Talitha Kum & UK Embassy
to Holy See fighting human trafficking together
 |
| Members of the Talitha Kum network against human trafficking in Ethiopia |
Talitha Kum, the international network of Consecrated Life
against human trafficking sets up a new network in Ethiopia with the
collaboration of the British Embassy to the Holy See.
By Linda Bordoni
It is estimated that over 40 million people are victims of
human trafficking worldwide. War, poverty, inequality and displacement are
major factors in rendering people particularly vulnerable to trafficking and
modern slavery. They are used for cheap labour, exploited for sex work, for
warfare and killed for their organs.
Public awareness regarding the phenomenon, described by Pope
Francis as a crime against humanity, has grown exponentially thanks to the work
of religious, of faith-based organizations and of governments who have
responded to his repeated calls to tackle this scourge, this “open wound on the
body of contemporary society”.
In the forefront of the fight to end human trafficking is
Talitha Kum, an international network of Consecrated Life against trafficking
in persons. This expanding reality is a project of the International Union of
Superiors General that coordinates and strengthens the already existing
activities against trafficking undertaken by consecrated persons in the five
continents.
In order to be ever more effective, Talitha Kum also
promotes networking and collaboration between religious and political leaders
at a national and international level, because, as the network’s international
coordinator, Comboni Missionary Sister Gabriella Bottani, explains
in an interview with Vatican Radio, partnership and concerted action are
indispensable tools in the fight against this enormous challenge.
One such partner is the British Embassy to the Holy See, in
the person of Ambassador Sally Axworthy, who has recently
funded a series of workshops for the Talitha Kum network in Ethiopia. She spoke
to us of her commitment to stand up against modern slavery in line with the UK
Government that has set this as a major priority on its global agenda.
In the joint interview with Ambassador Axworthy, Sr
Gabriella, who has recently returned from a journey to Ethiopia, explains that
this Horn-of-Africa nation is one of the most affected by human trafficking.
Trafficking, she says, takes place both internally from rural to urban areas,
and internationally as there are many vulnerable groups of people on the move,
with migrants and refugees coming into the country, and many attempting to
migrate overseas, “with women being particularly vulnerable.”
As international coordinator of Talitha Kum, Sr Gabriella’s
visit to Ethiopia brought her into contact with the vibrant anti-trafficking
reality on the ground.
She speaks of how religious life is working in the field of
trafficking, but sometimes in a fragmented and uncoordinated way: “The
religious were facing such a big problem they were not able to move forward.”
Talitha Kum in Ethiopia
They were extremely grateful, she says, for the opportunity
to come together and feel supported, and “when they discovered Talitha Kum,
they discovered a treasure, something very beautiful.”
It is widely acknowledged that collaboration is a very
important added value in this field, and Sr Gabriella says the work done in
this occasion has been “to move from theoretical elements of collaboration to
very practical ones,” bringing people together to share information and
commitments in different areas.
Talitha Kum is present in almost 100 countries on the five
continents. The latest networks to be added in Africa are in Ethiopia and
Mozambique, makes for 11 networks on the continent.
Together in the fight against human trafficking
They are particularly important, Sr Gabriella says, because
together with South East Asia, these are the geographical areas in the world
most affected by trafficking.
Tackling modern slavery: a priority for the British
government
Ambasador Axworthy notes that tackling modern slavery has
been a priority for her government for quite some time and says the Embassy
tries to address the issue in a comprehensive response
She explains there are many elements to that: “what we do at
home, the Modern Slavery Act, a system for supporting victims, a Law
Enforcement framework,” etc.
She says overseas operations are also key and foresee
collaboration with countries, participation in UN initiatives and other
organizations.
“But a very important part is working with religious sisters
because they bring something unique to this effort,” she says.
The religious sisters, Ambassador Axworthy notes, are
present on the ground “with the survivors, they often identify the victims,
they can engender trust among victims which is more difficult for governments
or law enforcement officials to do.”
And beyond that, she continues, they have a very important
role “not just in supporting victims and rehabilitating them, but also in
understanding what the trafficking roots are, how people are exploited and
helping us, as governments, understand how this whole network of international
crime operates.”
