The International Day for the Abolition of Slavery, 2
December, marks the date of the adoption, by the General Assembly, of the
United Nations Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of
the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others.

 

 

Human Trafficking – A never-ceasing fight for Soroptimists

by Elena Savu, SIE Federation Programme Director

"Trafficking in persons represents a serious form of gender violence given
that nearly 80% of its victims are women and girl children. Human trafficking, more than any other
form of violence against women and young girls, resorts to multiple forms of violating
basic human rights. Trafficking in persons remains an act of violence against
women and girls that, paradoxically, is hidden in everyone’s plain sight. The commercial
acts of stripping and lap dancing, consented prostitution or the circle of
family members, friends or acquaintances who encourage females to choose ’a better life’ cover unpardonable coercive sexual exploitation and forced labour. Behind all these, there is abuse,
assault and denial of the female individual’s right to decent food, medical
care, education, health, equal chances and liberty. The phenomenon is even more
dangerous because traffickers, driven by the desire of financial gain, find new
markets and keep up with times. Nowadays organ trafficking as a colateral form
of trafficking in persons is on the rise, while some Internet social sites have
become modernised tools for recruiting victims.

"Regardless of the form it may take, trafficking in persons builds on the
victims’ ignorance and vulnerability and leads to modern slavery and
humiliation which practically eliminate the opportunities for the education and
empowerment of women and girls.

"Through determined action, Soroptimist International, a worldwide
organisation of professional women, has raised the voice, with dedication,
creativity and commitment, against the menacing phenomenon
of human trafficking. Soroptimist
members have taken the pledge to create a better world for women and young
girls all over the globe. A better world means a world without violence of any
kind, equal opportunities for education and economic empowerment, dignity and
hope for the future.

"Hundreds, maybe thousands of Soroptimist projects on human trafficking
already exist and stand proof of this pledge. Big or small unions and single
clubs across the four Soroptimist Federations have been running projects which
have grown and refined from year to year. Soroptimists across the four
Federations have been developing strategies and renewing their ways of action
for a sustainable
anti-trafficking response. Nowadays Soroptimist projects on trafficking in
persons have become a masterful combination of the 3 A’s – Awareness, Action and Advocacy as much as
a pool of international Soroptimist expertise to which members from different
clubs contribute.

 

"A telling example in support of all these could be the anti-trafficking work
performed by the Romanian Soroptimists since 2009, both at club and union
level. In spite of being a small union, SI Romania is greatly challenged by the
phenomenon of trafficking in persons because it has been mainly a country of
origin and transit. In their combat against human trafficking, the Romanian
clubs fully enjoyed the support of their mentoring union, S.I. Union of Denmark,
but also the cooperation of other Soroptimist clubs, such as Hassleholm, Sweden
and Zwolle, the Netherlands. Romanian anti-trafficking projects addressed
several issues from trying to educate the civil society to providing support
for the reintegration of trafficked victims and nowadays to advocating at a
local level. 

 

"The original awareness-raising campaigns in schools were
followed by street action meant to increase visibility in the local community. In the attempt to come
up with a more and more comprehensive anti-trafficking solution, Romanian
Soroptimist clubs adjusted their messages to the needs of their communities, made
partnerships with local authorities, e.g. town council and the police, and
printed their own club’s leaflets with advice  on how women and girls can protect
themselves and how to get help in case of need. They also engaged into a cooperation with the mass-media
to transmit and spread the anti-trafficking message. To reach a wider segment of the target population, Romanian
clubs trained young people to become 
their ’anti-trafficking messengers’ – young people to warn other young
people about the dangers of trafficking in persons.

 

"In spite of all our awareness and first-hand testimony that human
trafficking dramatically affects women and young girls in our countries and
communities, we still do not have enough factual data to prove it to all
political decision makers and urge them to take a firm stand against this
phenomenon. As the Global Report on Trafficking in Persons released by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)
warns “If we do not overcome this knowledge crisis we will be fighting the
problem blindfolded". That is the reason why Soroptimist International
members have joined the first-ever organization-wide project entitled Defeating Violence Against Women and Girls –The
Road to Effective Prevention. This project initiated by Soroptimist
International of Europe represents a new stage in the battle against violence
against women and young girls, and its outcomes are expected to provide useful
information and recommendations for suitable future action that will eliminate
violence against women and girls, including trafficking in persons.

 

 

 

Project Focus The Purple Teardrop Campaign 

SI talks to Liz Rodgers, Trustee of The Purple Teardrop Campaign, Vice President SI Poole.

"It all started
at an SI Southern England conference in 2008 where the keynote speaker was
Christine Beddoe, then Director of ECPAT UK. Christine told her audience about
human trafficking and the story of one of its victims transported by crate; the
young girl knew her terrifying journey took 3 months because that was the
number of periods she had.

 

"The Poole
Soroptimists in the audience that day were horrified by what they had heard and
came away determined to take action with particular focus on the trafficking of
women for sexual exploitation. What ensued was one of the largest programme
action projects the club has undertaken with the whole membership working on
one of three action areas:

·        
Raising
awareness using a poster campaign

·        
Working
with Crimestoppers to report human trafficking activity

·        
Raising
funds for victim support by selling teardrop pin badges

These three
areas have remained at the core of the Purple Teardrop Campaign’s work ever
since and Soroptimists throughout the UK and far beyond continue to bring human
trafficking to the forefront of their local communities using the distinctive
black, purple and white posters and leaflets; encourage reporting to
Crimestoppers; and use the purple tear pins to raise funds.

 

"The range and
success of Soroptimist activities has been extraordinary. The Purple Teardrop
Campaign’s core messages have laid at the centre of conferences, vigils,
shopping mall stands and student fresher fayres. Clubs in the Midlands, South
Wales and the South West have worked to raise awareness amongst taxi drivers.
Clubs in the North West and South have succeeded in getting posters into public
wc’s.

And clubs right
across the UK have gathered over 33,000 signatures for the Purple Teardrop
Campaign’s lobby to ban sex for sale advertising, a lobby inspired by Kevin
Hyland, formerly of the Metropolitan Police and now the first Designate Anti-Slavery
Commissioner.

Over the past
six years, many anti human trafficking organisations and charities have sprung
up and at the initiative of Antony Steen work under the umbrella of the Human
Trafficking Foundation which has played a key role in the Modern Slavery Bill
now going through Parliament. Soroptimists Jacky Paling and Pauline Monk represent
Soroptimist International and the Purple Teardrop Campaign on this important
group and received recognition for their work in 2013 in the form of the Marsh
Award.

 

Purple Teardrop
Campaign funds support victims in the South and South West, and our next phase
of work is a feasibility study on expanding this support to further safe
houses. Funds from the Poole Lions Swimarathon, SI Barnstaple’s Purple Ball,
One Billion Rising, coffee mornings, the sale of pins, individual donations and
more are all invaluable to the victims of this relentless crime.

Poole
Soroptimists remain at the heart of the Purple Teardrop Campaign, two being
trustees of the charity and six forming the operations group but it is the
Soroptimist clubs around the UK and Ireland and as far away as the Caribbean
and Australia who bring the campaign to life. Thank you".

Purple Teardrop