STOP THE TRAFFIK
People shouldn't be bought and sold
By Steve Chalke
with a chapter by Cherie Blair
"An eye-opening account of the vast scale and cost in human suffering of people trafficking – with practical suggestions about how we
can make a positive difference"
Emma Thompson - Actress
A chocolate bar or a cheap outfit: a harmless treat or a small step towards supporting the fastest-growing form of organised crime in the world? While article 4 of the universal
declaration of human rights says that people should not be bought and sold, the trafficking of people is a hugely profitable business, generating between 10 and 32 billion dollars a
year in profit - a profit second only to the trafficking of drugs.
This challenging colour-illustrated book tells the story of this exploitative trade. It is a story of family betrayal born out of poverty and desperation - of fathers selling their
daughters, husbands selling their wives and sisters selling their sisters. It is a story of human suffering and coercion, affecting countless men, women and children (even babies) –
a story of forced prostitution, forced labour or military warfare and even organ trafficking. It is the story of Wihini (9) and Sunni (7) in Mumbai, sold by their alcoholic father for
£20; of 17-year-old Neary in Cambodia, who went on ‘honeymoon' with her new husband, only to find he had sold her to a brothel owner for $300; of Ximena who was kidnapped on her 12th
birthday and forced to join the Lord's Resistance Army in northern Uganda. And our Western world is far from immune – the book includes the story of 13 year old British girl Jessica,
who was sexually exploited by a group of men in the UK, and cases from the USA too.
But this is also a story of hope. STOP THE TRAFFIK, a global movement was set up in 2006 to raise awareness, encourage involvement and inspire action to help to stop human trafficking
and to support those it affects. They now work closely with the United Nations and the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) in their efforts to bring an end to the trafficking trade.
Their supporters around the world are evidence that small actions, when undertaken on a wide scale, can make a big difference. In this book, broadcaster and campaigner Steve Chalke
highlights practical ways in which you can make a positive difference in helping to bring this shameful trade to an end. A chapter by Cherie Blair focuses on trafficking of women and
women's rights.
Steve Chalke is founder of the charities Oasis UK, Parentalk, Oasis Learning, Faithworks and STOP THE TRAFFIK. The author of over 30 books, he has presented programmes on ITV,
BBC and Radio 4 and writes a monthly column for Prima Baby on fatherhood. Cherie Blair is a leading barrister in the field of discrimination and human rights, and is a committed campaigner
for women's equality.
Steve Chalke and Ruth Dearnley (CEO of STOP THE TRAFFIK) are available for interviews and to write articles linked to this new book. For more information or
to request a review copy, please contact Rhoda Hardie (01865 302742, rhodah@lionhudson.com). We would be grateful to receive a copy of any
review or feature you publish.
STOP THE TRAFFIK – Steve Chalke with a chapter by Cherie Blair
Issues, flexiback with colour illustrations, 160pp, 978 0 7459 5358 8, £7.99, 25 March 2009
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