Reginald's Rants & Raves

REGINALD'S RANTS AND RAVES

This is the section where the Colonel and I shovel the coal into the boilers and let off STEAM!!!!!!!!!!!!

The first thing we wish to get off our chests, hairy and otherwise, is our fervent support for the ongoing campaign to ABOLISH SLAVERY AND HUMAN TRAFFICKING FOR ALL TIME!!!

So, here's some thought-provoking shovelfuls for that old boiler.

#1 TRADE OF INNOCENTS TRAILER




The Colonel has been informed via Pigeon-Morse Code that there is a major worldwide movement to end slavery and human trafficking. So he has been rummaging around in his kitbag and found some vital clues to how it can be done!! 
Firstly, here's the trailer for a new animated pictorial on human trafficking. And these worthy sites to befriend, subscribe to, and, if you can, volunteer to help:
The A21 Campaign: http://www.thea21campaign.org/the-problem.php
Justice Generation:http://jointhejusticegeneration.blogspot.com.au/2012/08/one-in-27-million-interview-with-bianca.html?spref=fb
Doctors At War: http://www.doctorsatwar.org/
Free For Life International: http://www.freeforlifeintl.org/
Collaborative World: https://www.facebook.com/collaborativeworld
Stop The Traffik: http://www.stopthetraffik.org
https://www.facebook.com/STOPTHETRAFFIK
http://stopthetraffik.wordpress.com
and here in Australia: http://stopthetraffik.org/australia

The Colonel was very fired up today and this is his call for action! "We can all aim for the abolition of slavery FOR ALL TIME! No-one can say it can't be done anymore." 
And, as ever, those canny youngsters are becoming so activist on this, just check out what these teens have done with a little help:http://abcnews.go.com/US/washington-teens-sue-backpage-sex-trafficking/story?id=16888671#.UEQs4qnfaqp


#2 STOP THE TRAFFIK BLOG SHARE


Here's a blog post from the Stop the Traffik blog which has some great resources. It's daunting, but this is what's happening!

The stories behind the stats

Posted by Stop the Traffik on Fri, 17 Aug 2012 14:13:25 +0000

Human Trafficking has many faces. Every day people become trapped into situations of exploitation akin to slavery. They arrive there through deception or force; taken against their will and sold into any and every industry you can think of.

Perhaps you have become a bit lost in a swirl of statistics. We can bandy around figures to make you gasp in horror at the scale of the atrocity but if, like me, you’re not a stats person, it might be helpful to bring it back to the real people and real lives behind the numbers.

Below you will find some resources which may be of use; whether for your own interest and understanding, or if you are thinking of raising awareness and profiling the issue of Human Trafficking in your local community. These are just some of the broadcast news reports, investigative articles, documentaries and dramas from the last couple of years which examine Human Trafficking and help us put a human face back on to the issue if the stats have left us confounded or, simply, a little fatigued.

Britain‘s Child Beggars,  BBC One Panorama  – 19/10/11John SweeneyReporter John Sweeney tracks down the begging gangs to luxury homes in Romania, where he confronts the adults forcing the children to beg.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0169lg6

Honduras’ Lost girls, Channel Four – Unreported World, 08/06/2012Ramita Navai, Talya TibbonUnreported World investigates the mysterious disappearance of hundreds of young Honduran women. They discover that many of them have been enticed to travel to Mexico with the promise of jobs but end up trafficked to brothels and forced to work in the sex industry.http://www.channel4.com/programmes/unreported-world/episode-guide/series-2012/episode-8

The Fishing Industry’s Cruellest Catch, Businessweek, 02/12E. Benjamin SkinnerOn March 25, 2011, Yusril became a slave. That afternoon he went to the East Jakarta offices of Indah Megah Sari (IMS), an agency that hires crews to work on foreign fishing vessels.http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-02-23/the-fishing-industrys-cruelest-catch#p1

The Witch Doctor’s Children, Our World, BBC World News, 12/10/2011Chris RogersOver the last four years, at least 400 African children have been abducted and trafficked to the UK and rescued by the British authorities, according to figures obtained by the BBC. It is unclear how they are smuggled into the country but a sinister picture is emerging of why.

