She decided to do a giveaway for the summer. Check out all of the fun items that you could win?!?! SO fun!
Simply click on the "a just for fun Summer giveaway" logo below and enter to win!!
30 Kasım 2012 Cuma
Who doesn't love a contest and giveaway!?!
To contact us Click HERE
A friend of mine is SUPER talented and has started her own design company. I am in fact feeling like my entire house needs a makeover by her. Her designs are ADORABLE and super reasonable. (I just ordered some personalized notecards that I'm super excited about.)
She decided to do a giveaway for the summer. Check out all of the fun items that you could win?!?! SO fun!
Simply click on the "a just for fun Summer giveaway" logo below and enter to win!!
She decided to do a giveaway for the summer. Check out all of the fun items that you could win?!?! SO fun!
Simply click on the "a just for fun Summer giveaway" logo below and enter to win!!
Because I Don't Bring You Nearly Enough News From Central Oklahoma
To contact us Click HERE
http://villagevoicepimp.com/central-oklahoma-salvation-army-engages-war-human-trafficking
Central Oklahoma Salvation Army engages in war on human trafficking
Oklahoma City , OK|Sex-Trafficking Minors|Thursday, November 8, 2012Add Comment
By: ZEKE CAMPFIELD, NEWSOK.COM
It will take more than law enforcement and money to combat human trafficking in Oklahoma, said Maj. Francina Proctor, associate area commander of the Central Oklahoma Salvation Army Area Command, who spoke to an Oklahoma City women's networking group on Wednesday.
The trafficking of humans in and through Oklahoma — for both sexual and labor purposes — can only be defeated with public awareness and a concerted effort by the community as a whole, Proctor told about two dozen women with OKC Happy Hour at Bricktown Brewery.
Proctor, guest speaker for the group's fall luncheon, used the podium to call for more support in combating a growing local problem.
“Sometimes it's not very comfortable for a city or area to say there is a problem, (but) there is more attention to it now, which is what we want,” she said. “It's not just in somebody else's backyard. It can be your neighbors, too.”
Proctor said there are an estimated 14 “pockets” of girls and women being used locally for sexual purposes, and identified several high profile cases in recent years, including that of Carina Saunders, a 19-year-old Mustang woman. Saunders was found in October 2011 dismembered in a duffel bag near a Bethany grocery store.
Authorities believe Saunders was tortured and killed to warn victims of sexual trafficking to cooperate.
Proctor said girls as young as 12 and 13 are groomed to be prostituted, and that the Internet and social networking makes it easier for predators to “charm” their victims.
Sexual trafficking, she said, is rarely a case of kidnapping. Its victims are vulnerable because they often come from poverty or from homes of abuse.
“Many people who take advantage of these kids are opportunists,” she said.
“Men charm these young girls who you know already have self esteem issues growing up by acting as their boyfriend, by providing riches. He breaks her down, he builds her up.”
She lauded Oklahoma lawmakers for approving legislation in 2008 that makes it easier for law enforcement to fight human trafficking.
A new law went into effect Nov. 1 that creates a human trafficking division within Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control.
Mark Woodward, spokesman for the bureau, said the new division makes sense logistically.
Federal agents in Oklahoma have made more than 70 arrests from prostitution stings since June, including four underage girls. And of 150 prostitution-related arrests made by Oklahoma City police in 2011, 127 were trafficking based. But the bureau's new trafficking division will be the first of its kind at the state level.
“We've been running into investigations off and on for years where it has a human trafficking nexus, but we don't have statutory authority to investigate those,” Woodward said. “Drug traffickers are also trafficking humans, weapons — anything for money.”
Sometimes drug cartels will traffic local girls and women, but often they will bring immigrants from Mexico or elsewhere to Oklahoma to be prostituted, Proctor said.
It's a trade involving as much as 30 million women and children worldwide, and traffickers can fetch as much as $23,000 per human per year, she said.
“I want to see people get angry about it. I want to see people angry about child pornography,” she said.
Salvation Army aids fight
The Salvation Army has partnered with law enforcement and several other organizations — notably Oklahomans Against Trafficking Humans — to bring attention to the problem.
A new series of public service announcements are set to roll out soon, but what's really needed are more advocates, she said.
There are only four centers nationwide equipped to take in and treat child trafficking victims, she said. Local law enforcement does not have the resources to care for these girls, she said, and many of them end up in jail or back out on the streets.
Central Oklahoma Salvation Army engages in war on human trafficking
Oklahoma City , OK|Sex-Trafficking Minors|Thursday, November 8, 2012Add Comment
By: ZEKE CAMPFIELD, NEWSOK.COM
It will take more than law enforcement and money to combat human trafficking in Oklahoma, said Maj. Francina Proctor, associate area commander of the Central Oklahoma Salvation Army Area Command, who spoke to an Oklahoma City women's networking group on Wednesday.
The trafficking of humans in and through Oklahoma — for both sexual and labor purposes — can only be defeated with public awareness and a concerted effort by the community as a whole, Proctor told about two dozen women with OKC Happy Hour at Bricktown Brewery.
Proctor, guest speaker for the group's fall luncheon, used the podium to call for more support in combating a growing local problem.
“Sometimes it's not very comfortable for a city or area to say there is a problem, (but) there is more attention to it now, which is what we want,” she said. “It's not just in somebody else's backyard. It can be your neighbors, too.”
Proctor said there are an estimated 14 “pockets” of girls and women being used locally for sexual purposes, and identified several high profile cases in recent years, including that of Carina Saunders, a 19-year-old Mustang woman. Saunders was found in October 2011 dismembered in a duffel bag near a Bethany grocery store.
Authorities believe Saunders was tortured and killed to warn victims of sexual trafficking to cooperate.
Proctor said girls as young as 12 and 13 are groomed to be prostituted, and that the Internet and social networking makes it easier for predators to “charm” their victims.
Sexual trafficking, she said, is rarely a case of kidnapping. Its victims are vulnerable because they often come from poverty or from homes of abuse.
“Many people who take advantage of these kids are opportunists,” she said.
“Men charm these young girls who you know already have self esteem issues growing up by acting as their boyfriend, by providing riches. He breaks her down, he builds her up.”
She lauded Oklahoma lawmakers for approving legislation in 2008 that makes it easier for law enforcement to fight human trafficking.
A new law went into effect Nov. 1 that creates a human trafficking division within Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control.
Mark Woodward, spokesman for the bureau, said the new division makes sense logistically.
Federal agents in Oklahoma have made more than 70 arrests from prostitution stings since June, including four underage girls. And of 150 prostitution-related arrests made by Oklahoma City police in 2011, 127 were trafficking based. But the bureau's new trafficking division will be the first of its kind at the state level.
“We've been running into investigations off and on for years where it has a human trafficking nexus, but we don't have statutory authority to investigate those,” Woodward said. “Drug traffickers are also trafficking humans, weapons — anything for money.”
Sometimes drug cartels will traffic local girls and women, but often they will bring immigrants from Mexico or elsewhere to Oklahoma to be prostituted, Proctor said.
It's a trade involving as much as 30 million women and children worldwide, and traffickers can fetch as much as $23,000 per human per year, she said.
“I want to see people get angry about it. I want to see people angry about child pornography,” she said.
Salvation Army aids fight
The Salvation Army has partnered with law enforcement and several other organizations — notably Oklahomans Against Trafficking Humans — to bring attention to the problem.
A new series of public service announcements are set to roll out soon, but what's really needed are more advocates, she said.
There are only four centers nationwide equipped to take in and treat child trafficking victims, she said. Local law enforcement does not have the resources to care for these girls, she said, and many of them end up in jail or back out on the streets.
Australia's Female Prime Minister Promises $50 Million to Fight Against Trafficking
To contact us Click HERE
Gillard wants South China Sea code of conduct
PM By political correspondent Louise Yaxley in Phnom Penh
Updated 1 hour 12 minutes ago
VIDEO: Gillard backs Asian free-trade zone (7pm TV News ACT)
RELATED STORY: Gillard, Obama attend Cambodian trade summitRELATED STORY: Obama praises 'first steps' during Burma visit
MAP: Cambodia
Prime Minister Julia Gillard says Australia wants to see a code of conduct for resolving disputes over the South China Sea.
Territorial disputes over the South China Sea have overshadowed the East Asia Summit in Cambodia's capital Phnom Penh, where Ms Gillard is meeting regional leaders.
She has already spoken to Japan's prime minister, Yoshihiko Noda, and China's leader, Wen Jiabao.
China has been reluctant to commit to starting formal talks on a legally binding code of conduct over the sea.
Ms Gillard says Australia does not take sides in the territorial disputes but argues they have to be resolved peacefully.
"We believe it is in everybody's interest that issues in the South China Sea are managed in a peaceful way in accordance with international law; that's Australia's perspective," she said.
"We do believe that a code of conduct would assist with making sure that any issues in the South China Sea, any conduct there, could be managed in accordance with the code, that is, that the rules and manner of responses would be predictable and knowable.
"That's Australia's position. It's been one of long standing and it's one we'll continue to argue for."
Ms Gillard says it is important to Australia that the issue is resolved.
"We are talking about an area of the world that our shipping needs to go through to take our goods to the world," she said.
During her meeting with Mr Wen, Ms Gillard presented the Chinese leader with a photo of former Labor prime minister Gough Whitlam meeting China's chairman Mao Zedong in 1973.
The gift, signed by Mr Whitlam, is to mark the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two nations.
It is likely to be the last meeting between Ms Gillard and Mr Wen before China's new administration comes in next year.
Free trade
AUDIO: Listen to Louise Yaxley's report (PM)
Ms Gillard also says Australia will take any opportunity to push for free trade in the region.
United States president Barack Obama this morning launched the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which involves Canada, Mexico as well as countries on the western side of the Pacific.
Ms Gillard says Mr Obama is being ambitious about its scope and he wants the deal in place by October next year.
Trade Minister Craig Emerson, who is also in Phnom Penh, said Mr Obama seemed set to use his second term in office to push for the deal.
"The president of the United States was very enthusiastic and highly ambitious for the Trans-Pacific Partnership," he said.
"As a second-term president of the United States, it is clear that he wants to get this deal done and, indeed, he wants it to be a high-quality, truly liberalising agreement.
"The importance of that is that it creates more jobs and better jobs in the region and beyond."
Australia is also involved in another push to remove regional trade barriers.
Ms Gillard says Australia is keen to be a part of any group that can reduce tariffs and smash trade barriers.
"It makes sense to be involved in both and to be maximising our efforts in both," she said.
Malaria
During a speech at the summit, Ms Gillard promised $1 million for more work to combat malaria in the region.
She also emphasised that Australia had recently promised $100 million over four years to help cut death rates.
The leaders at the summit will make a declaration committing to a regional response to the growing threat of drug-resistant malaria.
Ms Gillard says Australia is supporting a regional alliance to fight the problem.
"Malaria is a disease which disproportionately affects the poor," she said.
"In fact, in 2010 it was estimated 42,000 people in our region of the world died from malaria. Disturbingly, we are seeing the emergence of drug-resistant strains of malaria."
Ms Gillard has also promised $50 million to crack down on human trafficking.
The money will go towards helping investigators and prosecutors catch people who are exploiting others and force them into work or prostitution.
Cambodia is one of seven South East Asian nations to benefit from the funding.
"Trafficking in persons is a dreadful evil where people are forced into exploitative labour situations, and tragically, young people in particular are forced into prostitution," Ms Gillard said.
