House Bill 432, Alabama’s first anti-human trafficking legislation, passed in both houses of the Alabama State Legislature merely hours before the 2010 legislative session ended on Thursday, April 22. The bill, which provides extensive protection for victims of labor and sex trade, will add Alabama to the list of 44 states that have strictly criminalized human trafficking under state law, according to the Polaris project.
The passage of the bill will create new human trafficking crimes and penalties, provide mandatory restitution for victims, allow victims to sue their traffickers and provide for asset forfeiture.
Along with the Polaris Project and the DA’s Association, local anti-human trafficking coalition Freedom to Thrive helped draft the bill and said that anti-human trafficking legislation has been a long time coming for Alabama. Supporters of the bill say that a state law will now lead to more prosecutions of what is considered modern-day slavery.
“It’s a huge victory,” Sara Jane Camacho, director of Freedom to Thrive, said. “Having legislation on the books is really the starting point for educating law enforcement and the community about human trafficking.”
After a tangible encounter with child sex slaves in Thailand at age 16, Camacho returned to Birmingham “ticked off” that people were not aware of young children enslaved for labor or sex abroad and in Birmingham, she said. In 2009, Camacho helped form Freedom to Thrive, which was created as a response to the growing prevalence of human trafficking in the southeast and in Birmingham.
According to the Birmingham News, a lawsuit filed in Birmingham federal court in 2009 claims that a Mississippi man paid inadequate wages to two male Guatemalan guest workers for work in Mississippi and Alabama, forced them into debt, confiscated their visas and threatened to report them to immigration officials.
In addition, a federal grand jury in Birmingham indicted a man from Florence, Ala., in December for harboring a female minor in Lauderdale County and forcing her to perform sex acts for payment.
Rescues that punish those they’re meant to save: Cambodia again
More evidence of how police raids to save people are unwanted and counter-productive, this time with statements from UNAIDS and a Cambodian sexworker group. Those suffering under the crackdown are not traffickers and arrested sex workers were not trafficked. The rhetorical move to call completely old-fashioned raids anti-trafficking strategies is orwellian double-speak creating confusion amongst those who don’t know what’s going on.
Cambodia cracks down on the sex industry,
Robert Carmichael, 12 April 2010, Deutsche Welle
. . . In Cambodia, the government recently decided to target the sex industry in a move it thinks will combat the trafficking of women. 60 brothels, karaoke bars and massage parlors have been raided in Phnom Penh and across the country in the past month alone. Some 300 sex workers are thought to have lost their jobs since the crackdown began in early March. . .
Organizations that help sex workers worry it is driving them away from established venues, and limiting their access to sexual health services.
Tony Lisle, the country head of UNAIDS says the crackdown is the latest in a series of similar moves by the authorities in recent years, which do not have very positive effects. ”From the perspective of UNAIDS, the crackdowns create significant difficulties for organizations working in HIV prevention to reach those who are most at risk from HIV infection effectively, particularly sex workers and women working in the entertainment industry.”
Important to separate prostitution and trafficking
Moreover, although the authorities say this drive is part of an anti-trafficking campaign, so far no traffickers have been arrested – only sex workers. Lisle says it is important to separate the issues of prostitution and human trafficking. A survey last year found that no more than 7 percent of sex workers had been trafficked into the trade. “However, they are often the victims of the crackdown,” says Lisle.
Sex workers are losing out
Ly Pisey is a technical assistant at the Women’s Network for Unity, a collective that advocates rights and sexual health for sex workers that holds meetings for sex workers so that they can pass on information on sexual health and rights. She says that “the situation is very difficult” right now and it is hard to access sex workers. ”We are like thieves. If we want to send out a message on safe sex, we have to call some of the sex workers whom we know and who trust us to come to our drop-in centre. Sometimes we meet one and ask them to share the information and tell them to continue to have hope,” she explains.
It seems highly unlikely that the government’s move will fulfill its stated goal of eliminating prostitution – not least since one in three Cambodian men are thought to pay for sex. However, the wave of arrests is certainly driving sex workers underground and away from the assistance they and their clients need. It seems very likely that if the crackdown continues it will result in a higher rate of sexually-transmitted diseases.