Partnership and complementarity
The Ambassador highlights the value of the complementary
action of the partners in question, as there are things the government can do
like coordinate law enforcement agencies of different countries, apprehend
organized criminals, get legislation in place etc, while they, the sisters have
that very pastoral role, “so we try and join so we can understand what they do
and understand the intelligence they have from the victims; at the same time
they can understand the kind of international efforts to combat human
trafficking and make our efforts complimentary.”
Pope Francis
Ambassaor Axworthy expresses her appreciation for Pope
Francis’ role in raising awareness about modern slavery and human trafficking
and the need to combat it.
She also notes the Vatican has taken some very practical
steps in the fight, setting up its Section for Migrants and issuing pastoral
guidelines.
“On our side, we have a Modern Slavery Act” which brings
together all our efforts to tackle the scourge, she says, “we support victims,
have a national referral mechanism and an international effort with a call to
action which details all the things we believe make for an effective response.”
“It’s a very challenging problem and we have to work in
partnership to make any impression on it so we need the different strengths of
all the different organizations,” she says.
The female face of the fight against modern slavery
When I point out there appear to be so many women in the
forefront of the fight against trafficking, Sr Gabriella noted that women are
the ones who make up the main group of victims of trafficking, and at the same
time, are a very important resource.
Religious sisters, she says, are the ones living close to
the reality of social vulnerabilities where trafficking is going on – in rural
areas, in the fields of education, health care, pastoral work: “we are the ones
touching first-hand the drama and situation of trafficking” it is a very
important and privileged position from which to be involved.
She says also that Talitha Kum is organized from a women’s
perspective: “not only what we are doing, but the way we are tackling human
trafficking in a sister-like way.”
Ambassador Axworthy agrees women are in the forefront of the
effort, recalling, from her perspective, that former PM Theresa May really made
a personal commitment to tackle modern slavery, and that’s when it became a
priority for the British government.
She also points out there are numerically many more
religious sisters than there are religious brothers, so they have an unparallel
network that makes them very important in the fight against human trafficking.
But, she adds: “I have to say there are lots of men who are
very important in this too; Cardinal Nichols is one of them, he set up the
Santa Marta Group which brings together bishops and law enforcement agencies”.
Ambassador Sally Axworthy, Sister Gabriella Bottani and Flaminia Viola
of the Vatican's Section for Migrants and Refugees
What can we do?
One thing the British government has done is to try to get
companies to certify their supply lines are slavery-free. This, the Ambassador
says, is part of what Pope Francis calls a throwaway culture, “so we need to
think about where the things we buy come from.”
In her own country, she says, the Anglican Church, for
example, has taken an initiative called the “Carwash app” that gives you ways
of spotting whether people working in a carwash might be victims of slavery.
“The idea is that we, as consumers, must be very conscious
of what we are buying and who we are buying it from and look out for the signs
of modern slavery, whether in a carwash or a nail bar – if something seems too
cheap to be true, there is probably a reason for that,” she says.
Sr Gabriella notes that relationships are also very
important and that any effort to change hurtful behaviour is needed across the
board. She says we must all learn to improve the relationships amongst each
other, enhancing relationships that respect the dignity of the other, in order,
for example, to reduce the demand for paid sex,
“There is something we can all change. I believe we have to
re-educate ourselves in our behaviour and respect the dignity of every person,”
she says.
Sr Gabriella also expresses her gratitude towards Pope
Francis for having made the fight against trafficking one of the main
initiatives and priorities of his Pontificate.
“He is a good partner and his words are very important to
raise awareness, to motivate, to challenge governments and religious people and
all people of goodwill to go deeper, to the roots of human trafficking and to
recognize in all people our brothers and sisters, so there is no space for the
exploitation of human beings,” she says.
The value of collaboration
Sister Gabriella and Ambassador Axworthy conclude
highlighting the value of their collaboration.
It shows, Sr Gabriella says, that the sisters are not just
working amongst themselves, they are crossing the borders of religious life,
collaborating with governments, with other faith-based organizations, with
women of different faiths, with religious men in the Catholic Church and
beyond.
“This collaboration, this support of each other, is really a
sign of hope for anti-trafficking,” she says.
Yes, the Ambassador agrees, committing to keep the fight
against modern slavery a big priority: “We all need to work together on this
and there is something that all of us can do, whether we are religious sisters
working with the victims, or governments, or even consumers just being careful
of where we buy and who has been producing it.”
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