"The program I am announcing today will enable us to work with a number of our neighbours to reduce trafficking in people."http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-11-20/gillard-wants-code-of-conduct-for-south-china-sea/4382768
Gillard wants South China Sea code of conduct
PM By political correspondent Louise Yaxley in Phnom Penh
Updated 1 hour 12 minutes ago
VIDEO: Gillard backs Asian free-trade zone (7pm TV News ACT)
RELATED STORY: Gillard, Obama attend Cambodian trade summitRELATED STORY: Obama praises 'first steps' during Burma visit
MAP: Cambodia
Prime Minister Julia Gillard says Australia wants to see a code of conduct for resolving disputes over the South China Sea.
Territorial disputes over the South China Sea have overshadowed the East Asia Summit in Cambodia's capital Phnom Penh, where Ms Gillard is meeting regional leaders.
She has already spoken to Japan's prime minister, Yoshihiko Noda, and China's leader, Wen Jiabao.
China has been reluctant to commit to starting formal talks on a legally binding code of conduct over the sea.
Ms Gillard says Australia does not take sides in the territorial disputes but argues they have to be resolved peacefully.
"We believe it is in everybody's interest that issues in the South China Sea are managed in a peaceful way in accordance with international law; that's Australia's perspective," she said.
"We do believe that a code of conduct would assist with making sure that any issues in the South China Sea, any conduct there, could be managed in accordance with the code, that is, that the rules and manner of responses would be predictable and knowable.
"That's Australia's position. It's been one of long standing and it's one we'll continue to argue for."
Ms Gillard says it is important to Australia that the issue is resolved.
"We are talking about an area of the world that our shipping needs to go through to take our goods to the world," she said.
During her meeting with Mr Wen, Ms Gillard presented the Chinese leader with a photo of former Labor prime minister Gough Whitlam meeting China's chairman Mao Zedong in 1973.
The gift, signed by Mr Whitlam, is to mark the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two nations.
It is likely to be the last meeting between Ms Gillard and Mr Wen before China's new administration comes in next year.
Free trade
AUDIO: Listen to Louise Yaxley's report (PM)
Ms Gillard also says Australia will take any opportunity to push for free trade in the region.
United States president Barack Obama this morning launched the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which involves Canada, Mexico as well as countries on the western side of the Pacific.
Ms Gillard says Mr Obama is being ambitious about its scope and he wants the deal in place by October next year.
Trade Minister Craig Emerson, who is also in Phnom Penh, said Mr Obama seemed set to use his second term in office to push for the deal.
"The president of the United States was very enthusiastic and highly ambitious for the Trans-Pacific Partnership," he said.
"As a second-term president of the United States, it is clear that he wants to get this deal done and, indeed, he wants it to be a high-quality, truly liberalising agreement.
"The importance of that is that it creates more jobs and better jobs in the region and beyond."
Australia is also involved in another push to remove regional trade barriers.
Ms Gillard says Australia is keen to be a part of any group that can reduce tariffs and smash trade barriers.
"It makes sense to be involved in both and to be maximising our efforts in both," she said.
Malaria
During a speech at the summit, Ms Gillard promised $1 million for more work to combat malaria in the region.
She also emphasised that Australia had recently promised $100 million over four years to help cut death rates.
The leaders at the summit will make a declaration committing to a regional response to the growing threat of drug-resistant malaria.
Ms Gillard says Australia is supporting a regional alliance to fight the problem.
"Malaria is a disease which disproportionately affects the poor," she said.
"In fact, in 2010 it was estimated 42,000 people in our region of the world died from malaria. Disturbingly, we are seeing the emergence of drug-resistant strains of malaria."
Ms Gillard has also promised $50 million to crack down on human trafficking.
The money will go towards helping investigators and prosecutors catch people who are exploiting others and force them into work or prostitution.
Cambodia is one of seven South East Asian nations to benefit from the funding.
"Trafficking in persons is a dreadful evil where people are forced into exploitative labour situations, and tragically, young people in particular are forced into prostitution," Ms Gillard said.
"The program I am announcing today will enable us to work with a number of our neighbours to reduce trafficking in people."http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-11-20/gillard-wants-code-of-conduct-for-south-china-sea/4382768
ICE Joins The Good Fight
To contact us Click HERE
ICE launches radio PSA outreach campaign to combat human trafficking
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) sent this bulletin at 11/14/2012 03:43 PM EST
Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page.
WASHINGTON — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) today announced the start of a national radio public service announcement (PSA) campaign to generate awareness about human trafficking.
The PSA will air today through Saturday on 24 English and 19 Spanish language radio stations in the following cities: Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Buffalo, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, El Paso, Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Newark, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Saint Paul, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, San Juan, Seattle, Tampa and Washington.
ICE's Hidden In Plain Sight campaign is part of the Department of Homeland Security's Blue Campaign and its goal is to alert the public about the existence of human trafficking in communities nationwide and prompt a call to action for individuals who encounter possible victims. Additional information on human trafficking is available here.
ICE has focused its efforts to educate the public about the plight of human trafficking victims. For this outreach effort the agency is turning to radio stations for assistance in generating awareness about human trafficking in the United States as well as for everyone to look for signs of this crime and report possible trafficking situations to safeguard victims.
If anyone knows or suspects someone is being held against their will, ICE strongly urges them to contact the ICE tip line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE . Individuals can also view the television PSA by clicking here.
ICE launches radio PSA outreach campaign to combat human trafficking
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) sent this bulletin at 11/14/2012 03:43 PM EST
Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page.
WASHINGTON — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) today announced the start of a national radio public service announcement (PSA) campaign to generate awareness about human trafficking.
The PSA will air today through Saturday on 24 English and 19 Spanish language radio stations in the following cities: Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Buffalo, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, El Paso, Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Newark, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Saint Paul, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, San Juan, Seattle, Tampa and Washington.
ICE's Hidden In Plain Sight campaign is part of the Department of Homeland Security's Blue Campaign and its goal is to alert the public about the existence of human trafficking in communities nationwide and prompt a call to action for individuals who encounter possible victims. Additional information on human trafficking is available here.
ICE has focused its efforts to educate the public about the plight of human trafficking victims. For this outreach effort the agency is turning to radio stations for assistance in generating awareness about human trafficking in the United States as well as for everyone to look for signs of this crime and report possible trafficking situations to safeguard victims.
If anyone knows or suspects someone is being held against their will, ICE strongly urges them to contact the ICE tip line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE . Individuals can also view the television PSA by clicking here.
Film on Child Sex Trafficking to be Shown at St. Michael's College
To contact us Click HERE
FILM: “Playground: the Child Sex Trade in America”
Screening and Discussion with the Filmmaker
Monday, March 7, 2011, 7:00 p.m.
McCarthy Arts Center, St. Michael's College
While traveling to the Philippines in 2001, filmmaker Libby Spears gained first-hand knowledge of the horrific practice of trafficking human beings for sexual exploitation. She dug a little deeper and discovered that most of these victims were young children. She was further astonished to find the involvement of the United States and the degree to which the U.S. was influencing the global demand and growth of the sex-trafficking industry. This powerful yet poignant film will be followed by a discussion with the filmmaker.There is no admission cost.
Contact Laurie Gagne for more information: lgagne@smcvt.edu
29 Kasım 2012 Perşembe
Cellphones Reshape Prostitution in India, and Complicate Efforts to Prevent AIDS
To contact us Click HERE
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/25/world/asia/indian-prostitutes-new-autonomy-imperils-aids-fight.html?emc=tnt&tntemail1=y
Cellphones Reshape Prostitution in India, and Complicate Efforts to Prevent AIDS
Kuni Takahashi for The New York Times
Sex workers in Mumbai’s long-established red-light district, where brothels are dwindling.
By GARDINER HARRIS
Published: November 24, 2012
MUMBAI, India — Millions once bought sex in the narrow alleys of Kamathipura, a vast red-light district here. But prostitutes with inexpensive mobile phones are luring customers elsewhere, and that is endangering the astonishing progress India has made against AIDS.
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Follow @nytimesworld for international breaking news and headlines.
Twitter List: Reporters and Editors
Enlarge This Image
Kuni Takahashi for The New York Times
Champa, at right, a brothel owner in Mumbai, has seen her profits decline as cellphones have made prostitutes more independent.
Indeed, the recent closings of hundreds of ancient brothels, while something of an economic victory for prostitutes, may one day cost them, and many others, their lives.
“The place where sex happens turns out to be an important H.I.V. prevention point,” said Saggurti Niranjan, program associate of the Population Council. “And when we don’t know where that is, we can’t help stop the transmission.”
Cellphones, those tiny gateways to modernity, have recently allowed prostitutes to shed the shackles of brothel madams and strike out on their own. But that independence has made prostitutes far harder for government and safe-sex counselors to trace. And without the advice and free condoms those counselors provide, prostitutes and their customers are returning to dangerous ways.
Studies show that prostitutes who rely on cellphones are more susceptible to H.I.V. because they are far less likely than their brothel-based peers to require their clients to wear condoms.
In interviews, prostitutes said they had surrendered some control in the bedroom in exchange for far more control over their incomes.
“Now, I get the full cash in my hand before we start,” said Neelan, a prostitute with four children whose side business in sex work is unknown to her husband and neighbors. (Neelan is a professional name, not her real one.)
“Earlier, if the customer got scared and didn’t go all the way, the madam might not charge the full amount,” she explained. “But if they back out now, I say that I have removed all my clothes and am going to keep the money.”
India has been the world’s most surprising AIDS success story. Though infections did not appear in India until 1986, many predicted the nation would soon become the epidemic’s focal point. In 2002, the C.I.A.’s National Intelligence Council predicted that India would have as many as 25 million AIDS cases by 2010. Instead, India now has about 1.5 million.
An important reason the disease never took extensive hold in India is that most women here have fewer sexual partners than in many other developing countries. Just as important was an intensive effort underwritten by the World Bank and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to target high-risk groups like prostitutes, gay men and intravenous drug users.
But the Gates Foundation is now largely ending its oversight and support for AIDS prevention in India, just as efforts directed at prostitutes are becoming much more difficult. Experts say it is too early to identify how much H.I.V. infections might rise.
“Nowadays, the mobility of sex workers is huge, and contacting them is very difficult,” said Ashok Alexander, the former director in India of the Gates Foundation. “It’s a totally different challenge, and the strategies will also have to change.”
An example of the strategies that had been working can be found in Delhi’s red-light district on Garstin Bastion Road near the old Delhi railway station, where brothels have thrived since the 16th century. A walk through dark alleys, past blind beggars and up narrow, steep and deeply worn stone staircases brings customers into brightly lighted rooms teeming with scores of women brushing each other’s hair, trying on new dresses, eating snacks, performing the latest Bollywood dances, tending small children and disappearing into tiny bedrooms with nervous men who come out moments later buttoning their trousers.
A 2009 government survey found 2,000 prostitutes at Garstin Bastion (also known as G. B.) Road who served about 8,000 men a day. The government estimated that if it could deliver as many as 320,000 free condoms each month and train dozens of prostitutes to counsel safe-sex practices to their peers, AIDS infections could be significantly reduced. Instead of broadcasting safe-sex messages across the country — an expensive and inefficient strategy commonly employed in much of the world — it encircled Garstin Bastion with a firebreak of posters with messages like “Don’t take a risk, use a condom” and “When a condom is in, risk is out.”
Surprising many international AIDS experts, these and related tactics worked. Studies showed that condom use among clients of prostitutes soared.
“To the credit of the Indian strategists, their focus on these high-risk groups paid off,” said Dr. Peter Piot, the former executive director of U.N.AIDS and now director of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. A number of other countries, following India’s example, have achieved impressive results over the past decade as well, according to the latest United Nations report, which was released last week.
