03/12/2022
Modern slavery, is something I never imagined would come on my own radar. In 2004, whilst I was living in Leeds, West Yorkshire, I discovered some women being trafficked into s*x work. For the purposes of this post, let's just say that my reasons for getting involved at that time were complicated, however many years before I had been groomed as a teenager, so the freedom to choose s*x work and work safely, was something very close to my own heart.
At that time, Operation Rampart was based in Sheffield, and they assisted.
This was to become, one of the most turbulent times in my life.
Over a period of a few weeks; I provided intelligence and assisted South Yorkshire police to free three Lithuanian women who were being trafficked by an Albanian gang. Back then, there was NO agency support. In fact, I even paid for their flights home and took them to the airport.
As the women went through the gate, one turned back. She started to sob loudly, she was in love with her trafficker. The other two pleaded with her to go with them. But it was then it all came out, that she had been the lure for the other girls in the first place.
Many years before s*x Trafficking was even a thing in the UK, the UN Assembly, created the Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others. It's an event that takes place every 2nd of December.
Let’s take a moment to pause for all those trafficked & working towards eradicating this heinous form of the slave trade…
