pathways, August 2007
More formal structure for Asia-Pacific anti-trafficking network
Problems on Batam
New organisation forms: Asia Pacific Women Religious Against Trafficking in Humans
More formal structure for Asia-Pacific anti-trafficking network
The Good Shepherd Asia-Pacific Anti-Trafficking Network has a more formal structure following a five-day workshop in Cebu City, Philippines, in July.
Each country has designated one contact person to animate her respective country in responding to and collaborating on the issue of human trafficking. A core group of four was then elected. This core group contains Sr Tania de Jong, from Australia. The other three are Sr Henedina Mananzan (Philippines), Sr Virginia Kim (Korea), and Ms Gloria Bon (Malaysia).
They will mobilise the network to action and to coordinate and collaborate efforts with the JP Asia-Pacific Regional Committee - Ms. Christine Carolan (Australia), Sr Maureen Catabian (Philippines) and Sr Aruna George (India).
The gathering was a colourful and festive celebration of life - sharing stories, hopes and dreams, songs, food, dances, fun, laughter and gifts; a fabric of the diversity, resilience and communion of the Good Shepherd Asia-Pacific Network on Anti-Trafficking, according to Sr Maureen Catabian.
The workshop was attended by 32 Good Shepherd Sisters, one Good Samaritan Sister, one Salesian Sister and seven lay people representing 13 countries comprising the Asia-Pacific Region (Myanmar, Singapore, Malaysia, Sri-Lanka, Australia, Macau, Vietnam, Indonesia, Korea, Taiwan, Philippines, Thailand and Japan). Representatives from India/Nepal and Pakistan could not attend.
Each country's representative shared that country's interventions to addressing trafficking problems.
"Some countries have extensive experiences in providing interventions through shelter programmes for recovery, healing and reintegration," Sr Maureen said, "while others' strong points are on prevention such as policy advocacy and networking.
"Still other countries have yet to create programmes for healing intervention and advocacy and need to further strengthen local and international networking."
She said exposure to the "red light" districts in Cebu, watching a documentary film on trafficking in Indonesia, seeing the connection of trafficking as a form of violence linked to gender inequality/discrimination and listening to the heart-rending stories of abuse experienced by prostituted women and children from the Good Shepherd Recovery Center highlighted the complexity and systemic nature of the problem of human trafficking.
"It has become a 'global scourge' - a new form of 'slave trade' that needs to be addressed by various local and international networks in an organised, systematic and holistic approach as well."
photographs:
Group round the prayer space in the seminar room
Welcome from the girls and children of Good Shepherd Recovery Centre
Balay Isidora - Recovery Centre
Representing the group
Problems on Batam
During the Cebu meeting, a group of about 20 people gathered to explore the issues of trafficking on Batam.
On July 16, Sr Tania and Ms Carolan with several others visited Batam.
Among a range of problems aired, they discovered that children were sold for three million rupiah - about $Aus600, often because parents wanted consumer items such as a television. The girls commonly thought they were being taken to work in a restaurant. Contracts for sex workers were usually for six months (although some are for four) but they are often renegotiated as the workers have no other means of surviving and often are pregnant.
While the visitors could offer no immediate concrete support, four needs were identified during the conversation: funding; retraining for women who leave the sex industry; a safe place for women to live if they wanted to leave the industry; networking so like-minded people could work together on the problems in Batam.
New organisation forms
A new organisation, Asia Pacific Women Religious Against Trafficking in Humans, APWRATH, has formed from a meeting on Panglao Island, Bohol, also in July.
Good Shepherd Sister Tania de Jong is the Australian representative.
APWRATH's roles are: Networking for
the exchange of information and referrals for re-integration of trafficked people;
the sharing of modules for schools, communities, conferences;
advocacy, lobbying and mobilisation.
The organisation was formed at the follow-up session of the counter trafficking training course for religious personnel that had been held in Manila in 2006.
The 2007 session, co-ordinated by Stefano Volpicelli from IOM and Sr Bernadette FMA from UISG, focussed on community education to prevent trafficking.
The session called on all participants to work in regional partnerships for education, prevention, protection, prosecutions, Fair Trade and advocacy. It also called on participants to offer temporary accommodation to trafficked women.
The gathering was attended by about 45 women from eight countries, including Sr Tania and Ms Christine Carolan from Australia.
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