But now that mobile phones are untethering prostitution from brothels, those targeted measures are threatened. At the same time, the advent of cellphones seems to be expanding the sex marketplace — luring more women into part-time sex work and persuading more men to pay for sex. Cellphone-based massage and escort services are mushrooming across India.
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Follow @nytimesworld for international breaking news and headlines.
Twitter List: Reporters and Editors
“There may now be clients who may not have otherwise availed themselves of the services but do so now because it is easier and more private,” said Suneeta Krishnan, a senior epidemiologist with Research Triangle Institute of North Carolina.
The changes have led to a steep drop in business on Delhi’s Garstin Bastion Road and have nearly destroyed Mumbai’s Kamathipura district, where brothels had thrived since the 18th century.
Champa, a wrinkled madam with silver toe rings, bangles on her wrists and henna-dyed hair, has for 50 years owned a brothel in a narrow lane here. But like many other industries where information technology has undermined the role of middlemen between buyers and sellers, Champa’s business is withering.
“It’s the end of Kamathipura,” Champa said with a resigned wave as she squatted on the floor of her entryway.
She once had as many as 20 prostitutes living in her nine-bedroom brothel; she now has three, she said. Worse, at least from her point of view, the women working for her collect their own fees and offer her just $2 a day to rent one of her tiny bedrooms. As recently as five years ago, Champa — she has just one name — collected $2 for every client served.
As Champa spoke, several garishly dressed young women walked through the brothel’s tiny foyer to sweep and water the hard dirt floor just outside. The lane was teeming with laborers, uniformed schoolchildren, and veiled matrons. The prostitutes soon settled onto benches and teased the men getting haircuts at a nearby outdoor barbershop.
There were once 75 brothels on this lane; now there are eight. Kamathipura had as many as 50,000 prostitutes in the 1990s but now has fewer than 5,000, according to city officials and nongovernmental organizations.
Kamathipura’s destruction is partly a tale of urban renewal. India’s rapid development has turned former slums into sought-after addresses, and rising land values led many brothel owners to sell out.
But just as important has been the spread of cellphones into the hands of nearly three out of four Indians. Five years ago, cellphones were still a middle-class accouterment. Fierce competition led prices to plunge, and now even trash pickers and rickshaw drivers answer pocket phones.
But not all has changed. Vicious madams still exist, human trafficking is still rampant, village girls are still duped into the trade, and some brothels still thrive. Most prostitutes are illiterate, come from lower castes and are poor. But cellphones have given them a measure of power they did not have before.
“I’m happy that mobile phones are so popular and that I have this opportunity,” said Kushi, a mother who got into secret, part-time prostitution after she left her abusive and alcoholic husband. (Kushi is her work name.) She has three to four clients a week and charges each about $20, she said, compared with a typical price of $4 in cheap brothels.
“Cellphones allow the women to keep much more of their money,” Mr. Niranjan of the Population Council said. “But they make H.I.V. prevention programs more challenging.”
Cellphones Reshape Prostitution in India, and Complicate Efforts to Prevent AIDS
Kuni Takahashi for The New York Times
Sex workers in Mumbai’s long-established red-light district, where brothels are dwindling.
By GARDINER HARRIS
Published: November 24, 2012
MUMBAI, India — Millions once bought sex in the narrow alleys of Kamathipura, a vast red-light district here. But prostitutes with inexpensive mobile phones are luring customers elsewhere, and that is endangering the astonishing progress India has made against AIDS.
Connect With Us on Twitter
Follow @nytimesworld for international breaking news and headlines.
Twitter List: Reporters and Editors
Enlarge This Image
Kuni Takahashi for The New York Times
Champa, at right, a brothel owner in Mumbai, has seen her profits decline as cellphones have made prostitutes more independent.
Indeed, the recent closings of hundreds of ancient brothels, while something of an economic victory for prostitutes, may one day cost them, and many others, their lives.
“The place where sex happens turns out to be an important H.I.V. prevention point,” said Saggurti Niranjan, program associate of the Population Council. “And when we don’t know where that is, we can’t help stop the transmission.”
Cellphones, those tiny gateways to modernity, have recently allowed prostitutes to shed the shackles of brothel madams and strike out on their own. But that independence has made prostitutes far harder for government and safe-sex counselors to trace. And without the advice and free condoms those counselors provide, prostitutes and their customers are returning to dangerous ways.
Studies show that prostitutes who rely on cellphones are more susceptible to H.I.V. because they are far less likely than their brothel-based peers to require their clients to wear condoms.
In interviews, prostitutes said they had surrendered some control in the bedroom in exchange for far more control over their incomes.
“Now, I get the full cash in my hand before we start,” said Neelan, a prostitute with four children whose side business in sex work is unknown to her husband and neighbors. (Neelan is a professional name, not her real one.)
“Earlier, if the customer got scared and didn’t go all the way, the madam might not charge the full amount,” she explained. “But if they back out now, I say that I have removed all my clothes and am going to keep the money.”
India has been the world’s most surprising AIDS success story. Though infections did not appear in India until 1986, many predicted the nation would soon become the epidemic’s focal point. In 2002, the C.I.A.’s National Intelligence Council predicted that India would have as many as 25 million AIDS cases by 2010. Instead, India now has about 1.5 million.
An important reason the disease never took extensive hold in India is that most women here have fewer sexual partners than in many other developing countries. Just as important was an intensive effort underwritten by the World Bank and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to target high-risk groups like prostitutes, gay men and intravenous drug users.
But the Gates Foundation is now largely ending its oversight and support for AIDS prevention in India, just as efforts directed at prostitutes are becoming much more difficult. Experts say it is too early to identify how much H.I.V. infections might rise.
“Nowadays, the mobility of sex workers is huge, and contacting them is very difficult,” said Ashok Alexander, the former director in India of the Gates Foundation. “It’s a totally different challenge, and the strategies will also have to change.”
An example of the strategies that had been working can be found in Delhi’s red-light district on Garstin Bastion Road near the old Delhi railway station, where brothels have thrived since the 16th century. A walk through dark alleys, past blind beggars and up narrow, steep and deeply worn stone staircases brings customers into brightly lighted rooms teeming with scores of women brushing each other’s hair, trying on new dresses, eating snacks, performing the latest Bollywood dances, tending small children and disappearing into tiny bedrooms with nervous men who come out moments later buttoning their trousers.
A 2009 government survey found 2,000 prostitutes at Garstin Bastion (also known as G. B.) Road who served about 8,000 men a day. The government estimated that if it could deliver as many as 320,000 free condoms each month and train dozens of prostitutes to counsel safe-sex practices to their peers, AIDS infections could be significantly reduced. Instead of broadcasting safe-sex messages across the country — an expensive and inefficient strategy commonly employed in much of the world — it encircled Garstin Bastion with a firebreak of posters with messages like “Don’t take a risk, use a condom” and “When a condom is in, risk is out.”
Surprising many international AIDS experts, these and related tactics worked. Studies showed that condom use among clients of prostitutes soared.
“To the credit of the Indian strategists, their focus on these high-risk groups paid off,” said Dr. Peter Piot, the former executive director of U.N.AIDS and now director of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. A number of other countries, following India’s example, have achieved impressive results over the past decade as well, according to the latest United Nations report, which was released last week.
But now that mobile phones are untethering prostitution from brothels, those targeted measures are threatened. At the same time, the advent of cellphones seems to be expanding the sex marketplace — luring more women into part-time sex work and persuading more men to pay for sex. Cellphone-based massage and escort services are mushrooming across India.
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“There may now be clients who may not have otherwise availed themselves of the services but do so now because it is easier and more private,” said Suneeta Krishnan, a senior epidemiologist with Research Triangle Institute of North Carolina.
The changes have led to a steep drop in business on Delhi’s Garstin Bastion Road and have nearly destroyed Mumbai’s Kamathipura district, where brothels had thrived since the 18th century.
Champa, a wrinkled madam with silver toe rings, bangles on her wrists and henna-dyed hair, has for 50 years owned a brothel in a narrow lane here. But like many other industries where information technology has undermined the role of middlemen between buyers and sellers, Champa’s business is withering.
“It’s the end of Kamathipura,” Champa said with a resigned wave as she squatted on the floor of her entryway.
She once had as many as 20 prostitutes living in her nine-bedroom brothel; she now has three, she said. Worse, at least from her point of view, the women working for her collect their own fees and offer her just $2 a day to rent one of her tiny bedrooms. As recently as five years ago, Champa — she has just one name — collected $2 for every client served.
As Champa spoke, several garishly dressed young women walked through the brothel’s tiny foyer to sweep and water the hard dirt floor just outside. The lane was teeming with laborers, uniformed schoolchildren, and veiled matrons. The prostitutes soon settled onto benches and teased the men getting haircuts at a nearby outdoor barbershop.
There were once 75 brothels on this lane; now there are eight. Kamathipura had as many as 50,000 prostitutes in the 1990s but now has fewer than 5,000, according to city officials and nongovernmental organizations.
Kamathipura’s destruction is partly a tale of urban renewal. India’s rapid development has turned former slums into sought-after addresses, and rising land values led many brothel owners to sell out.
But just as important has been the spread of cellphones into the hands of nearly three out of four Indians. Five years ago, cellphones were still a middle-class accouterment. Fierce competition led prices to plunge, and now even trash pickers and rickshaw drivers answer pocket phones.
But not all has changed. Vicious madams still exist, human trafficking is still rampant, village girls are still duped into the trade, and some brothels still thrive. Most prostitutes are illiterate, come from lower castes and are poor. But cellphones have given them a measure of power they did not have before.
“I’m happy that mobile phones are so popular and that I have this opportunity,” said Kushi, a mother who got into secret, part-time prostitution after she left her abusive and alcoholic husband. (Kushi is her work name.) She has three to four clients a week and charges each about $20, she said, compared with a typical price of $4 in cheap brothels.
“Cellphones allow the women to keep much more of their money,” Mr. Niranjan of the Population Council said. “But they make H.I.V. prevention programs more challenging.”
News from the Department of Justice
To contact us Click HERE
Alex Campbell, 45, of Glenview, Ill., a former northwest suburban massage parlor owner was sentenced today to life in federal prison for various crimes including sex-trafficking, forced labor, harboring illegal aliens, confiscating passports to further forced labor and extortion involving four foreign women whom he mentally and physically abused while forcing them to work for him, the Justice Department announced today. The defendant, who operated the Day and Night Spa on Northwest Highway in Mt. Prospect, Ill., used violence and threats of violence to force three women from the Ukraine and one from Belarus to work for him without pay and, at times, little to no subsistence between July 2008 and January 2010.
Campbell, also known as “Dave” and “Daddy” and who called himself “Cowboy,” was also ordered to pay approximately $124,000 restitution by U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman. There is no parole in the federal prison system.
Campbell was convicted at trial in January of this year of three counts each of forced labor, harboring illegal aliens for financial gain and confiscating passports and other immigration documents to force the victims to work and one count each of sex trafficking by force, and extortion. He faced a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison and a maximum of life on the sex-trafficking count alone, and the judge also imposed maximum prison terms ranging from five to 20 years on each of the remaining counts, to run concurrent with the life sentence.
“Alex Campbell abused women by violently coercing them into labor and commercial sex. By working together with law enforcement and community groups, those women were able to testify about that abuse,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Today’s sentence is a victory not only for the Department and the Cook County Human Trafficking Task Force, but also for those women who so bravely came forward and told the truth about their exploitation.”
