Poverty & Sex Trafficking:

How will Warren Buffett's $30.7 billion donation to The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, earmarked to fight poverty, affect global sex trafficking, the cause of which is rooted in poverty?
By, Sarah M. Gonzales

2006, Captive Daughters www.captivedaughters.org mail@captivedaughters.org

Table of Contents
Introduction: Fighting Sex Trafficking Means Attacking Poverty: Pg. 3 Poverty Fuels Sex Trafficking, Sex Trafficking Feeds Prostitution: Pg. 4 Poverty & Sex Trafficking: Motives Rooted in Human Needs: Pg. 6 Lack of Employment Opportunities in Poor Areas Leads to Sex Trafficking: Pg. 7 Sex Trafficking and HIV/AIDS: Unprotected Women & Unprotected Sex: Pg. 8 Conclusion: Time and Money to Make a Difference: Pg. 9 Article References: Pg. 10

Introduction: Fighting Sex Trafficking Means Attacking Poverty

In late June, Warren Buffetts corporation Berkshire Hathaway executed letters that will commit more than 12 million shares of the companys B stock, or the bulk of Buffetts $44 billion fortune, to five foundations, over a period of time. The most significant pledge Buffett extended, in the amount of 10 million shares, was to The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation which primarily funds programs to end poverty and improve healthcare, especially in areas with high AIDS rates, in developing nations. Ten million shares of Berkshire Hathaway B stock amounts to approximately $30.7 billion, which effectively doubles the foundations assets and qualifies this contribution as the single largest in the history of charitable giving. It is understood that this $30.7 billion will be earmarked for fighting poverty by the Gates foundation. Without a doubt, poverty is on the rise. In the United States in 2004, 37 million people were living in poverty, an increase of 1.1 million since 2003. And globally, half the world--nearly three billion people--live on less than two dollars a day. [1] Where does an individual begin to combat poverty when millions of humans are affected? Well, if youre the Buffetts and the Gateses you can do plenty to fight poverty with billions of dollars (or pledged stock). What sort of enormous effect will the largest charitable contribution ever to the largest foundation ever have upon the current state of poverty in the world? And, specifically, we ask how will this money generally affect sex trafficking, a practice that is born directly out of poverty? The Gates Foundation isnt writing any checks yet, though, and so far the largest contributions made in regard to this charitable merger are from the hundreds of bloggers, journalists and critics expressing doubt and expelling caution that it takes more than large chunks of money to promote real change in the world. Melinda Gates has already addressed this widespread concern by saying in an interview with BusinessWeek of their gifts to public schools in the U.S.: "This is something that we're going to stay after for a long time. You come to talk to me in 20 years, and we'll still be tackling this problem." [2]

Measuring improvement quotients in education is far more simple and obvious than quantifying change in a shadowy, illegal practice like sex trafficking. The true numbers of humans trafficked for sexual exploitation will never be known, thereby presenting an issue that will require the 20 years or so of dedicated research and money to combat.

Poverty Fuels Sex Trafficking; Sex Trafficking Feeds Prostitution

What we do know is that poverty drives sex trafficking, and that sex trafficking as the delivery system for prostitution means that each day scores of young, poor women and girls will turn to sex trafficking and prostitution as a means to provide for themselves, and for their families, because they have no other choice. The hope is that funds earmarked for fighting poverty will eventually fight sex trafficking, too, putting an end to this exploitative practice by offering viable economic options for poverty-stricken women and girls in developing nations who want to work. Sex trafficking is big business, second only to drug and gun trafficking throughout the world. The U.S. government estimates that criminals are making $9.5 billion a year from sex trafficking. [3] Going after the criminals who exploit women and girls has proved less than successful, as the trade has continued to grow. For sex trafficking to be halted requires a two-front war: going after the criminals, and addressing the poverty factor that motivates sex trafficking in the first place. The fact that sex trafficking is a direct product of poverty is a widely recognized truth by humanitarian organizations, governments and academic researchers. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) says: "Trafficking is inextricably linked to poverty. Wherever privation and economic hardship prevail, there will be those destitute and desperate enough to enter into the fraudulent employment schemes that are the most common intake systems in the world of trafficking. [4] Commissioned by UNICEF in October of 2005 to do an unprecedented study of post-war children in Bosnia-Herzegovina, lead researcher and Fulbright scholar AnnJanette Rosga found that the post-war poverty many of these children were living in directly led them into sex trafficking situations. She commented on her findings: People often think that all child sex traffickers kidnap their victims, but in many cases the children end up funneled into the system by their own families because of extreme poverty. Sometimes the children leave home

