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Shared Hope International News Release
May 29, 2003
Contact: Karrie
Delaney
Director of Communications
Tel: 703.351.8062
Karrie@sharedhope.org
NATION'S STRONGEST COOPERATIVE STATEMENT AGAINST SEX TRAFFICKING ISSUED
War Against Trafficking Alliance and State Department
Commit Combined Efforts to Seek International Compliance with 143 Directives
Washington, D.C., May 29, 2003 -In the strongest statement on human trafficking ever issued jointly by the governmental and humanitarian sectors, representatives of the State Department and the non-governmental War Against Trafficking Alliance presented the report of the historic February 2003 conference on sex trafficking.
The groups committed their combined efforts to seek international compliance with 143 directives intended to curb worldwide sex trafficking, calling for the cooperative marshalling of resources to interdict and punish the perpetrators of sex trafficking and to protect and restore its victims. The directives were developed by the Conference on Pathbreaking Strategies in the Global Fight Against Sex Trafficking, February 23-26, 2003.
They were presented here by John Miller, Senior Advisor to the Secretary of State, Human Trafficking, and Linda Smith, the former congresswoman who founded Shared Hope International in 1998 to rescue women and girls victimized by international sex trafficking, and is also the founder of the War Against Trafficking Alliance.
The conference was sponsored by the State Department and the non-governmental War Against Trafficking Alliance. Notably, the conference included three participants who were victims of international sex trafficking, once cast out and abused by their own communities and forgotten by the world community. Renu of India, Ghanga of Nepal, and Rani of India added their firsthand recommendations as members of the conference working groups, providing information that will help liberate others.
The conference report includes guidelines related to protection of victims, prosecution of the traffickers, and prevention of future abuses. It calls on local and national governments to “pass comprehensive national anti-trafficking laws that prosecute traffickers and provide for the safety and privacy of the victim, proper representation in court, access to medical care, social assistance, compensation for damages, and the right to seek and receive residency.”
Linda Smith said the U.S. government has demonstrated a strong commitment to curbing sex trafficking in the U.S. and around the world. On June 11, the U.S. will issue an annual report on international compliance with the Victims of Violence and Trafficking Protection Act of 2000 that will result in sanctions against offending nations.
“Forcing a 9-year-old to have sex up to 45 times a day is the very essence of evil,” Smith said. “I applaud this administration for taking bold steps to end this kind of horror, which I've seen and from which we've rescued girls. The June 11 report will be a strong step in holding nations, whether they be friend or foe, to account if they continue to turn a blind eye to these horrific practices.”
The conference report has been translated into eight languages and will be distributed internationally. This fall, members of the Shared Hope International will conduct follow-up training conferences in six regions throughout the world, to advance understanding and cooperation on the report's recommendations.
The War Against Trafficking Alliance is comprised of Shared Hope International, Johns Hopkins University/Project Protection, International Justice Mission, and The Salvation Army in the United States.
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