Alex Campbell, 45, of Glenview, Ill., a former northwest suburban massage parlor owner was sentenced today to life in federal prison for various crimes including sex-trafficking, forced labor, harboring illegal aliens, confiscating passports to further forced labor and extortion involving four foreign women whom he mentally and physically abused while forcing them to work for him, the Justice Department announced today. The defendant, who operated the Day and Night Spa on Northwest Highway in Mt. Prospect, Ill., used violence and threats of violence to force three women from the Ukraine and one from Belarus to work for him without pay and, at times, little to no subsistence between July 2008 and January 2010.
Campbell, also known as “Dave” and “Daddy” and who called himself “Cowboy,” was also ordered to pay approximately $124,000 restitution by U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman. There is no parole in the federal prison system.
Campbell was convicted at trial in January of this year of three counts each of forced labor, harboring illegal aliens for financial gain and confiscating passports and other immigration documents to force the victims to work and one count each of sex trafficking by force, and extortion. He faced a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison and a maximum of life on the sex-trafficking count alone, and the judge also imposed maximum prison terms ranging from five to 20 years on each of the remaining counts, to run concurrent with the life sentence.
“Alex Campbell abused women by violently coercing them into labor and commercial sex. By working together with law enforcement and community groups, those women were able to testify about that abuse,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Today’s sentence is a victory not only for the Department and the Cook County Human Trafficking Task Force, but also for those women who so bravely came forward and told the truth about their exploitation.”
Addressing Modern Slavery in the ASEAN Region
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Addressing Modern Slavery in the ASEAN Region
Fact Sheet
Office To Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons
November 20, 2012
With its partners at home and around the world, the United States is committed to enhancing efforts to end human trafficking, a crime President Obama has called a “debasement of our common humanity…which must be called by its true name—modern slavery.”
Together with the members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and in partnership with civil society, the United States looks forward to enhancing regional efforts to protect and rehabilitate trafficking survivors, bring traffickers to justice, and raise awareness so that trafficking can be stopped before it starts.
During the ASEAN-U.S. Leaders’ Meeting, held in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on November 19, 2012, President Obama and the 10 ASEAN heads of state agreed to improve cooperative efforts to tackle modern slavery, including the forced labor and sex trafficking of women, men, and children. The United States agreed to work with ASEAN members to harmonize legal frameworks in defining and prohibiting human trafficking, increase cross-border joint investigation, and build capacity for a standardized response to trafficking victims’ needs. To advance these objectives, the United States pledged $500,000 in technical assistance and training for ASEAN and its member states.
This new commitment complements these existing U.S. Government programs in the region:
In Cambodia, the United States works with the Royal Government of Cambodia and civil society to provide psychological support and other services to address trauma and other mental health needs of victims of sex and labor trafficking. Assistance also provides economic support to trafficking victims through training and job placement.
In the Philippines, the United States helps build the capacity of frontline service providers and funds victim support activities, which makes prosecution efforts more effective and increases conviction rates. The programs support awareness campaigns as well as comprehensive and integrated protective services to trafficking victims to ensure they gain new life skills and reduce their vulnerability to re-trafficking. In addition, the Partnership for Growth between the Philippines and the U.S. will promote inclusive growth that is focused on generating meaningful employment and income opportunities for the traditionally neglected segments of the population—those most vulnerable to human trafficking.
In Vietnam, U.S.-funded efforts have led to valuable research on victim protection and prosecution procedures, and key pilot projects have improved shelter conditions and services provided to victims.
In an anti-trafficking prevention effort across the region, USAID funds MTV-EXIT (End Exploitation and Trafficking), a global multimedia campaign. In Southeast Asia, the program raises awareness of trafficking among youth and vulnerable populations to prevent human trafficking in Cambodia, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam, and will open in Burma in December through a public concert held in Rangoon’s People’s Square. Since 2006, MTV EXIT has produced 30 major concert events, 76 television and online programs, and dozens of outreach activities and has engaged over 700,000 regional youth. Beginning in late November, ASEAN and MTV Exit will host a Youth Session to provide training in social media to combat TIP and build regional networks to further enhance awareness. Read more at mtvexit.org/liveinmyanmar.
BURMA: This September, President Obama made a public commitment to enhancing the United States’ partnership with Burma on trafficking in persons, as part of our continued support for Burma’s ongoing reforms.
“Last week I was proud to welcome to the Oval Office not only a great champion of democracy but a fierce advocate against the use of forced labor and child soldiers—Aung San Suu Kyi. And as part of our engagement, we’ll encourage Burma to keep taking steps to reform—because nations must speak with one voice: Our people and our children are not for sale.”
To honor this commitment, and in light of the progress made by the Government of Burma on combating trafficking in persons over the last two years, this week the Governments of the United States and Burma announced a new joint plan to counter trafficking in persons, which will include the establishment of a formal, senior-level dialogue. The United States is committed to enhancing Burma’s progress through the sharing of technical knowledge and best practices, heralding a new era of U.S.-Burma cooperation.
Areas of cooperation under the joint action plan include:
Identifying trafficking offenses;
Investigating and prosecuting trafficking offenders;
Providing victims with access to services in line with existing international guidelines; and
Preventing Burmese citizens from being subjected to sex trafficking or forced labor either within the country’s borders or abroad.
The Office of Website Management, Bureau of Public Affairs, manages this site as a portal for information from the U.S. State Department.
External links to other Internet sites should not be construed as an endorsement of the views or privacy policies contained therein.
Addressing Modern Slavery in the ASEAN Region
Fact Sheet
Office To Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons
November 20, 2012
With its partners at home and around the world, the United States is committed to enhancing efforts to end human trafficking, a crime President Obama has called a “debasement of our common humanity…which must be called by its true name—modern slavery.”
Together with the members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and in partnership with civil society, the United States looks forward to enhancing regional efforts to protect and rehabilitate trafficking survivors, bring traffickers to justice, and raise awareness so that trafficking can be stopped before it starts.
During the ASEAN-U.S. Leaders’ Meeting, held in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on November 19, 2012, President Obama and the 10 ASEAN heads of state agreed to improve cooperative efforts to tackle modern slavery, including the forced labor and sex trafficking of women, men, and children. The United States agreed to work with ASEAN members to harmonize legal frameworks in defining and prohibiting human trafficking, increase cross-border joint investigation, and build capacity for a standardized response to trafficking victims’ needs. To advance these objectives, the United States pledged $500,000 in technical assistance and training for ASEAN and its member states.
This new commitment complements these existing U.S. Government programs in the region:
In Cambodia, the United States works with the Royal Government of Cambodia and civil society to provide psychological support and other services to address trauma and other mental health needs of victims of sex and labor trafficking. Assistance also provides economic support to trafficking victims through training and job placement.
In the Philippines, the United States helps build the capacity of frontline service providers and funds victim support activities, which makes prosecution efforts more effective and increases conviction rates. The programs support awareness campaigns as well as comprehensive and integrated protective services to trafficking victims to ensure they gain new life skills and reduce their vulnerability to re-trafficking. In addition, the Partnership for Growth between the Philippines and the U.S. will promote inclusive growth that is focused on generating meaningful employment and income opportunities for the traditionally neglected segments of the population—those most vulnerable to human trafficking.
In Vietnam, U.S.-funded efforts have led to valuable research on victim protection and prosecution procedures, and key pilot projects have improved shelter conditions and services provided to victims.
In an anti-trafficking prevention effort across the region, USAID funds MTV-EXIT (End Exploitation and Trafficking), a global multimedia campaign. In Southeast Asia, the program raises awareness of trafficking among youth and vulnerable populations to prevent human trafficking in Cambodia, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam, and will open in Burma in December through a public concert held in Rangoon’s People’s Square. Since 2006, MTV EXIT has produced 30 major concert events, 76 television and online programs, and dozens of outreach activities and has engaged over 700,000 regional youth. Beginning in late November, ASEAN and MTV Exit will host a Youth Session to provide training in social media to combat TIP and build regional networks to further enhance awareness. Read more at mtvexit.org/liveinmyanmar.
BURMA: This September, President Obama made a public commitment to enhancing the United States’ partnership with Burma on trafficking in persons, as part of our continued support for Burma’s ongoing reforms.
“Last week I was proud to welcome to the Oval Office not only a great champion of democracy but a fierce advocate against the use of forced labor and child soldiers—Aung San Suu Kyi. And as part of our engagement, we’ll encourage Burma to keep taking steps to reform—because nations must speak with one voice: Our people and our children are not for sale.”
To honor this commitment, and in light of the progress made by the Government of Burma on combating trafficking in persons over the last two years, this week the Governments of the United States and Burma announced a new joint plan to counter trafficking in persons, which will include the establishment of a formal, senior-level dialogue. The United States is committed to enhancing Burma’s progress through the sharing of technical knowledge and best practices, heralding a new era of U.S.-Burma cooperation.
Areas of cooperation under the joint action plan include:
Identifying trafficking offenses;
Investigating and prosecuting trafficking offenders;
Providing victims with access to services in line with existing international guidelines; and
Preventing Burmese citizens from being subjected to sex trafficking or forced labor either within the country’s borders or abroad.
The Office of Website Management, Bureau of Public Affairs, manages this site as a portal for information from the U.S. State Department.
External links to other Internet sites should not be construed as an endorsement of the views or privacy policies contained therein.
No Victim? Don’t Give Up
To contact us Click HERE
No Victim? Don’t Give Up
Creative Strategies in Prosecuting Human Trafficking Cases Using Forfeiture by Wrongdoing and Other Evidence-Based Techniques
Jennifer Gentile Long, JD and Teresa Garvey, JD
The challenges presented in the course of investigating and prosecuting human trafficking cases can be daunting. Among the most common and difficult of these obstacles is the inability or unwillingness of victims to participate in the process. This reluctance may be based upon a variety of factors, including the victims’ fear, shame, distrust of law enforcement, and a real — or perceived — lack of alternatives to trafficking as a way of life. Sometimes the unwillingness of victims to participate arises from their relationships with their traffickers, who may exploit love and intimate relationships to recruit their victims. The undercurrents in such cases involve many of the same dynamics prevalent in dating, intimate partner, or sexual violence as well as child abuse. Also present, however, is the traffickers’ significant financial interest in the victims, as well as the traffickers’ increased exposure to state and federal criminal charges if detected. Accordingly, trafficking victims face enormous pressure not to engage the criminal justice system and serious negative consequences if they do choose to seek help.
Click here to read more.http://www.aequitasresource.org/S_Issue_7_No_Victim-Dont_Give_Up.pdf
No Victim? Don’t Give Up
Creative Strategies in Prosecuting Human Trafficking Cases Using Forfeiture by Wrongdoing and Other Evidence-Based Techniques
Jennifer Gentile Long, JD and Teresa Garvey, JD
The challenges presented in the course of investigating and prosecuting human trafficking cases can be daunting. Among the most common and difficult of these obstacles is the inability or unwillingness of victims to participate in the process. This reluctance may be based upon a variety of factors, including the victims’ fear, shame, distrust of law enforcement, and a real — or perceived — lack of alternatives to trafficking as a way of life. Sometimes the unwillingness of victims to participate arises from their relationships with their traffickers, who may exploit love and intimate relationships to recruit their victims. The undercurrents in such cases involve many of the same dynamics prevalent in dating, intimate partner, or sexual violence as well as child abuse. Also present, however, is the traffickers’ significant financial interest in the victims, as well as the traffickers’ increased exposure to state and federal criminal charges if detected. Accordingly, trafficking victims face enormous pressure not to engage the criminal justice system and serious negative consequences if they do choose to seek help.
Click here to read more.http://www.aequitasresource.org/S_Issue_7_No_Victim-Dont_Give_Up.pdf
Film on Child Sex Trafficking to be Shown at St. Michael's College
To contact us Click HERE
FILM: “Playground: the Child Sex Trade in America”
Screening and Discussion with the Filmmaker
Monday, March 7, 2011, 7:00 p.m.
