This Friday, 18 October is European Anti-Human Trafficking Awareness Day. Sister Patricia Mulhall, csb invites readers to pray and take part in a number of actions to support the campaign. She writes:
Worldwide, 27 million adults and 13 million children are victims of human trafficking around our world. Although human trafficking is often the ‘invisible’ international crime of the 21st century and accurate statistics are difficult to acquire, researchers estimate that more than 80% of victims are female. Their stories tell of abuse, devastating physical, emotional and psychological harm. This crime is a fundamental violation of human rights, tantamount to slavery. Victims are lured with false promises of well-paid work. Often instead, their passports or identification papers are confiscated and they are held in forced bondage. Due to language barriers, lack of knowledge about available services, and the frequency with which their traffickers move them, both they and their perpetrators are difficult to track.
An estimated $32billion is generated from human trafficking every year. Little wonder it is a ‘thriving’ trade in the exploitation of vulnerable human persons.
Read more on ICN – Independent Catholic News.