voluntarily because of abuse or other harmful conditions. Very often it's not organized criminals but close relatives or family friends who encourage girls in poverty-stricken families to seek work abroad as an 'au pair or waitress.' These acquaintances know full well that the girl will be put to work as a prostitute and that they will directly profit from the 'referral,' Furthermore, it's not uncommon for girls to know what they're entering into, and to enter voluntarily to some degree. Maybe they think they'll be different and able to escape, or maybe they'd rather take the risk than feel powerless staying at home in poverty. [5] In the Philippines where land development government contracts are displacing rural families, it is estimated that up to 40% of the sex workers in larger Philippine cities are from these rural areas, forced to leave their homes and find work elsewhere. The only people profiting from these exploited women and girls are the traffickers, the bar and brothel owners and the government who touts their young sex workers as a tourist attraction. [6] From a recent article in the Philippine newspaper the Sun Star, Jun Malig writes of young, desperate Filipinas being trafficking to Japan for prostitution: The real danger of becoming an unwilling victim of human trafficking syndicates turns into a minor concern of a young woman who is desperate enough to hoist her family from the vicious cycle of poverty. Illusions and dreams frequently prevail over life's sad realities, especially in the youthful mind of someone very eager to escape from material deprivation. Many are prepared to face any form of consequences if only to free their families from the clutches of poverty. [7] In Kenya, where severe drought has driven many rural dwellers into the cities to seek work, a disturbing trend has recently developed. AllAfrica.com reports: parents have resorted to sending their young daughters into the towns to trade their bodies for money to feed their families. Because food reserves have run out and mothers can no longer afford to feed their children, many decide that the only way out is to 'go to the street', said Iris Krebber, regional coordinator of the NGO, German Agro Action. Many times, the girls are as young as twelve. [8] A report on the sex trafficking of children in Kenya released in June by UNICEF highlights the findings that more than 1,500 girls under the age of 18 are working as prostitutes or in bars in the Coast Province. "Our study shows that boda boda men (bicycle tax operators), beach operators, taxi drivers, police and even hotel and guest house owners are playing pimps in support of child sex tourism," says
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the report. The report blames parents "who are encouraging their children to practise prostitution when they are as young as 12 years. Continuing from this article from Nairobis newspaper, The Nation, addressing this report: The deputy director of children's services in the Ministry of Home Affairs, Ms Margaret Basigwa, challenged the society to freely discuss issues affecting children and families, to have a lasting solution to the problem. According to this report, parents have a role to play. And other Kenyans are to ensure that issues of children's rights, poverty and families are urgently addressed, she said, adding that figures showed that most children who participated in commercial sex were either orphans or from broken families. [9]

Poverty & Sex Trafficking: Motives Rooted in Human Needs

While factors such as gender discrimination, organized crime syndicates, conflict and regional natural disasters all contribute greatly to the increase of sex trafficking within a particular area, the single greatest contributing factor to sex trafficking is poverty. The poorest countries in the world are also some of the countries most affected by or involved in sex traffickingeither as countries of origin, transit or destination. The UN classifies the most poverty-stricken or least developed nations according to these three criteria: (1) annual gross domestic product (GDP) below $900 per capita; (2) quality of life, based on life expectancy at birth, per capita calorie intake, primary and secondary school enrollment rates, and adult literacy; and (3) economic vulnerability, based on instability of agricultural productions and exports, inadequate diversification, and economic smallness. [10] To criteria number three above we could also add domestic conflict and war to the list of reasons that causes a countrys economy to become vulnerable. A lack of education for girls, as well as a poverty indicator, has also been directly linked as a driving force for sex trafficking. A distinct cycle has been documented: Poverty leads to lack of education leads to sex trafficking. This cycle is also true for lack of employment opportunities in poverty-stricken areas: Poverty leads to a lack of employment available to women and girls leads to sex trafficking.

At the root of many of sex traffickings causes is poverty. Gayle Ferraro, a filmmaker who directed the documentary Anonymously Yours that focused on sex trafficking in Burma, calls these factors that lead to sex trafficking motives rooted in human needs. The film tells of the story of ZuZu, a young girl caught in sex trafficking, and of the factors that led her into it in the first place: poverty and a lack of education. [11] The NGO, World Education, has focused efforts on education for young women and girls in both Nepal and in the United States as a means to prevent sex trafficking among vulnerable populations. They have found that in certain districts in Nepal such as Nuwakot and Sindhupalchowk that have illiteracy rates of 90% and 92% respectively among females are among the worst districts for girl trafficking. While in the United States, susceptibility to violence and often, sex trafficking, was also indicated by a lack of education. For victims with less than a high school diploma the average annual rate of violent victimizations per 1,000 females was 48, compared to 28 for female victims who were high school graduates. World Educations Girls Access to Education (GATE) program which teaches Nepalese girls reading, writing, math and critical thinking skills, has seen great success since its inception in 1998. The GATE Program has provided opportunities for over 7,500 adolescent girls, aged 10-14, who had never entered or had dropped out of Nepal's formal school system. Over 30% of the first cohort of girls to complete the program enrolled for the first time in primary school. Of the 4,000 girls who completed the 2000 - 2001 GATE program cycle, 40% entered school. [12]