McCarthy Arts Center, St. Michael's College
While traveling to the Philippines in 2001, filmmaker Libby Spears gained first-hand knowledge of the horrific practice of trafficking human beings for sexual exploitation. She dug a little deeper and discovered that most of these victims were young children. She was further astonished to find the involvement of the United States and the degree to which the U.S. was influencing the global demand and growth of the sex-trafficking industry. This powerful yet poignant film will be followed by a discussion with the filmmaker.There is no admission cost.
Contact Laurie Gagne for more information: lgagne@smcvt.edu
28 Kasım 2012 Çarşamba
Film on Child Sex Trafficking to be Shown at St. Michael's College
To contact us Click HERE
FILM: “Playground: the Child Sex Trade in America”
Screening and Discussion with the Filmmaker
Monday, March 7, 2011, 7:00 p.m.
McCarthy Arts Center, St. Michael's College
While traveling to the Philippines in 2001, filmmaker Libby Spears gained first-hand knowledge of the horrific practice of trafficking human beings for sexual exploitation. She dug a little deeper and discovered that most of these victims were young children. She was further astonished to find the involvement of the United States and the degree to which the U.S. was influencing the global demand and growth of the sex-trafficking industry. This powerful yet poignant film will be followed by a discussion with the filmmaker.There is no admission cost.
Contact Laurie Gagne for more information: lgagne@smcvt.edu
Tell Me The Story One More Time
To contact us Click HERE
By TimChallies(condensedand adapted by Julie Nichols)
ReadingMichael Wittmer’s excellent new book The Last Enemy, I came across a powerfullittle story that I wanted to share with you. I trust you will enjoy it as Idid.
My friendJeff stopped by the hospital to visit one of his dearest senior saints. Charlotte was in hereighties, but she had been young enough in heart to blossom under Jeff’sministry. Charlotte said learning God’s story hadchanged her life. “I get it now,” she told anyone who would listen. “The partsof the Bible make sense when you read them in light of the whole. For the first time in my life, I understandhow my salvation fits into the larger picture.”
Now Charlotte was dying. Shechatted with her pastor about family, church, and the general quality ofhospital food, and then Jeff said a prayer and promised to come see her again.
Jeff wasminutes from home when his cell phone rang. It was the floor nurse calling fromthe hospital. “Charlotte told me tocontact you,” she began. “She said that it’s time for her to die. She told meto tell you not to hurry; she’ll wait until you get here.”
Jeff turnedhis car around and drove slightly faster than Charlotte had recommended. When he enteredher room, panting from his swift jog from the parking garage, Charlotte called him over to her bed. Shetook his hand, looked into his eyes, and said, “Pastor, tell me the story onemore time.”
For the nexttwenty minutes, with a heavy but grateful heart, Jeff reviewed the story thathad saved their lives. He told Charlotteabout their gracious, triune God who created our world from love and for Hisglory. He put us here as His “image bearers” to take care of this world on Hisbehalf (see Genesis 1:26-28).
Jeff thendescribed the destruction of the fall and how our rebellion against the one,true, and living God had shattered everything we were meant to be. We were“without hope and without God in the world” (Ephesians 2:12).
Jeff andCharlotte remembered how God refused to let the world end this way, and He sentHis Son to rescue us from sin and death. Our loving Lord was crucified, dead,and buried, but three days later He shocked the world by rising from the dead.
Jesusascended to heaven where He rules the world and intercedes for us before ourmerciful Father. He will soon return to make all things new. He will restoreour humanity, repairing our relationships with God, each other, and creation.And He will bring joy to the world, far as the curse is found, by abolishingsin, disease, and death. No more tearful goodbyes! Because Jesus lives, we tooshall live—with Him, here, glorifying God and enjoying Him forever!
Jeff’s voicecracked and Charlotte’seyes filled with tears. “It’s true,” she whispered. “I know it’s true.” Sheturned to Jeff and patted his arm, “It’s time. It’s going to be okay.”
As Jeffprayed beside her, Charlotteraised her eyes toward heaven, and with a serenity that comes from knowing howthe story ends, she repeated the words “thank you, thank you, thank you.” Bythe third “thank you” she had fallen asleep, and on the fourth she was wakingup in heaven.
Taken fromThe Last Enemy: Preparing to Win the Fight of Your Life, 2012 by Michael E.Wittmer. Used by permission of Discovery House Publishers, Box 3566, Grand Rapids MI 49501.All rights reserved.
By TimChallies(condensedand adapted by Julie Nichols)
ReadingMichael Wittmer’s excellent new book The Last Enemy, I came across a powerfullittle story that I wanted to share with you. I trust you will enjoy it as Idid.
My friendJeff stopped by the hospital to visit one of his dearest senior saints. Charlotte was in hereighties, but she had been young enough in heart to blossom under Jeff’sministry. Charlotte said learning God’s story hadchanged her life. “I get it now,” she told anyone who would listen. “The partsof the Bible make sense when you read them in light of the whole. For the first time in my life, I understandhow my salvation fits into the larger picture.”
Now Charlotte was dying. Shechatted with her pastor about family, church, and the general quality ofhospital food, and then Jeff said a prayer and promised to come see her again.
Jeff wasminutes from home when his cell phone rang. It was the floor nurse calling fromthe hospital. “Charlotte told me tocontact you,” she began. “She said that it’s time for her to die. She told meto tell you not to hurry; she’ll wait until you get here.”
Jeff turnedhis car around and drove slightly faster than Charlotte had recommended. When he enteredher room, panting from his swift jog from the parking garage, Charlotte called him over to her bed. Shetook his hand, looked into his eyes, and said, “Pastor, tell me the story onemore time.”
For the nexttwenty minutes, with a heavy but grateful heart, Jeff reviewed the story thathad saved their lives. He told Charlotteabout their gracious, triune God who created our world from love and for Hisglory. He put us here as His “image bearers” to take care of this world on Hisbehalf (see Genesis 1:26-28).
Jeff thendescribed the destruction of the fall and how our rebellion against the one,true, and living God had shattered everything we were meant to be. We were“without hope and without God in the world” (Ephesians 2:12).
Jeff andCharlotte remembered how God refused to let the world end this way, and He sentHis Son to rescue us from sin and death. Our loving Lord was crucified, dead,and buried, but three days later He shocked the world by rising from the dead.
Jesusascended to heaven where He rules the world and intercedes for us before ourmerciful Father. He will soon return to make all things new. He will restoreour humanity, repairing our relationships with God, each other, and creation.And He will bring joy to the world, far as the curse is found, by abolishingsin, disease, and death. No more tearful goodbyes! Because Jesus lives, we tooshall live—with Him, here, glorifying God and enjoying Him forever!
Jeff’s voicecracked and Charlotte’seyes filled with tears. “It’s true,” she whispered. “I know it’s true.” Sheturned to Jeff and patted his arm, “It’s time. It’s going to be okay.”
As Jeffprayed beside her, Charlotteraised her eyes toward heaven, and with a serenity that comes from knowing howthe story ends, she repeated the words “thank you, thank you, thank you.” Bythe third “thank you” she had fallen asleep, and on the fourth she was wakingup in heaven.
Taken fromThe Last Enemy: Preparing to Win the Fight of Your Life, 2012 by Michael E.Wittmer. Used by permission of Discovery House Publishers, Box 3566, Grand Rapids MI 49501.All rights reserved.
Today is National Missing Children's Day
To contact us Click HERE
From an email I received from Take 25:
Today is National Missing Children's DayToday marks the 28th annual National Missing Children's Day. First proclaimed by President Ronald Reagan and observed by each administration since, National Missing Children’s Day serves as a reminder to the nation about the importance of child safety and remembering children who are still missing.
May 25th marks the anniversary of the day when 6-year-old Etan Patz disappeared from a New York street corner on his way to school. Etan's story captivated the nation. His photo, taken by his father, a professional photographer, appeared in media across the nation and around the world. As a result, Etan became the poster-child for a movement and his photo came to symbolize the anguish and trauma of thousands of searching families.
For three decades, the search for Etan has continued. Just as that day when President Reagan proclaimed the first National Missing Children's Day, Etan is still missing. The widespread attention brought to his case and others eventually led to a nationwide commitment to help locate and recover missing children.
The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) honors this commitment by reminding parents, guardians, and others to make child safety a national priority and encourages them to participate in the Take 25 campaign.
© 2010 National Center for Missing & Exploited Children • Take 25 Campaign • 699 Prince Street • Alexandria, Virginia 22314 • www.take25.org
Please take 25 minutes to talk to your children (no matter if their are 3 or 18) about safety. With a focus on prevention. The Take 25 website has lots of conversation starters you can download and have that talk today.
Today is National Missing Children's DayToday marks the 28th annual National Missing Children's Day. First proclaimed by President Ronald Reagan and observed by each administration since, National Missing Children’s Day serves as a reminder to the nation about the importance of child safety and remembering children who are still missing.
May 25th marks the anniversary of the day when 6-year-old Etan Patz disappeared from a New York street corner on his way to school. Etan's story captivated the nation. His photo, taken by his father, a professional photographer, appeared in media across the nation and around the world. As a result, Etan became the poster-child for a movement and his photo came to symbolize the anguish and trauma of thousands of searching families.
For three decades, the search for Etan has continued. Just as that day when President Reagan proclaimed the first National Missing Children's Day, Etan is still missing. The widespread attention brought to his case and others eventually led to a nationwide commitment to help locate and recover missing children.
The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) honors this commitment by reminding parents, guardians, and others to make child safety a national priority and encourages them to participate in the Take 25 campaign.
© 2010 National Center for Missing & Exploited Children • Take 25 Campaign • 699 Prince Street • Alexandria, Virginia 22314 • www.take25.org
Please take 25 minutes to talk to your children (no matter if their are 3 or 18) about safety. With a focus on prevention. The Take 25 website has lots of conversation starters you can download and have that talk today.
I'm Back :)
To contact us Click HERE
OK - SO I took a long break from my blog so lots has happened. We basically scaled back on everything to realign and re-evaluate our family's spending and budget needs. Part of that was our home internet service. So that is the reason for the long break, it's awfully hard to keep up a blog with short times online at the local library.
So I'm sure your wondering what's happened....so I'll be quick....
My Christian Life
My growth in my spiritual life has been taking off and I'm so excited to get to know our God and His son Jesus again. I was baptized on Mother's Day in May 2010 and understand now so much more the meaning of being "born again." I've been teaching Sunday School at church (Abundant Life Community Church) in our Kids Room (Grs 2-5). I am currently the Costume Mistress for our church's community theatre's, (82nd Street Theatre) for the upcoming production of "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe."
My Work Life
I've closed my travel agency. I've worked some short term jobs from June to December. Now we've decided, for the moment, I'm staying home. Although, I am a Barefoot Books Representative and an Avon Representative. Barefoot Books is a wonderful line of children's books that are beatifully illustrated and well written. Of course, Avon, which I love all their products and believe no matter who you are or what your budget is Avon can meet your needs.
Homeschooling
This year has been interesting. Both girls went to Public School at the beginning of the school year. What brought me home is my oldest's daughter, who went to middle school (6th gr) and HATED it. And sadly it wasn't the kids or the academics, it was the negative threats given by the teachers daily. So I brought her back home in October. My youngest (4th gr) loved school but part of our budget reduction included a new rental home that cost less, so when we moved in December she came home. Both are loving it and so am I. We are still following an eclectic style and I try not to look over too many different curriculum options. When I start looking I start questioning yet things are going fine the way they are so I'm just going to keep going the way we are.
