, or coercion. Any person under age 18 who performs a commercial sex act is considered a victim of human trafficking, regardless of whether force, fraud, or coercion was present. Most (83 percent) of the reported human trafficking incidents involved allegations of sex trafficking. Labor trafficking accounted for 12 percent of incidents, and other or unknown forms of human trafficking made up the remaining five percent. About a third (32 percent) of the 1,229 alleged human trafficking incidents involved sex trafficking of children.

For the full story please see news.prnewswire.com Link

 

Pediatrician charged with 9 new felonies

 HAMILTON, OH- A Butler County grand jury has handed down nine new felony charges against a Hamilton pediatrician for the alleged sex abuse of two former juvenile male patients. Dr. Mark E. Blankenburg is already facing 27 felony charges for child-sex and drug dealing stemming from a grand jury indictment in December. The indictment involved one male victim who is now a young adult. The charges released Wednesday, Jan. 14, are four counts of gross sexual imposition, two counts of trafficking in drugs, one count of compelling prostitution, and two counts of corruption of a minor. The compelling prostitution count alleges the doctor offered compensation for sex with one of the victims in May 1994, according to Melissa Spurlock of the Butler County Prosecutor's office. According to the indictment, the sexual imposition crimes occurred in 1993, 1994, 1995 and 1996; the corruption of a minor charges occurred in 1994 and 1995; and the drug-trafficking charges occurred between July 1, 1996, and Dec. 31, 2005.

For the full story please see the oxfordpress.com Link

1.13.09 TRAFFICKING NEWS

Nelson Mandela said “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Fight trafficking every day by educating yourself and those around you. -Liz

Man Accused of Selling Daughter for Cash, Beer

GREENFIELD, CA- Police have arrested a Greenfield man for allegedly arranging to sell his 14-year-old daughter into marriage in exchange for $16,000, 100 cases of beer and several cases of meat. Police said they only learned of the deal after the 36-year-old man went to them to get his daughter back because payment wasn't made as promised. The man was arrested Sunday on suspicion of human trafficking. Officers also arrested an 18-year-old man on suspicion of statutory rape. Investigators believe the girl went willingly with the man, but she's under California's legal age of consent and can't legally marry.

For the full story please see msn.com Link

Male Prostitution, a Hidden Shame: See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil

KARACHI, PAKISTAN- Male prostitution remains a taboo in our cultural setup and it is as well hidden in our society as are the problems that are caused by it. Despite the fact that the phenomenon is increasing by the minute, no government body or NGO has conducted a survey to find out exactly how many men are in this business. People are also as blissfully ignorant of the diseases that male prostitution contributes to the city. The Society for the Protection of the Rights of the Child (SPARC) Regional Promotion Manager Salam Dharejo, told Daily Times that although there are many organizations working in the city for the protection of children and women’s rights, no one has ever dared to address the issue of male prostitution because of the strong social taboo attached to it.

For the full story please see the dailytimes.com Link

1.9.09 TRAFFICKING NEWS

Nelson Mandela said “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Fight trafficking every day by educating yourself and those around you. -Liz

Man Indicted For Trying to Entice a Child

RAPID CITY, SD -- A Rapid City man is indicted on two misdemeanor charges for trying to entice a child and for attempted prostitution. Police say 52-year-old Gregory Mac approached a 13-year-old girl and asked her to get in his van. Instead, the girl ran into a nearby business and called police. She was able to give police a description of the man, his van and a partial license plate. Mac faces up to two years in prison if convicted.

For the full story please see kotaradio.com Link

Judge to decide Friday on trial for Detroit mom accused of hosting sex party

DETROIT -- A 36th District Court judge is expected to decide Friday morning whether to order a woman to trial for allegedly offering underage girls -- including her daughter -- as part of the entertainment at a $10 cover charge strip and sex party she hosted at her home on the city's west side. Judge Ronald Giles heard conflicting testimony on Thursday from police and a 16-year-old girl, who said she saw no nude dancing and did nothing more than serve drinks at a party inside her best friend's home. But a Wayne County sheriff's investigator who entered the home undercover before the Dec. 7 raid testified that the girl was wearing nothing but a see-through top and panties when she served him a drink. The 34-year-old woman is charged with child sexually abusive activity, a 20-year felony, for presenting her 16-year-old daughter and the other girl as entertainment at the party were police claim up to 20 women were dancing nude and selling sex...

For the full story please see the detnews.com Link

The Face of Slavery - A Video

There's not much to say except, this is why we do what we do.

See her Story.

Abolition,

Desirea

1.7.09 TRAFFICKING NEWS

Nelson Mandela said “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Fight trafficking every day by educating yourself and those around you. -Liz

Experts Say Ohio Plays Big Role in Human Trafficking

CLEVELAND -- Gov. Ted Strickland signed a new law that cracks down on human trafficking, and a NewsChannel5 investigation found that it is a much bigger problem than you might think, and Ohio plays a big role. In a small Geauga County town, investigators suspected women were being exploited by a human trafficking operation. Seven years ago, a NewsChannel5 investigation found women being sold into prostitution and brought into the United States. The discovery prompted Senate hearings…

For the full story please see newsnet5.com Link

30 Human Traffickers Arrested

INDONESIA -- The West Nusa Tenggara Police has uncovered 30 human trafficking cases in the past two months, rescuing 307 victims who would have been smuggled as migrant workers to the Middle East and Malaysia, it says. "We have named 30 suspects in the 30 cases, including five women," the provincial police detectives chief Snr. Comr. William Lamenng told reporters Tuesday. William said of the 307 victims, 185 were men who would have been sent to Malaysia and that the remaining 122 were women who would have been employed as domestic workers in Middle Eastern countries, such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Jordan…

For the full story please see the Jarartapost.com Link

more lives dedicated to abolition

I was so encouraged today by an email from one of my former interns, Hilary: "...I recently received some other great news; I got into Hofstra Law School. Hofstra has one of the top programs in family law and child advocacy in the country. Largely because of the work I did last summer at Love146, I plan to concentrate in this field during law school and eventually to work on behalf of children and families internationally that are dealing with issues such as child sex slavery."

I also stopped by on the Love146 Facebook Cause page and saw that Jeff Greer wrote a song inspired by the story of #146! Check it out: song.

Way to go, Hilary and Jeff! Let all our careers and jobs be the means to fulfill our vocational calling to be abolitionists.

Cheers,

Kathy