Kathleen Haley, a 37 year old woman missing from Newport, Virginia, has not been seen since August 22nd. Kathleen’s sister, Diane Roman, was the last person to hear from Ms. Haley, speaking with her on the phone on September 1st. This is very unusual according to their mother, who said that she typically talked to Kathleen at least twice a week. In fact, they had plans for Kathleen to help her mother get her car inspected, but Kathleen never showed up. After Kathleen’s mother couldn’t locate her at her apartment on the 7th of September, combined with the fact that she had not been heard from in a week now; Kathleen’s mother reported her missing.
It is reported that there were several items missing from Haley’s condo. However, in order to preserve the integrity of the investigation, the police have not yet released exactly what those items are. It is known, however, that her dog, a boxer, is missing from the condo. Haley’s brother in law, Manuel Roman, made a comment regarding the missing items, saying “It’s just stuff you don’t take with you if you’re going on a trip. Stuff you don’t necessarily take anywhere.”
Kathleen’s family portrayed her as leading a private life, not sharing a multitude of details with anyone, and being annoyed by nosy people. Her family could not think of anything that seemed to be bothering her leading up to her disappearance. Kathleen’s car is parked in her driveway, which the family says is very unusual. Manuel Roman stated, “It’s just totally unlike her to not call, to not be on Facebook, to not move her car.”
The family is concerned for her safety, and asking for the public’s help. They are seeking any information, no matter how big or small, regarding her disappearance and/or whereabouts. Roman posed the question, “If you had someone who was missing, wouldn’t you want somebody to come out and say ‘I know this little bit?’” If you have any information regarding this case, please immediately call the Newport News Police at (757) 247-2500. You can remain anonymous by calling The Crime Line, at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP.
Spencer Shank, writer for MPAN
An 18 year old woman went missing from Kosciusko County in Warsaw, Indiana a week ago today, by the name of Aurora Shoemaker. There is not an abundance of information on this case, due to her abrupt disappearance.
The young adult is described as being 5-foot-6, a slender build, short blonde hair, green eyes, and piercings in her lip. She was seen last Thursday at approximately 4:00 P.M. leaving her mobile home at the Acres Mobile Home Park going out for a walk, however, she never returned. The sudden disappearance, coupled with her cell phone going unanswered caused her family to contact the Sheriff’s Department on Sunday to report her missing.
Police say that as far as they know, she does not have a history of running away. They are also requesting the public’s help in finding Aurora, so if you know anything about this young woman’s disappearance, please contact the Sheriff’s Department at either their anonymous line 574-372-2494 or their regular line at 574-267-5667
Law enforcement continues searching for Alpha Sabbithi, 27, of Oak Lawn, Illinois after discovering his locked car at 4:00 A.M. Sunday morning. The vehicle was located near Maple Lake forest preserve, and his cell phone, car keys, and wallet was sitting on the seat inside.
Alpha Sabbithi is described as being 5’11, 160 pounds, and having brown eyes with matching colored hair. When he was last seen, according to the alert, he was wearing a black T-shirt and brown cargo pants. His shirt reportedly had “Hollywood” written on the front in white letters.
The division chief of the Oak Lawn police stated that the area would be further searched by one of his officers as well as officers from the Cook County Sheriff’s Department- the officers holding jurisdiction. The search was also aided by police searching the lake in boats while a police helicopter surveyed the surrounding area by air.
According to the alert posted by Oak Lawn police, a bloodhound search dog was used from the Joliet police department; the dog was said to have caught Sabbithi’s scent at a boat launch at Saganashkee Slough, but Alpha was not there.
It is known that Sabbithi suffers from depression; however, his brother informed police of Alpha’s two week stay at a Michigan monastery recently, which he had learned of when seeing his brother for the last time on Saturday. His brother went on to say that Alpha seemed more relaxed and that “It was a personal thing for him”.
If you have any possible information in regard to Sabbithi’s whereabouts, please contact the Oak Lawn Police at (708)-422-8292.