So there it is, and I hope you'll enjoy my upcoming posts.
So I'm sure your wondering what's happened....so I'll be quick....
My Christian Life
My growth in my spiritual life has been taking off and I'm so excited to get to know our God and His son Jesus again. I was baptized on Mother's Day in May 2010 and understand now so much more the meaning of being "born again." I've been teaching Sunday School at church (Abundant Life Community Church) in our Kids Room (Grs 2-5). I am currently the Costume Mistress for our church's community theatre's, (82nd Street Theatre) for the upcoming production of "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe."
My Work Life
I've closed my travel agency. I've worked some short term jobs from June to December. Now we've decided, for the moment, I'm staying home. Although, I am a Barefoot Books Representative and an Avon Representative. Barefoot Books is a wonderful line of children's books that are beatifully illustrated and well written. Of course, Avon, which I love all their products and believe no matter who you are or what your budget is Avon can meet your needs.
Homeschooling
This year has been interesting. Both girls went to Public School at the beginning of the school year. What brought me home is my oldest's daughter, who went to middle school (6th gr) and HATED it. And sadly it wasn't the kids or the academics, it was the negative threats given by the teachers daily. So I brought her back home in October. My youngest (4th gr) loved school but part of our budget reduction included a new rental home that cost less, so when we moved in December she came home. Both are loving it and so am I. We are still following an eclectic style and I try not to look over too many different curriculum options. When I start looking I start questioning yet things are going fine the way they are so I'm just going to keep going the way we are.
So there it is, and I hope you'll enjoy my upcoming posts.
National Missing Children's Day - May 25, 2012
To contact us Click HERE
May 25 is National Missing Children's Day. It has been observed on this date since 1983 when President Reagan First proclaimed this day as National Missing Children's Day. This day is the anniversary of the day 6 year old Etan Patz disappeared on the way to school in 1979.On July 6th our granddaughter will be missing 5 years. Ashley Summers. Www.bringhomeashley.9f.comPlease talk with your child about safety no matter what age they are. Etan was 6, Ashley was 14....The age doesn't matter, just open that discussion with them this year on May 25th. Go to Www.take25.org for Safety tips and discussion guidelines to help yourself start this conversation with your child or children.Did you know?An estimated 800,000 children are reported missing every year.?..more than 2,000 every day.An estimated 1 in 5 girls and 1 in 10 boys are sexually victimized Before age 18. Only 1 in 3 will Tell anyone.Missing children include parental abductions, non-parental abductions, run always, and children that fall prey to human traffickers. Missing children can range from infants to teens, boys or girls, any race, color or creed. they come from the inner city, the rich suburbs, middle class and rural communities. Don't eve think it won't happen to you or in your community, because it will.Please take the time to educate yourself and child, www.take25.org
27 Kasım 2012 Salı
I'm Back :)
To contact us Click HERE
OK - SO I took a long break from my blog so lots has happened. We basically scaled back on everything to realign and re-evaluate our family's spending and budget needs. Part of that was our home internet service. So that is the reason for the long break, it's awfully hard to keep up a blog with short times online at the local library.
So I'm sure your wondering what's happened....so I'll be quick....
My Christian Life
My growth in my spiritual life has been taking off and I'm so excited to get to know our God and His son Jesus again. I was baptized on Mother's Day in May 2010 and understand now so much more the meaning of being "born again." I've been teaching Sunday School at church (Abundant Life Community Church) in our Kids Room (Grs 2-5). I am currently the Costume Mistress for our church's community theatre's, (82nd Street Theatre) for the upcoming production of "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe."
My Work Life
I've closed my travel agency. I've worked some short term jobs from June to December. Now we've decided, for the moment, I'm staying home. Although, I am a Barefoot Books Representative and an Avon Representative. Barefoot Books is a wonderful line of children's books that are beatifully illustrated and well written. Of course, Avon, which I love all their products and believe no matter who you are or what your budget is Avon can meet your needs.
Homeschooling
This year has been interesting. Both girls went to Public School at the beginning of the school year. What brought me home is my oldest's daughter, who went to middle school (6th gr) and HATED it. And sadly it wasn't the kids or the academics, it was the negative threats given by the teachers daily. So I brought her back home in October. My youngest (4th gr) loved school but part of our budget reduction included a new rental home that cost less, so when we moved in December she came home. Both are loving it and so am I. We are still following an eclectic style and I try not to look over too many different curriculum options. When I start looking I start questioning yet things are going fine the way they are so I'm just going to keep going the way we are.
So there it is, and I hope you'll enjoy my upcoming posts.
So I'm sure your wondering what's happened....so I'll be quick....
My Christian Life
My growth in my spiritual life has been taking off and I'm so excited to get to know our God and His son Jesus again. I was baptized on Mother's Day in May 2010 and understand now so much more the meaning of being "born again." I've been teaching Sunday School at church (Abundant Life Community Church) in our Kids Room (Grs 2-5). I am currently the Costume Mistress for our church's community theatre's, (82nd Street Theatre) for the upcoming production of "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe."
My Work Life
I've closed my travel agency. I've worked some short term jobs from June to December. Now we've decided, for the moment, I'm staying home. Although, I am a Barefoot Books Representative and an Avon Representative. Barefoot Books is a wonderful line of children's books that are beatifully illustrated and well written. Of course, Avon, which I love all their products and believe no matter who you are or what your budget is Avon can meet your needs.
Homeschooling
This year has been interesting. Both girls went to Public School at the beginning of the school year. What brought me home is my oldest's daughter, who went to middle school (6th gr) and HATED it. And sadly it wasn't the kids or the academics, it was the negative threats given by the teachers daily. So I brought her back home in October. My youngest (4th gr) loved school but part of our budget reduction included a new rental home that cost less, so when we moved in December she came home. Both are loving it and so am I. We are still following an eclectic style and I try not to look over too many different curriculum options. When I start looking I start questioning yet things are going fine the way they are so I'm just going to keep going the way we are.
So there it is, and I hope you'll enjoy my upcoming posts.
National Missing Children's Day - May 25, 2012
To contact us Click HERE
May 25 is National Missing Children's Day. It has been observed on this date since 1983 when President Reagan First proclaimed this day as National Missing Children's Day. This day is the anniversary of the day 6 year old Etan Patz disappeared on the way to school in 1979.On July 6th our granddaughter will be missing 5 years. Ashley Summers. Www.bringhomeashley.9f.comPlease talk with your child about safety no matter what age they are. Etan was 6, Ashley was 14....The age doesn't matter, just open that discussion with them this year on May 25th. Go to Www.take25.org for Safety tips and discussion guidelines to help yourself start this conversation with your child or children.Did you know?An estimated 800,000 children are reported missing every year.?..more than 2,000 every day.An estimated 1 in 5 girls and 1 in 10 boys are sexually victimized Before age 18. Only 1 in 3 will Tell anyone.Missing children include parental abductions, non-parental abductions, run always, and children that fall prey to human traffickers. Missing children can range from infants to teens, boys or girls, any race, color or creed. they come from the inner city, the rich suburbs, middle class and rural communities. Don't eve think it won't happen to you or in your community, because it will.Please take the time to educate yourself and child, www.take25.org
Liam's Latest
To contact us Click HERE
Liam's teacher passed this special piece of artwork to me
and asked if I saw what was wrong with it.
How can you miss those puppies!?!?
On the way home from school, I asked Liam to tell me about everything on his picture.
He informed me that these were in fact Ninja Warriors and that one is bad (on the bottom) and that one is good (on the top).
I also learned that they have super sweet ninja costumes complete with a flap in the front...
not a 3rd leg - not a super long ding dong.
Crisis averted - this time. :)
Liam's teacher passed this special piece of artwork to me
and asked if I saw what was wrong with it.
How can you miss those puppies!?!?
On the way home from school, I asked Liam to tell me about everything on his picture.
He informed me that these were in fact Ninja Warriors and that one is bad (on the bottom) and that one is good (on the top).
I also learned that they have super sweet ninja costumes complete with a flap in the front...
not a 3rd leg - not a super long ding dong.
Crisis averted - this time. :)
Who doesn't love a contest and giveaway!?!
To contact us Click HERE
A friend of mine is SUPER talented and has started her own design company. I am in fact feeling like my entire house needs a makeover by her. Her designs are ADORABLE and super reasonable. (I just ordered some personalized notecards that I'm super excited about.)
She decided to do a giveaway for the summer. Check out all of the fun items that you could win?!?! SO fun!
Simply click on the "a just for fun Summer giveaway" logo below and enter to win!!
She decided to do a giveaway for the summer. Check out all of the fun items that you could win?!?! SO fun!
Simply click on the "a just for fun Summer giveaway" logo below and enter to win!!
Ugly Birds or Precious Children?
To contact us Click HERE
25,000 children worldwide starve daily and my government puts thousands of people out of work and even sets aside many more millions of acres of land for an owl, an ugly bird, worshipping the creature rather than the Creator!
We as followers of the Lord Jesus must pray for inapt government leaders and at the same time do all we can to "Deliver those who are being taken away to death." Proverbs 24:10.
We as followers of the Lord Jesus must pray for inapt government leaders and at the same time do all we can to "Deliver those who are being taken away to death." Proverbs 24:10.
26 Kasım 2012 Pazartesi
Human trafficking to UK 'rising'
To contact us Click HERE
8 October 2012
Human trafficking to UK 'rising'
BBC's Tom Symonds: "Police have been stepping up the fight against the global trade in people"
Continue reading the main story
Related Stories
Trafficked young 'missing in UK'
UK men in 'modern slavery' abroad
2,600 UK prostitutes 'trafficked'
The number of people being trafficked into the UK is rising, latest government estimates suggest.
Last year the authorities learned of 946 victims, compared with 710 in 2010, the inter-departmental ministerial group on human trafficking said.
Trafficking gangs in China, Vietnam, Nigeria and eastern Europe now pose the biggest threat to the UK , it said.
The government said better co-ordination between its departments and with authorities abroad was key.
But anti-slavery groups warned government "failures" had led to "significant steps back" in the fight.
Illegal organ removals
Continue reading the main story
At the scene
Tom Symonds
Home Affairs correspondent
In Ilford, East London, the police moved in at 05:15 BST, smashing through the door of an end of terrace house, but without result. It was empty.
The Met says it carries out two such raids every week, on average.
Two miles away in a second house, they found a Lithuanian family living in one room. A stack of mail showed that a large number of people have stayed there before.
They questioned the Lithuanians who said they were being paid below minimum wage to work in a recycling depot and building firm.
The room costs £140 a week. There was a CCTV camera watching the door of the house.
Are they victims of people trafficking? It's not clear, and often those involved haven't asked themselves the same question.
But police say those who try to run are often subject to violence.
There is currently no official figure for the number of victims trafficked into the country each year.
However, the report said 712 adult victims and 234 child victims were reported last year to the National Referral Mechanism, the official body that identifies and looks after those caught up in trafficking.
Of the victims referred in 2010, 524 were adults and 186 were children.
It is thought the increase could be explained by improvements in identifying victims, although campaigners say the figures of those being trafficked could be far higher as many victims choose not to come forward for fear of being deported.
The report suggested an increase in the number of children being forced into crime, including street begging.
The Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre estimates there are about 300 child trafficking victims in the UK every year.
The report also detailed two cases of people trafficked for illegal organ removals, but they were detected and stopped before the operations were carried out.
One involved the planned sale of a victim's kidneys.
'Better life'
Det Insp Kevin Hyland, of London's Metropolitan Police - which sees the UK's highest rates of trafficking - said some victims travelled to the UK in lorries or containers but the majority arrived lawfully, often accompanied by their traffickers.