Trafficked: Sex slaves seduced and sold  (4 parts), BBCLaura Trevelyan, David Botti, Ignacio de los Reyes, Chuck Tayman, Nada Tawfik, Mark Bryson, Claire Shannon, Luke WardEvery year thousands of women are forced into prostitution and traded from Mexico to the United States. The BBC investigates the sex trafficking business, which makes some men very wealthy at the expense of vulnerable young women.http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-18144333

Trafficking in Britain: ’For five months I asked when I would get a job, but all I did was clean their home’ Observer 06/11/11
Jamie DowardMen from Eastern Europe are the latest victims of gangs who are promising jobs in Britain but delivering a life of virtual slaveryhttp://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/nov/06/trafficking-britain-eastern-europe

Romania and India, BBC radio, 7/2011Becky MilliganBecky Milligan goes on the trail of the pimps who entice Romanian girls into the sex trade;http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p00jc520/From_Our_Own_Correspondent_Romania_and_India/

Lover Boys, Al-Jazeera English, 5/2012Julia Rooke and Caroline Pare
This is the story of Ibrahim, a Dutch-Moroccan man tackling the taboo problem of sex-trafficking within his community
http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/witness/2012/05/201251115345899123.html

The long path to freedom, CNN – 03/2012
John D Sutter, Edythe McNeme .Mauritania’s endless sea of sand dunes hides an open secret: An estimated 10% to 20% of the population lives in slavery.http://edition.cnn.com/interactive/2012/03/world/mauritania.slaverys.last.stronghold/index.html

British men forced into ‘modern slavery’ abroad, BBC Radio 5,  01/02/2012Alison Holt and Owen PhillipsCriminal elements of the British and Irish travelling community have been transporting
vulnerable British men abroad to work as virtual slaves.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-16836065

 The price of cheap clothes?,  BBC Today Programme, 01/06/2012Mike Thomson
Correspondent Mike Thomson has travelled to Tamil Nadu in Southern India to investigate claims that Indian textile firms, which supply some of Britain’s biggest high street retailers, are operating near slave labour conditions.http://news.bbc.co.uk/today/hi/today/newsid_9725000/9725455.stm

To find out how you can join the fight to combat trafficking check out http://www.stopthetraffik.org

#3 SEPT 7 2012 - BOW TIE FRIDAY, A PROJECT FUTURES CAMPAIGN

And further to STOP THE TRAFFIK campaigns, here's one for this Friday.

BOW TIE FRIDAY - SEPTEMBER 7 is a day to celebrate men. Join us to celebrate the unsung heroes, the quiet achievers and the ‘nice guy’. That’s right, we’re talking about men who have respect, integrity and a commitment to protect and value ALL women, in relation to the worldwide issue of human trafficking and sexual exploitation.   Wear a BOW TIE (or a BOW TIE CLIP) on September 7 and you will contribute to raising awareness to end human trafficking. The bow tie clips purchased for you have been designed and produced in Cambodia through AFESIP Fair Fashion, a social enterprise which employs survivors of forced sexual servitude to create fair trade merchandise.   PROJECT FUTURES is a Sydney based, non-profit organisation, run by a network of young and inspiring professionals and is a member of STOP THE TRAFFIK. They raise awareness and funds for programmes dedicated to combating human trafficking and sexual exploitation in Australia and South-East Asia. The money raised contributes to the funding of rescue, recovery, education and reintegration of victims, as well as advocacy for the cause.       For further information: www.projectfutures.com

So, drag out your polka dots, your houndstooths, your clown clips, or even that classic little black one, chaps. It's ON for Friday!