A masked woman sitting on her bamboo boat in Ha Long Bay, Vietnam, is a potential target for abduction. Thousands of young women across Asia are kidnapped or tricked into becoming part of the global sexual-slavery racket. HOANG DINH NAM/AFP/GETTY IMAGES Visit the Photo Place

High moral imperative: To fight against slavery, 21st century-style

Date published: 10/31/2005

WASHINGTON--With Lifetime Television's mini-series "Human Trafficking," the American public has been given a descriptive portrayal of one of the most insidious crimes of our day: the modern-day slave trade.

The hypothetical victims of sex trafficking whose stories are portrayed in the drama are joined by millions more each year who are trafficked into not only sexual exploitation, but also forced labor and other slavelike conditions.

Some victims live a life of farm or sweatshop labor. Some, as young as 6, are forced to serve in armed militias. Some are abused in the sport of camel racing, undernourished and trampled in the name of recreation.

They are people like Shadir, who at 15 accepted a job that promised good clothes and an education. It proved to be a case of false advertising--a typical ploy of traffickers--for the job actually took him to a rural village where he was forced to work 12 to 14 hours a day producing hand-woven carpets. His only payment was two helpings a day of lentils and rice. When Shadir was unable to work, he was severely beaten.

They are people like Silvia, a single mother who answered an ad for a housekeeping job. Once at the job agency, however, Silvia was put in a line with other female job applicants to be inspected by potential buyers. She was purchased and taken to a fourth-floor condo where she was used as a domestic servant 20 hours a day. Forced to rummage through garbage for her food, treated as a prisoner and beaten daily, Silvia escaped by jumping from a window to the street below. She is now permanently paralyzed.

The victims of human trafficking are people from all walks of life, including up to 17,500 trafficked into this country each year. They are victims of different races, religions, and ages, but they share something in common: They are trapped.

The good news is that the movement to abolish modern slavery is growing.

President Bush and Congress have made this issue a priority so government resources are brought to bear to prevent trafficking, protect victims and prosecute traffickers. Private charitable organizations across the United States are stepping up efforts to help victims and ensure justice. People of faith, feminists, students, and former victims are working together to shine light on this global challenge.

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Date published: 10/31/2005