"The vast majority of them think they're coming to a better life in the UK," he said.
Mr Hyland said it was often "almost impossible" for border guards to spot victims because they often did not even know they were being trafficked.
Many victims are promised jobs in the hotel or leisure industry, or as interpreters, but when they arrive they are "groomed or threatened" and used for sexual exploitation, forced labour or both, he said.
In London, police deal with more than 100 cases of trafficking a year. Some will involve more than 400 victims but the majority involve about 10 to 15 people.
The report revealed the largest number of referrals of potential victims of trafficking were Nigerian nationals. From within Europe, Romanian nationals were the biggest group referred.
There are an estimated 92 organised crime groups in the UK with known involvement in human trafficking, it said.
And 142 defendants were charged with offences related to human trafficking in 2011/12.
'Vile trade'
Continue reading the main story
Organ trafficking
Philippa Roxby
Health reporter, BBC News
The two potential victims of organ trafficking in the UK in 2011 are the first people identified as being forced into giving up their internal organs for transplant.
But it's still a small problem, with organ trafficking making up only 1% of all potential victims of trafficking last year, according to the Serious Organised Crime Association.
Cases of illegal organ trading are rare in the UK because of safeguards in place.
The Human Tissue Authority sees 1,200 cases a year of living organ donation - 95% involve kidneys and 5% liver lobes.
These cases include people making altruistic organ donations and those coming from abroad to donate organs to family members.
The HTA interviews all potential donors to make sure they are consenting freely and to ensure there is no reward or payment.
The process can take up to six months with the donor required to sign a form stating no coercion was involved.
Only when the HTA is satisfied would the operation be allowed to go ahead.
Advice is being drafted for NHS staff to help them identify potential cases of organ trafficking.
The report concluded intelligence sharing with international police forces was already "proving effective".
Immigration minister Mark Harper said the results demonstrated UK professionals were getting better at "spotting" the crime due to "cross-government" cooperation.
"We're doing a better job of cracking down people involved in the vile trade," he told BBC Radio 5 Live.
But the number of those prosecuted was "not enough," he said.
"One of the things we do is to prosecute people for the most serious offences we can, and sometimes that's not a trafficking offence."
Mr Harper also said agencies needed to "make sure victims who are trafficked are treated as victims and not as offenders, which has happened in the past".
Dr Aidan McQuade, director of Anti-Slavery International, said Mr Harper "must face up to the fact" that the problem was worsening "because of fundamental policy failures".
Sophie Hayes said no one helped her. Not even her wealthy clients, which included judges and senior police officers.
He said the government viewed the problem "through the lens of immigration" and had allowed rights for migrant workers to slip from "best practice".
"It would be helpful if the government appointed a national commissioner on trafficking to make sure policy on this issue was unimpeded by politics."
The report revealed thousands of "front-line" workers, including border staff, police and healthcare workers, have been trained to better identify, support and protect victims over the past two years.
Some airlines, including Virgin Atlantic and Thomas Cook, are also training cabin crew to identify those who engaged in trafficking and their potential victims.
And a 24-hour confidential line has been set up for crew to report concerns to border officials before a plane lands in the UK.
8 October 2012
Human trafficking to UK 'rising'
BBC's Tom Symonds: "Police have been stepping up the fight against the global trade in people"
Continue reading the main story
Related Stories
Trafficked young 'missing in UK'
UK men in 'modern slavery' abroad
2,600 UK prostitutes 'trafficked'
The number of people being trafficked into the UK is rising, latest government estimates suggest.
Last year the authorities learned of 946 victims, compared with 710 in 2010, the inter-departmental ministerial group on human trafficking said.
Trafficking gangs in China, Vietnam, Nigeria and eastern Europe now pose the biggest threat to the UK , it said.
The government said better co-ordination between its departments and with authorities abroad was key.
But anti-slavery groups warned government "failures" had led to "significant steps back" in the fight.
Illegal organ removals
Continue reading the main story
At the scene
Tom Symonds
Home Affairs correspondent
In Ilford, East London, the police moved in at 05:15 BST, smashing through the door of an end of terrace house, but without result. It was empty.
The Met says it carries out two such raids every week, on average.
Two miles away in a second house, they found a Lithuanian family living in one room. A stack of mail showed that a large number of people have stayed there before.
They questioned the Lithuanians who said they were being paid below minimum wage to work in a recycling depot and building firm.
The room costs £140 a week. There was a CCTV camera watching the door of the house.
Are they victims of people trafficking? It's not clear, and often those involved haven't asked themselves the same question.
But police say those who try to run are often subject to violence.
There is currently no official figure for the number of victims trafficked into the country each year.
However, the report said 712 adult victims and 234 child victims were reported last year to the National Referral Mechanism, the official body that identifies and looks after those caught up in trafficking.
Of the victims referred in 2010, 524 were adults and 186 were children.
It is thought the increase could be explained by improvements in identifying victims, although campaigners say the figures of those being trafficked could be far higher as many victims choose not to come forward for fear of being deported.
The report suggested an increase in the number of children being forced into crime, including street begging.
The Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre estimates there are about 300 child trafficking victims in the UK every year.
The report also detailed two cases of people trafficked for illegal organ removals, but they were detected and stopped before the operations were carried out.
One involved the planned sale of a victim's kidneys.
'Better life'
Det Insp Kevin Hyland, of London's Metropolitan Police - which sees the UK's highest rates of trafficking - said some victims travelled to the UK in lorries or containers but the majority arrived lawfully, often accompanied by their traffickers.
"The vast majority of them think they're coming to a better life in the UK," he said.
Mr Hyland said it was often "almost impossible" for border guards to spot victims because they often did not even know they were being trafficked.
Many victims are promised jobs in the hotel or leisure industry, or as interpreters, but when they arrive they are "groomed or threatened" and used for sexual exploitation, forced labour or both, he said.
In London, police deal with more than 100 cases of trafficking a year. Some will involve more than 400 victims but the majority involve about 10 to 15 people.
The report revealed the largest number of referrals of potential victims of trafficking were Nigerian nationals. From within Europe, Romanian nationals were the biggest group referred.
There are an estimated 92 organised crime groups in the UK with known involvement in human trafficking, it said.
And 142 defendants were charged with offences related to human trafficking in 2011/12.
'Vile trade'
Continue reading the main story
Organ trafficking
Philippa Roxby
Health reporter, BBC News
The two potential victims of organ trafficking in the UK in 2011 are the first people identified as being forced into giving up their internal organs for transplant.
But it's still a small problem, with organ trafficking making up only 1% of all potential victims of trafficking last year, according to the Serious Organised Crime Association.
Cases of illegal organ trading are rare in the UK because of safeguards in place.
The Human Tissue Authority sees 1,200 cases a year of living organ donation - 95% involve kidneys and 5% liver lobes.
These cases include people making altruistic organ donations and those coming from abroad to donate organs to family members.
The HTA interviews all potential donors to make sure they are consenting freely and to ensure there is no reward or payment.
The process can take up to six months with the donor required to sign a form stating no coercion was involved.
Only when the HTA is satisfied would the operation be allowed to go ahead.
Advice is being drafted for NHS staff to help them identify potential cases of organ trafficking.
The report concluded intelligence sharing with international police forces was already "proving effective".
Immigration minister Mark Harper said the results demonstrated UK professionals were getting better at "spotting" the crime due to "cross-government" cooperation.
"We're doing a better job of cracking down people involved in the vile trade," he told BBC Radio 5 Live.
But the number of those prosecuted was "not enough," he said.
"One of the things we do is to prosecute people for the most serious offences we can, and sometimes that's not a trafficking offence."
Mr Harper also said agencies needed to "make sure victims who are trafficked are treated as victims and not as offenders, which has happened in the past".
Dr Aidan McQuade, director of Anti-Slavery International, said Mr Harper "must face up to the fact" that the problem was worsening "because of fundamental policy failures".
Sophie Hayes said no one helped her. Not even her wealthy clients, which included judges and senior police officers.
He said the government viewed the problem "through the lens of immigration" and had allowed rights for migrant workers to slip from "best practice".
"It would be helpful if the government appointed a national commissioner on trafficking to make sure policy on this issue was unimpeded by politics."
The report revealed thousands of "front-line" workers, including border staff, police and healthcare workers, have been trained to better identify, support and protect victims over the past two years.
Some airlines, including Virgin Atlantic and Thomas Cook, are also training cabin crew to identify those who engaged in trafficking and their potential victims.
And a 24-hour confidential line has been set up for crew to report concerns to border officials before a plane lands in the UK.
Because I Don't Bring You Nearly Enough News From Central Oklahoma
To contact us Click HERE
http://villagevoicepimp.com/central-oklahoma-salvation-army-engages-war-human-trafficking
Central Oklahoma Salvation Army engages in war on human trafficking
Oklahoma City , OK|Sex-Trafficking Minors|Thursday, November 8, 2012Add Comment
By: ZEKE CAMPFIELD, NEWSOK.COM
It will take more than law enforcement and money to combat human trafficking in Oklahoma, said Maj. Francina Proctor, associate area commander of the Central Oklahoma Salvation Army Area Command, who spoke to an Oklahoma City women's networking group on Wednesday.
The trafficking of humans in and through Oklahoma — for both sexual and labor purposes — can only be defeated with public awareness and a concerted effort by the community as a whole, Proctor told about two dozen women with OKC Happy Hour at Bricktown Brewery.
Proctor, guest speaker for the group's fall luncheon, used the podium to call for more support in combating a growing local problem.
“Sometimes it's not very comfortable for a city or area to say there is a problem, (but) there is more attention to it now, which is what we want,” she said. “It's not just in somebody else's backyard. It can be your neighbors, too.”
Proctor said there are an estimated 14 “pockets” of girls and women being used locally for sexual purposes, and identified several high profile cases in recent years, including that of Carina Saunders, a 19-year-old Mustang woman. Saunders was found in October 2011 dismembered in a duffel bag near a Bethany grocery store.
Authorities believe Saunders was tortured and killed to warn victims of sexual trafficking to cooperate.
Proctor said girls as young as 12 and 13 are groomed to be prostituted, and that the Internet and social networking makes it easier for predators to “charm” their victims.
Sexual trafficking, she said, is rarely a case of kidnapping. Its victims are vulnerable because they often come from poverty or from homes of abuse.
“Many people who take advantage of these kids are opportunists,” she said.
“Men charm these young girls who you know already have self esteem issues growing up by acting as their boyfriend, by providing riches. He breaks her down, he builds her up.”
She lauded Oklahoma lawmakers for approving legislation in 2008 that makes it easier for law enforcement to fight human trafficking.
A new law went into effect Nov. 1 that creates a human trafficking division within Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control.
Mark Woodward, spokesman for the bureau, said the new division makes sense logistically.
Federal agents in Oklahoma have made more than 70 arrests from prostitution stings since June, including four underage girls. And of 150 prostitution-related arrests made by Oklahoma City police in 2011, 127 were trafficking based. But the bureau's new trafficking division will be the first of its kind at the state level.
“We've been running into investigations off and on for years where it has a human trafficking nexus, but we don't have statutory authority to investigate those,” Woodward said. “Drug traffickers are also trafficking humans, weapons — anything for money.”
Sometimes drug cartels will traffic local girls and women, but often they will bring immigrants from Mexico or elsewhere to Oklahoma to be prostituted, Proctor said.
It's a trade involving as much as 30 million women and children worldwide, and traffickers can fetch as much as $23,000 per human per year, she said.
“I want to see people get angry about it. I want to see people angry about child pornography,” she said.
