By Somaly Mam
Trafficking Survivor and Activist
Huffington Post
It is hard reality to share. I fear that when I give a speech, participate on a panel or attend an event...I fear my words will not fully impart the enormity of the problem. While honored to be able to attend the World Economic Forum in Davos, I worried I would not be able to do the facts justice.
Currently, there are 27 million slaves around the world. Human trafficking is a multi-billion dollar human black market industry making it the second largest crime in the world. The majority of female victims are trafficked for prostitution. Poverty and lack of economic opportunities are the leading cause of slavery.
Traffickers often target impoverished, poorly educated individuals from the developing world looking for work or a safer place to call home. Once tricked with promises of safe passage, provision of work, help with visas or easy money, trafficking victims are placed in jobs with long hours, little or no pay, no health care and harsh working conditions. Many face emotional and physical abuse on a regular basis.
Those are the harsh facts. What follows is the hope.
Providing economic opportunities for women can help communities and society to thrive and break the cycle of poverty and human trafficking. Especially for survivors of human trafficking, they reinvest their income in their children's health and education.
The Somaly Mam Foundation supports 13 Victim Services programs (such as AFESIP) around the world. One of them - the Kampong Cham Center is located on the banks of the Mekong River in Cambodia. It houses girls (ages 3 to 12) who have been victims of trafficking. The goal of the shelter is to help the girls' transition to a new life, a life of physical and emotional security and gain the skills and education that will restore their lives. The shelter provides the girls with basic needs, medical care and computer literacy and vocational training as well as a full working garden and fish farm run by the girls with the goal of food self-sufficiency in 3 years.
Portions of the programs are also open to local children in an effort to prevent trafficking, but to also change the local perception of trafficked victims. Because of this - the survivors and the shelter are NOT resented for all the support and resources they are benefiting from. If the shelter does well - everyone in the village also does well with new skills, better health and opportunities for a better future. The young women survivors are seen as the source of great value instead of something to be ashamed of or a drain on the community. In the long run, this shelter will improve the job skill sets of all the children - who will grow up to become adults seeking employment or entrepreneurs seeking skilled workers. In the long run, the shelter will be "good for business."
The evil of human trafficking is a hard reality to share. So I am very grateful at the warm welcome I have received in Davos for my words. I have also experienced great hope at hearing influential people talk about economic empowerment as a great weapon against human trafficking, micro finance programs, financial literacy and new business opportunities.
It is cold in Davos today - snow is on the ground and one can slip and lose one's balance on patches of ice on the ground. But the warmness of hope - hope inspired by real economic solutions to empower trafficking survivors - fills my heart.
5 comments:
Great effort and good cause to fight slavery.
But If we can end drug trafficking and consumption, greed, and prostitution, we surely can end slavery easily.
slavery is one of the symptoms for the above mention. It is not the cause. That's is the reason we have steep uphill battle and most of the time failed to end the slavery. Lincolm ended slavery with a big loss of life. But slavery went underworld, which makes it harder to detect when greedy and corrupted people come to play and so forth...
Arrogant Khmer degrade others by using sarcastic word ah Phnorng-
who are rural uneducated and stupid. But Phnorngs are as human as anyone else. Those who keep such notion are stupid themselves. Mam Somaly is a Phnorng and she is a Ph.D.
Hey there is a way to end all sufferings! Nuclear Bombs!!! We have them...use them all. That should do the job. I love destructions and demise and I am also Khmer who have suffered during Khmer Rouge. I have nothing to live for. Most of my families were all killed or executed so I think destructions is the next best thing. I dont really care much about this world anymore. I dont believe in any religions. People are all evil in this world. There is no justice or judicial fairness. Those who have committed crimes against humanity still walk free so why should we care about this evil place. There is no God or Lord Saviors. There is no Allah or Buddha or Jesus. Religions are all a made up belief to fool mankind that there is such a holiness exist. I tell you...if I have access to Nuclear Bombs such as Kim Jung Ill I would blow up this world without a second thought. No one cares about this fucking place. Everyone is for themself. Power, Wealth and pussies thats all they want. Self gratification and self satisfactions are all they after. Bigger homes, prettiest women in their arms, lots of money in the bank, nice automobiles, free vacations, have access to everything around the world for their personal leisure. What elses are there for these politicians? They care not about you and I. I tell you, if I ever have access to these bombs I will definitely think about it. I say fuck these men. Death to the world. Destructions to the world. The sooner the better.
Axis of Power
Hitler Adolf
Axis of Power
God doesn't think on your level; nor on Hitler's level. He laughs at the nations because they are scum bags or simply put: imbecile
The problem is not if there is a "God", the real problem for all people is that there is a veil over the faces of all nations and people. That veil will be remove soon and you will know when the power of the heavens will be shaken and stars fall from the sky.
If you can stay on this earth about 5 more years perhaps you will start to see catastrophic events unfold on this wicked world.
Since justice and judgment comes from God he will deal with the sins of man to put away all evil to bring in his peaceable kingdom in the Sabbath Millennium. I\m crossing my fingers that it will arrive within the next ten years from all probability.
Dear Dr. Hun Sen and Ten Thousands stars Dr. Hun Manet,
Why do you and your relatives give Kos Trol, sea and lands to Vietnam? Why? and Why?
Why do you and all of your relatives involve alot of murder cases in Cambodia? Why? Why?
Why do you murder cambodian K5,1997events and so on and so on with lost count? Why?
If you are so good why do you and your families murder cambodians? Why? and Why?
If you are so good why do about 90%cambodians are so poor but you and your relatives are billionair and millinor? Why? Why?
Why do you try to kill people from telling the true? Why? Why?
What is the difference from Khmer Rough and you, Sir?
If you are so good Why do you block KI from cambodians?
If you are so good why more than 6 millions vietnameses are living permantly in cambodia, right now? Why, Dr. Hen Sen? and Why
Every where, I walk in Cambodia I see vietnamese speak vietnamese every where, why? why?
Don't you and your families scare of hell for ethernity?
When you die can you bring all of your power and money with you?
Dr. Hun Sen and Dr. Big ass lady and his belove Dr. Hun Manet Please don't put us in jail or kill us for this! We want to live like you and your families do!
Khmers victim of 1997 and K5
PS
If Dr. Hun Sen and Dr. Hun Manet remove the tablet it is show they are extremely coward and his star are just joy stars given by his daddy not by patriotism. Dr. Hun Manet is very coward as his daddy they only aim to kill innocent cambodians that all. Dr. Hun SEn and Dr. ten stars Hun Manet are very great at bullying cambodians and killing Cambodians but cowardly toward Thai and Viet.
Seriously where is the win win policy of Dr. Hun Sen represent. The country is getting smaller and shamer by Dr. Hun Sen and Dr. Hun Manet.
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