Many people who view the new film The Sound of Freedom are shocked that child trafficking is so rampant globally. They wonder why human trafficking continues to increase in our modern society today.
That’s one of the many unanswered questions the film raises. Others include: who has the power in our world today – AI, corporations, the UN, universities, governments, economists, organized crime, mining companies? And as the gap between rich and poor expands, why does the number of victims of human trafficking increase, destroying more and more lives?
July 30 marks World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, and this year’s theme is “Reach every victim of trafficking, leave no one behind.” The goal of the campaign is “to raise awareness of disturbing developments and trends identified by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime” and calls on governments, law enforcement, public services, and civil society “to assess and enhance their efforts to strengthen prevention, identify and support victims, and end impunity.”
In examining the system of trafficking of humans for labour, sex, or organ buying, economic gain appears to be the central goal, without any concern for the dignity of the human person. The imbalance of power, pleasure, and privilege reigns supreme. The poor and innocent children and those most marginalized and vulnerable are the targets of predators because they are easy to manipulate and control. This is profit-making or money-grabbing at the expense of those living in poverty.
Reducing any human person to a commodity or object to be used, abused, and discarded for one’s own selfish pleasure and profit is unacceptable in any culture. Laws are meant to provide limits to the out-of-control behaviours of humans and protect the voiceless and marginalized.
For equality to be accomplished, there must be mutually enhancing, human-to-human relationships not built on a one-sided thirst for power, domination, profit, and pleasure. There is no equality with this imbalance of power and control.
As we celebrate around the world a day against trafficking in persons, let us in Canada recommit ourselves to endorsing our equality law – the Protection of Community and Exploited Persons Act – with the purpose of granting prostituted persons immunity while holding those who cause the harm accountable.
In Canada, sexual exploitation is the most common form of human trafficking with more than 70 per cent of cases related to sexual exploitation. Most sex-trafficking victims are Canadian-born teenage girls, some as young as 13, who are recruited in various ways primarily through social media, according to the Alley Foundation.
The Sound of Freedom vividly shows great efforts being made to save children from trafficking. This effort, while honourable in saving lives, will not solve the problem until those who are buying and destroying lives are held accountable and punished for their actions. Yet globally there is little discussion about ending the demand which is the driving force for trafficking.
More needs to be done in Canada and throughout the world to bring predators to justice, to express our compassion and support for the vulnerable, and to say no to the sale of bodies or organs.
As the UN says on its website, “To end human trafficking, we cannot allow this crime to be met with increasing indifference and impunity.”
Sister Nancy Brown is a member of the Archdiocese of Vancouver’s Anti Human Trafficking Committee.
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