Thailand
"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men {and women} do nothing."
-Edmund Burke
I never knew.
And now that I do… I can't forget. Oh, I'd heard the name before, but it never really hit me.
Human Trafficking.
Did you know that more than 30 million slaves live in our world today? Most of them children. It's a $32 billion dollar a year industry (1). It has been identified as the fastest growing criminal industry in the world, and second only to drug trafficking as the most profitable illegal industry (2). But perhaps that's not real enought for you…. sometimes statistics aren't. Somestimes you need to see things for yourself.
Human trafficking is defined as the illegal trade of human beings for the purposes of reproductive slavery, commercial sexual exploitation, forced labor, or a modern-day form of slavery (2). My contact this month described it as "the exploitation of vunerability." We are "battling a mindset and a spiritual stronghold," she told us. And because of that, she emphasized the importance prayer will play in our ministry this month.
The Asia Pacific region is seen as the most vulnerable region for trafficking because of its huge population pyramid, growing urbanization, and extensive poverty (3). But Thailand and India in particular serve as hubs of the flesh trade (4). Women and children who are most vulnerable to being trafficked are those between the ages of 10-35, who are impovershed, uneducated or from indigenous, ethnic minority, rural or refugee groups (3). Even so, slavery plagues every country, even the United States (1).
No one knows this better than our teams who were in Phuket, where just by walking down bar street they witnessed women of all nationalities, including American, scantily clothed and drugged, dancing in glass boxes, while men stood guard out front. Where my team was located in Chang Mai, the closed bars like this one were fewer and less obvious, but we were peppered with more open bars than I've ever seen in one concentrated area in my life. By "open" bars, I refer to bars where the women "have a choice" to work there. I "quote" that because most women feel they have no choice at all and nearly all of them send the majority of the funds they raise back home to their families. The truely disorienting thing you'll see though, is not the women standing in front of the bars grabbing at each man as he walks by, but the tourist families walking down the street with strollers, or stopping into one of the bars for a drink with an 8 year old in tow. Do they really not know what's going on here?! (p.s. why are you taking your kid into a bar anyway?)
The average income of the women working in these open bars is $2,000 per month. That's more than double what the average citizen pulls in. The girls get paid $2 if a guy buys them a drink. There is a $13 bar fee if he desires an hour of her time, and a $66 fee paid to the bar if he wants to take her out for an entire evening. The girls then negotiate their fee seperately with said men.
It's crazy when you actually witness a transaction. The businesslike bordom on the girls face that she tries to hide with fake excitement. So many of the girls on our squad got angry with the men, but when I looked at them all I felt was sadness and all I saw was numbness. I prayed daily that these men would wake up. That they would see the faces of their wives, girlfriends, daughters, or mothers in the faces of these women. These men are just as lost as the girls who work here.
It is so much more concrete than statistics – seeing it face to face, night after night. Our only weapons may be knowledge, love, and prayer, but it seems to me those are all pretty powerful. Please consider wielding them with me.
　
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Further info –
**Ministry: Lighthouse, Love Acts
http://www.lighthouseinaction.org/
(affiliated with YWAM Thailand)
Though the red-light district may be dark, there is no darkness that can overcome the Light, and so that is what we bring on a weekly basis. We venture out daily into the red-light district to bring the Light, and Love of Jesus Christ. We build relationships with the girls, ladyboys, and children who work there, both in the bar, and by making dates outside the bar environment. We love them, listen to them, and share our lives with them. We know that there is a Hope for them.
In Love Acts, we don’t just SAY " I love you", we DO "I love you". We walk alongside the outcasts, let them see the transformation Christ has done in us, and let them know it can be done in them as well.
- Change – Lighthouse is starting a new ministry program called Change in girls come to recieve life and job training. They'll learn about Jesus Christ as well as be taught life skills, a trade, and English. Food, Lodging, and Tuition for this 3 month program will be sponsor supported.
http://www.lighthouseinaction.org/get-involved/donate/
** Video: Jacob's story
http://vimeo.com/31795904
Jacob's Story is a mini-documentary about a man that once made his living by trafficking women & children for the purposes of commercial sex.
Jacob worked as a trafficker for a crime syndicate in Johannesburg South Africa. We decided to release his story because of how raw it is. In this film, he speaks openly about his work as a brothel manager and he explains how syndicates all over the world operate as they exploit the weak and powerless. Most importantly, you'll hear about the life transformation that's taken place in Jacob's life.
From trafficker to rescuer. Only in the Kingdom of God.
**Book: Not for Sale by David Batstone
"Batstone paints a picture of modern-day slavery that stretches across the whole world and includes our own neighborhoods. With clear language and moving stories, he highlights the impact of slavery on the most vunerable: the children of developing nations. Batstone also tells the stories of the courageous modern-day abolitionists who are making a difference in the lives of children despite incredible odds. Batsone's message is that we can end this egregious injustice."
– Dean R. Hirsch, president, World Vision International
　
　
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1 – David Batstone, Not for Sale
2 – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_trafficking
3 – www.unescap.org/esid/gad/issues/trafficking/index.asp
4 – Alex Perry, "The Shame," Time Asia
