REUTERS: Human trafficking on the rise in Afghanistan despite new laws
By Jared Ferrie, BANGKOK (Thomson Reuters Foundation)
One year after Afghanistan strengthened human trafficking laws to prohibit the use of boys for sexual entertainment, there is little enforcement and trafficking is on the rise, experts say.
“Bacha bazi” – in which young boys are abducted by commanders who force them to dance and sexually abuse them – was explicitly prohibited for the first time in the updated anti-trafficking and smuggling law, enacted in January 2017. Read More
REUTERS: Anti-trafficking charity launches materials aimed at Kenyan children
By: Nita Bhalla, NAIROBI (Thomson Reuters Foundation)
A Kenyan charity launched a range of educational materials on Tuesday to teach children about the dangers of trafficking, in a bid to combat child slavery and exploitation.
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS: Sex trafficking survivors say even in #MeToo era they struggle to be heard
By: MEGAN CERULLO, NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Nikki Bell was 16 years old the first time she had sex for money. Her mother had recently died, she became addicted to drugs and alcohol, and soon thereafter, wound up in the arms of a pimp. Read More
USA TODAY: Trump to ask for tougher penalties for opioid trafficking – but no change in death penalty
President Trump announced that over the next three weeks his administration will be rolling out an opioids policy that will include stepped up actions against drug dealers, and lawsuits against drug companies.
FORBES: Startup’s Mission: Teaching Victims Of Human Trafficking New Job Skills
By Anne Field , CONTRIBUTOR, FORBES
A mind-boggling number of people globally are victims of human trafficking—about 25 million, including those exploited for cheap labor, sex or in state-imposed forced labor, according to the International Labor Organization and Walk Free Foundation. Read More
US NEWS: Alabama Attorney Charged With Human Trafficking – Again
By CULLMAN, Ala. (AP), US NEWS
An Alabama attorney faces additional charges of human trafficking just weeks after being arrested on similar charges.
Cullman County Sheriff Matt Gentry says Randy Allan Hames faces new charges of first- and second-degree human trafficking. The 75-year-old Hames was arrested Saturday and released on bail.
The Cullman Tribune says Hames was arrested Feb. 22 and charged with stalking and promoting prostitution after two women complained that he asked for sex in place of rent payments. He was arrested and charged on March 5 with two counts of human trafficking in connection with that complaint.
Authorities have not said whether the latest charges relate to the same victims.
A Sheriff’s Office spokesman said prosecutors decided to move forward with the trafficking charges after reviewing the case and speaking with victims.
FOX NEWS: Ambassador Callista Gingrich: Ending human trafficking must be a global priority for us all
By Callista L. Gingrich is the U.S. ambassador to the Vatican, FOX NEWS
For over four years, Karla Jacinto estimates that she was raped over 40,000 times. Abandoned at 12, she fell prey to a pimp in Tenancingo, Mexico, who through brutality and coercion forced her into prostitution. At 15, Karla’s newborn daughter, conceived through rape, was taken from her as she continued to be threatened by her enslavers. Karla was finally liberated at 16 as the result of an anti-trafficking operation. Read More
THE TIMES OF ISRAEL: Cop accused of sex crimes against human trafficking victims
By TOI STAFF, THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
Officer was investigating an Eastern European gang that brought women to Israel for prostitution; is suspended from force… Read More
REUTERS: India aims to give 500,000 trafficking survivors vocational training
By Anuradha Nagaraj, CHENNAI, India (Thomson Reuters Foundation)
India will offer vocational training to almost half a million survivors of human trafficking under a program launched this week by President Ram Nath Kovind.
The three-month course will Read More
REUTERS: Indonesia hopes new film will fight human trafficking
By Beh Lih Yi, KUALA LUMPUR (Thomson Reuters Foundation)
Indonesian officials say they hope that a new film starring human trafficking victims will reach rural areas to raise awareness about the risks of signing on to work abroad.
The short film, “A Dream of a Misty Land”, follows the story of a few teenagers from rural Indonesia who were lured to work in other countries by job recruiters, but ended up being exploited.