The Arab world is starting to address the tragedy of human trafficking, notes Gamal Nkrumah. And the good news is that you can do something about it Taken, the 2008 French thriller directed by Pierre Morel, dramatises the phenomenon of human trafficking in personal terms. Kim Mills (Maggie Grace) was sold to a sinister con man, Patrice Saint Clair, who makes a fat profit by selling virgins. What I loved about Taken were the little touches that made Kim appear so cared for. Her father Bryan promptly embarked on a harrowing 96-hour journey to try to retrieve his daughter, the apple of his eye, so cruelly snatched from him. The producers of the blockbuster have announced a sequel that promises to be equally compelling. Kim's ordeal has touched countless hearts. The last violent days of thousands of youngsters often end in the brutish and forcible removal of their hearts and other organs. The adolescents undergo operations to pry out their kidneys and eyes and are finished off in a heartless fashion. Recently, there was an unexpected pat on the back from high-profile personalities, most notably women, in the battle to end this heinous crime against humanity. This has been especially the case in the countries of the Middle East and North Africa. Mrs Suzanne Mubarak opened the International Conference on trafficking in person in Bahrain on 28 February this year, highlighting the concern of policymakers in the Arab world about the social upheavals that occur because of the prevalence of human trafficking, a trade inextricably intertwined with poverty and destitution. The question is whether policies designed to combat human trafficking accord with real life. Sheikha Sabeeka bint Ibrahim Al-Khalifa and Mrs Mubarak, chairwoman of the Suzanne Mubarak Woman's International Peace Movement, concurred that the number of children and women that are killed or mutilated when being trafficked across borders is horrendous. In more ways than one, it is a grave undertaking. Rogue employers exploit foreign workers in the oil-rich Arab Gulf states. The United Nations defines human trafficking as the recruitment, transportation, harbouring, or receipt of people for the purpose of slavery, forced labour -- including bonded and indentured labour. Sceptics argue that conferences are talking shops that are invariably tantamount to be distracting freak-shows. There are obvious holes that can be picked in this argument. The battle against human trafficking is not going to be won by officialdom single-handedly. We can all point to our own personal experiences: Goliath has always done well, David hardly ever makes it to the top. The war against human trafficking is on, and all the signs are that it will unfurl with the greatest ferocity. Armies of dedicated lobbyists all over the Arab world congregate at conferences, seminars and brainstorming sessions to try to resolve the challenge of human trafficking. Egypt is a transit country. And, indeed, most North African countries are. Hundreds of thousands of young men and women from African countries south of the Sahara cross the formidable desert in order to search for better employment opportunities in European countries. Thousands die crossing the inhospitable Sahara or attempting to brave the high seas of the Mediterranean. Those who live to tell their sorry tales are often detained in what are virtually considered internment camps on the northern shores of the Mediterranean. "Human trafficking, with its increasing rates worldwide, is now considered one of the most abominable crimes against humanity. Targeting poor societies it represents the dark side of globalisation," Mrs Mubarak declared on the occasion of the World Economic Forum in the Red Sea resort of Sharm El-Sheikh, Sinai, last year. "We are ready to cooperate with all partners and the international organisations and businessmen to fight this phenomenon," Mrs Mubarak concluded. The head of the Suzanne Mubarak Women's International Peace Movement noted that 27 million people are currently enslaved. She once again broached the prickly subject at the 5 March 2009 End Human Trafficking Now Campaign. "Some believe that human trafficking is restricted to adults and women," Mrs Mubarak lamented at the Private Public Partnership to Fight Human Trafficking. This two-day forum in Bahrain drew attention to the deplorable fact that "30-40 per cent of the volume of victims of such trafficking are children." Women policymakers, such as Mrs Mubarak, have been instrumental in raising awareness of the crisis of trafficking humans in the strategic region of the Middle East and North Africa which straddle the intersection of three continents -- Africa, Asia and Europe. This juncture, of which Egypt constitutes the core, has emerged as the main battlefield in the fight against human trafficking. That has several benefits. "I expect Egypt to win the leading position in combating human trafficking. The lives of thousands who are being exploited everyday in this form of slavery depend on efforts you'll exert in this field," Mrs Mubarak stressed. Again Mrs Mubarak warned on 19 May 2008 about the dangers inherent in ignoring the crisis of human trafficking in the region. The crisis is often spoken of in the same breath as its twin problem, prostitution. The taboo subject has for a change been discussed openly at public forums in the Arab world. Nothing has changed about the essential fabric of the world's oldest profession, however, there is now a greater awareness that the sex workers themselves are the victims of forces of reaction and globalisation. The prostitutes are no longer the object of slanderous tirades. The culprits