Time to wake up, women--we're a big part of the problem.The UN just released a report saying that in a third of the 155 countries surveyed, women were the majority traffickers.
Most had been originally pulled into human trafficking themselves, and now perpetuate the cycle--a cycle that is projected to get even more devastating as the financial crisis worsens.
Antonio Maria Costa, director of the U.N. office on drugs and crime, says
"More must be done to reduce the vulnerability of victims, increase the risks to traffickers, and lower demand for the goods and services of modern-day slaves."
The driver behind human trafficking, according to the findings, is overwhelmingly for sexual exploitation--making up approximately 79% of all cases. 63% of the 155 countries have adopted laws against human trafficking, but only since the UN implemented a protocol in 2003.
You can view the report in full here, and the AP story here. The bottom line that the report makes is that the world is in denial about the reality of sex trafficking. The UN's findings are heartbreaking to me. Human trafficking is called the crime that shames us all, and tonight I am truly ashamed.
0 comments:
Post a Comment