CWTC-IBSI Combat Human Trafficking in Indonesia

 

 

 

Jun.8,2015

The program of CWTC-IBSI (Counter Woman Trafficking Commission of “Ikatan Biarawati Seluruh Indonesia” – Indonesian Nuns Conference) in 2015 is the continuity of long activities efforts  started  by 5 Congregations in  2008. Nowadays,  there are 7 congregations in this Commission.  Actually, the sisters who become the commission members have already have certain jobs in their  own congregations . However, based on their commitment,  they try to give their limited time to carry out movement taking part in handling Human Trafficking through the  women and men religious.
The CWTC Networking  members during this last three years are  not only religious people but also partners from other institutions, such as from the government and NGO who have the same Vision and Mission,  because we can not work alone to handle the human trafficking issues,  as  Indonesian areas is very large, from Aceh to Papua
Our main program for this year is to refresh the spirit and enthusiasm of the Networking members in Manado (North Sulawesi), Sumba (NTT), and Middle Java. Our second program is to carry out Training For Trainers in Ende NTT, and Capacity Building for the Network members who are active in advocating the victims from their origin areas, the transit areas, or destination areas,  in order that we are able to have equal perception for  doing our best for the victims.
In last March 2015, Sr. M. Katarina FSGM  and  Sr. Veronika MC were invited by the Superior of YMY Congregation in Manado, North Sulawesi, together with Sr. Yasinta YMY,  for socializing about Human Trafficking Issues to the three groups of Humanity Social Activist at three areas which are far away from each other. The activist are the YMY Sisters partners who belongs to the “YMY Peduli” Group.
It is very interesting that the Religious Network in Manado is so pro active to response to the Trafficking issues, and they ask the young and old people to be critical to the Human Trafficking phenomenon.  All participants have experiences that among their families and neighbors  there are  some people  who were trafficked  and brought to certain places in the Island where they live or to other islands or even abroad .
There was a woman, who share her experience in helping someone to recruit candidate for migration labors fro working abroad. She thought that it were good to help other for getting jobs. After she followed the socialization, she realized that her action is very dangerous. Fortunately, the workers candidates were not sent to the destination places. In other group, a woman also shared, that her niece is now in Papua (Fak-Fak). At first, her niece was recruited for working in Tual. Once, there was news that the girl was dead, it seems that recruiter wanted to omit her trace. However, several months afterwards, the girl phoned her family to ask for a ticket for returning to Manado. Her family had sent her a ticket, but up to now she never return home. The last news is that she got married with a Moslem man, and so far the girl was forced to become prostitute from place to place.
The girls from Manado are beautiful,  and become the target of the traffickers . They are trafficked and brought to various places in Indonesia and also abroad. Almost in all prostitution places, there are girls from Manado, who  have been deceived by the recruiter with sweet promise. Every day, there is news in local or national scale newspaper that  nowadays there are 365 women and children from Indonesian who will receive death sentence in Arab Saudi. Knowing this reality, sometimes we feel that our struggle is useless.
Source : [ talithakumsea ]