are now identified as the human traffickers who make a living out of other people's misery. Still, the old guard conservatives who prefer to victimise hapless women and children soldier on. The global financial crisis has exacerbated the crisis, entrenching the trade in humans on a scale never experienced before. And, it is in this context that Arab countries, spearheaded by Egypt, have positioned themselves in the forefront of the fight against human trafficking. There is a sense now, as the crunch begins to bite, that resolving the crisis of human trafficking will automatically result in reducing the cases of sex slavery and the monstrous trade in human organs that has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives in the past two decades. However, the campaign to combat human trafficking merits closer inspection. There are those who argue that the Arab world faces far more pressing problems. The consensus now is that poverty and globalisation are the twin factors that have accentuated the crisis of human trafficking. The sense of crisis has not eased in spite of the rigorous efforts of the policymakers. Officials and activists involved in containing the crisis do not have time to look beyond the immediate survival of the victims of human trafficking. They are currently determined to mobilise resources to halt the marked increase in human trafficking even as millions of youngsters spend their teenage years off the rails. Yet the debate does not have to end in a standoff. Statesmen are concerned about the grave dangers that human trafficking pose. A handful of policymakers desperately try to arrest the crisis, and stem the tide. Moreover, they are determined to see the crisis from the perspective of the victim. Films, features and documentaries are analysing the tragic topic clearly articulating the underdog's tale. Othman, a Sudanese by birth, epitomises the crisis. There cannot be many people who have held five nationalities, but he is one of this rare breed. He fled western Sudan, Darfur, first to neighbouring Chad where he has relatives, and then to Khartoum. From the Sudanese capital he contemplated his bleak future. He wanted out and simply refused to take no for an answer. Othman moved to Cairo, but the restless young man, barely 20 by then, took up temporary residence in a poor quarter of Cairo's Downtown district. He financed his studies by working nightshifts in a number of moonshine jobs. Meanwhile, he desperately tried to find a job abroad. He left Egypt for Israel, then moved to Turkey. From Istanbul, Europe's southeastern gateway, he joined a friend in Germany and was offered a low-paid job in Munich. Though the Belgian port of Antwerp does not head everyone's list of the most glamorous cities, he decided to give Antwerp a go. Hooray, I thought as he narrated his most intriguing tale. Othman acknowledged that he had to work like a dog to make ends meet. A disregard for doing things the normal way helped the adventurous young Sudanese from Darfur. Thousands of other young Africans and Arabs fail to make it. They drown in the Mediterranean and their skeletons litter the Sahara. The failure to stop this heinous trade has had disastrous effects on the young people of Africa. All this should make us reflect. The words of Mrs Mubarak are heartwarming. She wants to see all that change. Women of authority and substance are spearheading the fight against human trafficking. A familiar refrain is that the key to stopping human trafficking is the betterment of the conditions of women. Women have increasingly become the targets of seasoned human traffickers. The sex trade and prostitution are fuelling the trade in humans across continents. The Day My God Died, a 70-minute documentary about young girls whose lives have been shattered by the sex trade in India and Nepal, was a highly acclaimed film that received many accolades and touched hearts. The girls end up as sex slaves in the brothels of Mumbai. They are kept in "The Cages" and footage from the back street brothels of India's economic capital has been captured with state-of-the-art "spy camera" technology. It is depressingly rare for women to win in a man's world. The film The Day My God Died makes that sad truism abundantly clear. It also artfully absolves policymakers of blame. At any rate, there may well be some resistance to this disappointingly minimalist approach to the problem of human trafficking. What is needed is more hard-nosed analysis of the underlying economics of the phenomenon. The reasons for the escalation of the problem of human trafficking are extremely complex and cannot be solely blamed on the demographic boom, economic woes and untenable unemployment rates. It is not just a question of excess supply of labour seeking remuneration abroad. The demand side of the equation is what greases the engines of the trade in humans. Undercover sex trafficking to sate the affluent and, it must be said, increasingly sex- preoccupied West, has emerged as a favourite theme of both traffickers and contemporary filmmakers, who find the topic a popular one with Western audiences, combining the standard Western movie fare of sex and violence. Forced prostitution, as Taken demonstrated, has become a vital commercial theme on the silver screen. While it could be argued that sex is the opium of the masses everywhere, it is in the West that it has been commercialised to an extreme. Trading Women, another eye-opener, by David Feingold and narrated by the Oscar-winning actress Angelina Jolie, expounds the plight of women whose lives were shattered by human trafficking and the sex trade. The girls end up in the