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Thousands of trafficked children are being forced to work on cocoa plantations this Christmas.
What do these children want for Christmas?
They want to go home.
In the UK we will spend over a billion pounds this Christmas on chocolate.
We like to eat chocolate.
These children are slaves.
Something is terribly wrong.
STOP THE TRAFFIK Chocolate Christmas Campaign is about ACTION and CHANGE.
The customer needs to know who picked the cocoa beans that make chocolate.
The retailer needs to know that their customers will change what they buy to force the chocolate industry to change their practices.
The chocolate manufacturers need to realise that this is the time to:
SIGN THE CHOCOLATE PLEDGE
KEEP THEIR ORIGINAL PROMISES
And GIVE US TRAFFIK FREE CHOCOLATE NOW
Download the new Christmas chocolate poster/advert and place it everywhere around your community. We want everyone who buys chocolate this Christmas to think twice about what they choose to buy and where it comes from. We can all buy fair trade and know that your chocolate is free from trafficked labour. 
Drown your town in coupons! Download our coupon by following this link. Give this to the retailer when you pay for your chocolate. Carry the coupons around in your wallet, purse or bag and every time you buy chocolate—give it in. Let all the chocolate retailers in your neighbourhood know why you are buying fair trade chocolate and encourage them to sign the pledge, join the campaign and provide chocolate that is TRAFFIK FREE.  Use the Christmas chocolate campaign powerpoint resource for your school, faith or community group. Use it as it is or be creative and develop your own ideas and action around it. Contact your local newspaper and radio station and get this issue out there. Advertise the coupons and ask the local paper to print it in support of the Christmas Chocolate Campaign and promote it. Remember to buy our T-shirts and Freedom Keys! (follow this link). These are great ways to raise awareness of people-trafficking and support the work of STOP THE TRAFFIK. |
Remember to check the STOP THE TRAFFIK Good Chocolate Guide to know where and what to buy. All fair trade chocolate can ensure that it has not been picked using enslaved labour.
TOPBreaking news—a step in the right direction
On 10th October 2007, major global players in the food industry initiated a programme for a more sustainable cocoa supply chain in the Ivory Coast, to improve social and environmental practices. This is a key decision that could lead to ending the trafficking of children into slavery on cocoa farms.
One of these global players is Cargill, an international provider of food and other products and services in 66 countries, and a major buyer and processor of cocoa beans from Ivory Coast. (This could affect many of the chocolate products that you buy in your supermarket)
At the beginning of 2008, a draft farm level certification code will be tested in pilot projects in Ivory Coast. Local stakeholders including farmers, charities, government bodies, and others will be involved in its development. By the end of 2008, the first independent certifiers will have been trained and the final code will be implemented. Throughout 2009, the project will certify the first 10,000 farmers in Ivory Coast, and pilot projects will be carried out in other producing countries to customise the programme to their specific circumstances.
This is big news.
This is a first step … and STOP THE TRAFFIK welcomes this new initiative by Cargill and calls to see this become a reality.
It is critical we keep pressure up on this issue. We are making a difference. We will not stop until the trafficking has been STOPPED.
TOPThe Cocoa Pledge
We want our chocolate to be Traffik Free. We have developed this into a Cocoa Pledge for use by the industry. Read it by going to the link at: www.stopthetraffik.org/chocolateDownloads/stt_pledge.pdf
We are calling all chocolate manufacturers and retailers to SIGN the pledge.
TOP Global catch up
The Chocolate Campaign is global. All over the world from Australia to America, Belgium to Burnley there has been a grassroots movement of thousands of people fighting hard to raise awareness and fight for Traffik Free chocolate. Every day it is growing.
WHAT ARE WE WAITING FOR? Do you remember the ICI (International Cocoa Initiative)? This is the body that was set up in 2001 which promised to deliver the Harkin-Engel protocol, with a clear aim to eradicate child slavery from the chocolate industry and establish certification on all farms by 2005. They failed. They announced another deadline of 2008 and reduced the definition of certification to handling and collecting data. We will watch closely to see whether the chocolate industry will finally admit that their process is not working and that they cannot keep delaying clear action to eradicate this crime leaving thousands of children caught today in this horrific life. We are placing our Cocoa Pledge, which has growing international support (see the web site), as the best response to a failed industry protocol. |
Watch out for next newsletter announcing the plans for 2008:
Freedom Day 15 March 2008
Delivering the million signatures to the UN February 2008
Launch of the STOP THE TRAFFIK Freedom Fund
STOP THE TRAFFIK Coordinating Team
Enquiries: info@stopthetraffik.org
1A Kennington Road, London SE1 7QP
+44 (0)20 7921 4252
