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| (source: Forthesakeofone.org) |
Sex trafficking/sex slaves maybe one of the worst human rights violations of the past 50 years. The very thought of those memories can still bring nightmares to the minds of some survivors. Survivors like Somaly Mam who was sold as a sex slave at the age of 7 years old. Unfortunately this is the case for many young girls across the globe but the main focus is in Asia where sex slavery seems to be a common theme there. Amazingly enough this issue doesn't seem to be attracting a lot of world wide attention.
For the people that think that this issue is not worth discussing I can assure you that you are wrong. Did you know that over 500, 000 women and children are being trafficked and forced into sex slavery every single year in Asia? Some of these children are as young as 5 years all and you want to know what the worst part of it is? They are sold to brothels by their own mothers, fathers, and brothers. “They were forced to have sex with up to 40 men a day for as little as 10 a times to pay off 20,000 debts each - the price for which they were bought'. They were charged rent, and subjected to fines if they refused anal or unprotected sex or a client was not attracted to them...” (Julia O'Connell Davidson.) These girls have to endure horrid things until they pay off the "debt" that they owned. However most of those girls never leave. Because of these horrible stories survivors like Somaly Mam have started foundations in order to raise awareness about this delicate issue which still affects the lives of children and women everyday.
Although sex trafficking is an issue, corruption has also made its way into an already messed up society. In 2006, the government prosecuted several police officials for trafficking-related corruption charges. "The former Deputy Director of the Police Anti-Human Trafficking and Juvenile Protection Department was convicted for complicity in trafficking and sentenced to five years' imprisonment; two officials under his supervision were also convicted and sentenced to seven years' imprisonment."(HumanTrafficking.org) In Cambodia police officers are not only ignoring the problem but they themselves are clients of these brothels. They amongst other clientele manipulate these girls into thinking that they're garbage and thats what they become. "I paid a fortune for you and you're not even pretty" (47) Such words can make these girls feel like an object that is owned and can never become anything more. Somaly Mam is trying to help rescue these girl but unfortunately she cannot do it alone this is an issue on a worldwide scale and it must be dealt with. You can help, by raising awareness about this issue, donating to these foundations or by creating your own organizations. The respect that women receive in the world is abysmal. Women are equal to men in every way and should not be treated as second class citizens, objectified by their sexuality and if we can all learn to accept that there wouldn't be such horrid events happening around the world.
The topic of Sex Trafficking in itself is really mind wrecking because we start to think "what can drive someone to treat others like this"?It's more then a problem it's something that needs to stand out as more then a problem. Women and girls are being used as objects and treated with little to no respect yet they deserve so much. Your definitely right , Women deserve respect just like us Men do, we're no better then them. This was a great Op-Ed to not only raise awareness but to open minds into the perspective of a young lady who is going through this and picture what it would be like if we were in there shoes.
ReplyDeleteVery good Intro to the topic Aaron. Your op-ed is very well written. The topic your writing about is not an easy one, there is a lot of emotions involved and you do a great job of talking about those emotions. Also, you do a great job of using facts to help prove the point that sex trafficking is bad. Nice op-ed.
ReplyDeleteI really like the way you ended your Op-Ed. It was present throughout your writing that Human Trafficking was a topic that wasn't that clear to the public eye, and so when it came to your concluding statement you provided me with a way to help make this issue known. You displayed good use of pathos as well as ethos because throughout your writing you evoked a lot of emotion and sounded professional. Great job.
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