lowest, most exploitative division of the notorious sex industry. Trade premiered at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival and deals with human trafficking out of Mexico and a brother's attempt to rescue his kidnapped and trafficked younger sister. Sex tourism is the cornerstone of organised human trafficking in many countries. Entire regions such as Eastern Europe are prone to the ravages of this dirty trade. Cities like Amsterdam and Bangkok have acquired a reputation for that sort of thing; however, the problem festers in many other megalopolises around the globe. The multi- million dollar industry sustains many economies. Children as young as five years are being sold as slaves for sex. Perpetual sexual servitude has become a way of life for millions of young women. Promised Land by Amos Gitai premiered at the Venice International Film Festival and it dealt with the touchy subject of human trafficking from Eastern Europe to Israel. Egyptian cinema, too, has long tackled this prickly problem. The late iconic actor Rushdi Abaza starred as the villain in the classic Malak wa Shaitan (Angel and Satan). Indeed, the phenomenon of human trafficking is not as current as contemporary media coverage suggests. The problem is that it is a growing problem and it is socially destructive, as contemporary cinema dealing with the subject indicates. In 1989, pop idol Amr Diab starred with the late Madiha Kamel in Al-Afareet (The Devils), yet another example of the preoccupation of cinema with the subject. But then kidnapping has been a staple of not only films but traditional storytelling since time immemorial. The hellish Red Riding Hood tragedy sums it up. The difference is that now it is clear that there is plenty of money to be made by kidnapping and trading in humans. Children for Sale, a documentary highlighting undercover sex trafficking, corroborates the crisis. The European Union, the United States, Canada and Australia are the most attractive destinations of traffickers. The United States passed laws criminalising trafficking at both state and federal levels designed to block World Bank loans to any country that doesn't meet America's minimum standards for combating trafficking. Washington now insists on linking financial non- humanitarian assistance to developing countries' efforts to address human trafficking. Critics see this as an effort to curtail migration. The EU has similar laws. These efforts coincide with US policy shifts and the same goes for Arab states. Referring to the laws, "Some believe this might be counter-productive bringing little help to the victims and pushing the problem further underground," warned Feingold. What should be done with the human traffickers' ill-gotten gains? Feingold was unfortunately silent on this. The focus of international efforts is currently on supporting the victims. The involvement of the private sector is regarded by certain officials as critical in the fight against human trafficking. Also significant are efforts to coordinate between the public and private sectors. Policymakers now stress that Egypt and other North African and Middle Eastern states must develop laws on human trafficking. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime has identified the illegal trade in humans as of particular significance in this part of the world. The porous borders between Sinai and a host of Arab countries, including Sudan and Libya, and Israel eases the illegal traffic in humans. Then there are Egypt's immense coastlines on the Mediterranean and Red seas. The remoter regions are hotbeds for illegal trafficking in foreign, mainly sub-Saharan African, immigrants. On 19 February Mrs Mubarak hosted the Child Protection Conference in Cairo which dwelt at some length on the prickly topic of trafficking in children and their mothers. Dubbed as "the dark side of globalisation" by Mrs Mubarak, human trafficking is increasingly being seen as a modern version of the slave trade. Some 27 million people around the world are enslaved. Shelter and medical support for rehabilitation, training as well as the provision of jobs are now being identified as critical to the fight against human trafficking. There are now moves to upgrade specialist training to law enforcement officers on how to handle trafficking victims and traffickers in the Middle East and North Africa, Egypt included. The Vienna Forum to Fight Human Trafficking highlights the pitfalls. "People from the world's poorer countries, hired to work as labour in Bahrain and other parts of the Gulf, are often lured by promises of a lucrative pay and good working conditions. But when they arrive in the Gulf states, they find that it is not quite the case," warns Peter Bryant, the International Organisation for Migration training curriculum designer. An example of how Arab governments are tackling the issue is Bahrain, the host of the International Conference on trafficking. "We are working closely with other agencies, particularly the ministries of labour and social development and the immigration authorities and have even formed a separate directorate to work on it," Inspector General at the Bahraini Interior Ministry Brigadier Ibrahim Al-Ghaith notes. "There is a very serious effort to develop human rights in Bahrain and our fight against trafficking is part of that initiative," Al-Ghaith explains. The Bahraini experience is not an isolated one, because officials and policymakers in most other Arab Gulf countries have become increasingly preoccupied with this phenomenon. What Arab governments are not yet doing is collaborating more closely with NGOs and local international activists.