Salvation Army aids fight
The Salvation Army has partnered with law enforcement and several other organizations — notably Oklahomans Against Trafficking Humans — to bring attention to the problem.
A new series of public service announcements are set to roll out soon, but what's really needed are more advocates, she said.
There are only four centers nationwide equipped to take in and treat child trafficking victims, she said. Local law enforcement does not have the resources to care for these girls, she said, and many of them end up in jail or back out on the streets.
Central Oklahoma Salvation Army engages in war on human trafficking
Oklahoma City , OK|Sex-Trafficking Minors|Thursday, November 8, 2012Add Comment
By: ZEKE CAMPFIELD, NEWSOK.COM
It will take more than law enforcement and money to combat human trafficking in Oklahoma, said Maj. Francina Proctor, associate area commander of the Central Oklahoma Salvation Army Area Command, who spoke to an Oklahoma City women's networking group on Wednesday.
The trafficking of humans in and through Oklahoma — for both sexual and labor purposes — can only be defeated with public awareness and a concerted effort by the community as a whole, Proctor told about two dozen women with OKC Happy Hour at Bricktown Brewery.
Proctor, guest speaker for the group's fall luncheon, used the podium to call for more support in combating a growing local problem.
“Sometimes it's not very comfortable for a city or area to say there is a problem, (but) there is more attention to it now, which is what we want,” she said. “It's not just in somebody else's backyard. It can be your neighbors, too.”
Proctor said there are an estimated 14 “pockets” of girls and women being used locally for sexual purposes, and identified several high profile cases in recent years, including that of Carina Saunders, a 19-year-old Mustang woman. Saunders was found in October 2011 dismembered in a duffel bag near a Bethany grocery store.
Authorities believe Saunders was tortured and killed to warn victims of sexual trafficking to cooperate.
Proctor said girls as young as 12 and 13 are groomed to be prostituted, and that the Internet and social networking makes it easier for predators to “charm” their victims.
Sexual trafficking, she said, is rarely a case of kidnapping. Its victims are vulnerable because they often come from poverty or from homes of abuse.
“Many people who take advantage of these kids are opportunists,” she said.
“Men charm these young girls who you know already have self esteem issues growing up by acting as their boyfriend, by providing riches. He breaks her down, he builds her up.”
She lauded Oklahoma lawmakers for approving legislation in 2008 that makes it easier for law enforcement to fight human trafficking.
A new law went into effect Nov. 1 that creates a human trafficking division within Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control.
Mark Woodward, spokesman for the bureau, said the new division makes sense logistically.
Federal agents in Oklahoma have made more than 70 arrests from prostitution stings since June, including four underage girls. And of 150 prostitution-related arrests made by Oklahoma City police in 2011, 127 were trafficking based. But the bureau's new trafficking division will be the first of its kind at the state level.
“We've been running into investigations off and on for years where it has a human trafficking nexus, but we don't have statutory authority to investigate those,” Woodward said. “Drug traffickers are also trafficking humans, weapons — anything for money.”
Sometimes drug cartels will traffic local girls and women, but often they will bring immigrants from Mexico or elsewhere to Oklahoma to be prostituted, Proctor said.
It's a trade involving as much as 30 million women and children worldwide, and traffickers can fetch as much as $23,000 per human per year, she said.
“I want to see people get angry about it. I want to see people angry about child pornography,” she said.
Salvation Army aids fight
The Salvation Army has partnered with law enforcement and several other organizations — notably Oklahomans Against Trafficking Humans — to bring attention to the problem.
A new series of public service announcements are set to roll out soon, but what's really needed are more advocates, she said.
There are only four centers nationwide equipped to take in and treat child trafficking victims, she said. Local law enforcement does not have the resources to care for these girls, she said, and many of them end up in jail or back out on the streets.
Australia's Female Prime Minister Promises $50 Million to Fight Against Trafficking
To contact us Click HERE
Gillard wants South China Sea code of conduct
PM By political correspondent Louise Yaxley in Phnom Penh
Updated 1 hour 12 minutes ago
VIDEO: Gillard backs Asian free-trade zone (7pm TV News ACT)
RELATED STORY: Gillard, Obama attend Cambodian trade summitRELATED STORY: Obama praises 'first steps' during Burma visit
MAP: Cambodia
Prime Minister Julia Gillard says Australia wants to see a code of conduct for resolving disputes over the South China Sea.
Territorial disputes over the South China Sea have overshadowed the East Asia Summit in Cambodia's capital Phnom Penh, where Ms Gillard is meeting regional leaders.
She has already spoken to Japan's prime minister, Yoshihiko Noda, and China's leader, Wen Jiabao.
China has been reluctant to commit to starting formal talks on a legally binding code of conduct over the sea.
Ms Gillard says Australia does not take sides in the territorial disputes but argues they have to be resolved peacefully.
"We believe it is in everybody's interest that issues in the South China Sea are managed in a peaceful way in accordance with international law; that's Australia's perspective," she said.
"We do believe that a code of conduct would assist with making sure that any issues in the South China Sea, any conduct there, could be managed in accordance with the code, that is, that the rules and manner of responses would be predictable and knowable.
"That's Australia's position. It's been one of long standing and it's one we'll continue to argue for."
Ms Gillard says it is important to Australia that the issue is resolved.
"We are talking about an area of the world that our shipping needs to go through to take our goods to the world," she said.
During her meeting with Mr Wen, Ms Gillard presented the Chinese leader with a photo of former Labor prime minister Gough Whitlam meeting China's chairman Mao Zedong in 1973.
The gift, signed by Mr Whitlam, is to mark the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two nations.
It is likely to be the last meeting between Ms Gillard and Mr Wen before China's new administration comes in next year.
Free trade
AUDIO: Listen to Louise Yaxley's report (PM)
Ms Gillard also says Australia will take any opportunity to push for free trade in the region.
United States president Barack Obama this morning launched the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which involves Canada, Mexico as well as countries on the western side of the Pacific.
Ms Gillard says Mr Obama is being ambitious about its scope and he wants the deal in place by October next year.
Trade Minister Craig Emerson, who is also in Phnom Penh, said Mr Obama seemed set to use his second term in office to push for the deal.
"The president of the United States was very enthusiastic and highly ambitious for the Trans-Pacific Partnership," he said.
"As a second-term president of the United States, it is clear that he wants to get this deal done and, indeed, he wants it to be a high-quality, truly liberalising agreement.
"The importance of that is that it creates more jobs and better jobs in the region and beyond."
Australia is also involved in another push to remove regional trade barriers.
Ms Gillard says Australia is keen to be a part of any group that can reduce tariffs and smash trade barriers.
"It makes sense to be involved in both and to be maximising our efforts in both," she said.
Malaria
During a speech at the summit, Ms Gillard promised $1 million for more work to combat malaria in the region.
She also emphasised that Australia had recently promised $100 million over four years to help cut death rates.
The leaders at the summit will make a declaration committing to a regional response to the growing threat of drug-resistant malaria.
Ms Gillard says Australia is supporting a regional alliance to fight the problem.
"Malaria is a disease which disproportionately affects the poor," she said.
"In fact, in 2010 it was estimated 42,000 people in our region of the world died from malaria. Disturbingly, we are seeing the emergence of drug-resistant strains of malaria."
Ms Gillard has also promised $50 million to crack down on human trafficking.
The money will go towards helping investigators and prosecutors catch people who are exploiting others and force them into work or prostitution.
Cambodia is one of seven South East Asian nations to benefit from the funding.
"Trafficking in persons is a dreadful evil where people are forced into exploitative labour situations, and tragically, young people in particular are forced into prostitution," Ms Gillard said.
"The program I am announcing today will enable us to work with a number of our neighbours to reduce trafficking in people."http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-11-20/gillard-wants-code-of-conduct-for-south-china-sea/4382768
Gillard wants South China Sea code of conduct
PM By political correspondent Louise Yaxley in Phnom Penh
Updated 1 hour 12 minutes ago
VIDEO: Gillard backs Asian free-trade zone (7pm TV News ACT)
RELATED STORY: Gillard, Obama attend Cambodian trade summitRELATED STORY: Obama praises 'first steps' during Burma visit
MAP: Cambodia
Prime Minister Julia Gillard says Australia wants to see a code of conduct for resolving disputes over the South China Sea.
Territorial disputes over the South China Sea have overshadowed the East Asia Summit in Cambodia's capital Phnom Penh, where Ms Gillard is meeting regional leaders.
She has already spoken to Japan's prime minister, Yoshihiko Noda, and China's leader, Wen Jiabao.
China has been reluctant to commit to starting formal talks on a legally binding code of conduct over the sea.
Ms Gillard says Australia does not take sides in the territorial disputes but argues they have to be resolved peacefully.
"We believe it is in everybody's interest that issues in the South China Sea are managed in a peaceful way in accordance with international law; that's Australia's perspective," she said.
"We do believe that a code of conduct would assist with making sure that any issues in the South China Sea, any conduct there, could be managed in accordance with the code, that is, that the rules and manner of responses would be predictable and knowable.
"That's Australia's position. It's been one of long standing and it's one we'll continue to argue for."
Ms Gillard says it is important to Australia that the issue is resolved.
"We are talking about an area of the world that our shipping needs to go through to take our goods to the world," she said.
During her meeting with Mr Wen, Ms Gillard presented the Chinese leader with a photo of former Labor prime minister Gough Whitlam meeting China's chairman Mao Zedong in 1973.
The gift, signed by Mr Whitlam, is to mark the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two nations.
It is likely to be the last meeting between Ms Gillard and Mr Wen before China's new administration comes in next year.
Free trade
AUDIO: Listen to Louise Yaxley's report (PM)
Ms Gillard also says Australia will take any opportunity to push for free trade in the region.
United States president Barack Obama this morning launched the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which involves Canada, Mexico as well as countries on the western side of the Pacific.
Ms Gillard says Mr Obama is being ambitious about its scope and he wants the deal in place by October next year.
Trade Minister Craig Emerson, who is also in Phnom Penh, said Mr Obama seemed set to use his second term in office to push for the deal.
"The president of the United States was very enthusiastic and highly ambitious for the Trans-Pacific Partnership," he said.
"As a second-term president of the United States, it is clear that he wants to get this deal done and, indeed, he wants it to be a high-quality, truly liberalising agreement.
"The importance of that is that it creates more jobs and better jobs in the region and beyond."
Australia is also involved in another push to remove regional trade barriers.
Ms Gillard says Australia is keen to be a part of any group that can reduce tariffs and smash trade barriers.
"It makes sense to be involved in both and to be maximising our efforts in both," she said.
Malaria
During a speech at the summit, Ms Gillard promised $1 million for more work to combat malaria in the region.
She also emphasised that Australia had recently promised $100 million over four years to help cut death rates.
The leaders at the summit will make a declaration committing to a regional response to the growing threat of drug-resistant malaria.
Ms Gillard says Australia is supporting a regional alliance to fight the problem.
"Malaria is a disease which disproportionately affects the poor," she said.
"In fact, in 2010 it was estimated 42,000 people in our region of the world died from malaria. Disturbingly, we are seeing the emergence of drug-resistant strains of malaria."
Ms Gillard has also promised $50 million to crack down on human trafficking.
The money will go towards helping investigators and prosecutors catch people who are exploiting others and force them into work or prostitution.
Cambodia is one of seven South East Asian nations to benefit from the funding.
"Trafficking in persons is a dreadful evil where people are forced into exploitative labour situations, and tragically, young people in particular are forced into prostitution," Ms Gillard said.
"The program I am announcing today will enable us to work with a number of our neighbours to reduce trafficking in people."http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-11-20/gillard-wants-code-of-conduct-for-south-china-sea/4382768
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