Lack of Employment Opportunities in Poor Areas Leads to Sex Trafficking

In countries where women cannot work because of a depressed economy and therefore, a lack of employment opportunities, many will turn to sex trafficking and prostitution as a means to feed themselves and their families. And many families will sell their young daughters to traffickers because they are so desperate for money. Small grant programs for women that enable them to start regional cooperatives or their own businesses have been successful in improving the quality of life for poor women. The World Bank has focused grant money in poor rural areas of China and South America where women often make up more than 50% of the populations there. Giving women the opportunity to work in a cooperative or to

start their own business, not only provides money for themselves and their families, but it increases their self-esteem, their visibility and respect within a community and the incidence of domestic violence and sexually exploitation is also greatly decreased.

Sex Trafficking and HIV/AIDS: Unprotected Women & Unprotected Sex

In a nutshell: if poverty doesnt kill these women and girls, then sex trafficking, a near-guaranteed death sentence, will. A recent U.S. Government estimate indicates that approximately 800,000- 900,000 people annually are trafficked across international borders worldwide and between 18,000 and 20,000 of those victims are trafficked into the United States. According to the U.S. Trafficking in Persons report released in 2004, women and girls who are trafficked coerced, forced, or tricked into commercial sex are more likely to be infected with HIV/AIDS. It is no wonder then that 43% of the 35 million infected persons living with HIV/AIDS are women and girls. [13] The threat of HIV/AIDS among prostituted women has not slowed down the sex trafficking and prostitution trades, rather it has increased the sex trafficking of younger girls. That is, girls who will be perceived by clients to be virgins and therefore uninfected by the virus are becoming an increasingly popular commodity to trafficking syndicates. The BBC News reports that sex trafficking of young girls in India has led to a rapid increase in HIV/AIDS within the country. India has the second highest incidence of AIDS in the world, second only to South Africa, with 5.1 million living with the disease. From the BBC News article: In big red light districts, such as Sonagachi in Calcutta, where at least 10,000 prostitutes make a living, some men continue to insist on sex without condoms. The trafficked girls are forced to oblige. Many come from rural villages and do not know what Aids is before they are sold to pimps. And as they are moved around the country they can unwittingly spread the disease. In eastern India, Calcutta has emerged as a hub for the trafficking of girls, who also arrive from Nepal, Bangladesh and Burma.

From Calcutta they are often sold again to brothels in Mumbai (Bombay). In Mumbai alone, it is estimated that as many as 70% of the sex workers there are infected with AIDS. Many young girls who have been infected with the AIDS virus while working as prostitutes and have been rescued and subsequently returned home will, along with their families, face social stigma and exclusion from their communities. Because of this, many will return again to the brothels as the only way to earn money for their shunned families. [14] AIDS education NGO, Avert, reports that: At the height of Thailands AIDS epidemic, more than 80% of HIV/AIDS cases could be attributed to women in the sex industry and their clients. [15] And the Ministry of Health and Sanitation in Freetown reports that: A 1997 study in Sierra Leone showed that 70.6% of those engaged in commercial sex in Freetown were HIV positive, compared to 26.7% just two years earlier. [16] Whether sex trafficking is increasing the incidence of AIDS as we see occurring in India, or if sex trafficked women and girls are more susceptible to contracting the virus because of their low status and a demand for unprotected sex as we see from reports in Thailand and Sierra Leone, it is an undisputed fact that sex trafficking and AIDS go hand in hand in these poor countries.

Conclusion: Time and Money to Make a Difference

Captive Daughters, and many anti-trafficking NGOs like us, have long focused on attacking the demand side of sex traffickinggoing after the johns or clients who seek out sexual services from these trafficked women and girls, and educating the public about this exploitative practice. Addressing poverty as the core cause of sex trafficking, however, has seemed an insurmountable endeavor, perhaps until now. To go straight to the root cause of sex trafficking (poverty), means many years of research to identify these trafficked populations, many years of work to improve the economies and well-being of these impoverished areas, perhaps many years to earn the trust of these vulnerable women and girls, many people to implement this aid, many years of follow through while these affected nations begin a rise out of poverty, and primarily, a great amount of money to develop programs that provide an alternative to sex trafficking and address poverty as the root cause of sex trafficking.

Bill Gates has noted that: although Mr. Buffet's money will double the foundation's annual giving, to around $3 billion, that still represents only $1 for each person in the poorer half of the world's population. [17] Perhaps with time, and dedicated individuals committed to seeing through dynamic programs to combat poverty, these goals will be accomplished and that "$1 for each person" although merely doubling the funds that may used to address poverty, will eventually double the quality of life, health and safety for the world's poorest people. As Melinda Gates said of education in the United States, it will take 20 years at least to closely see through a plan, in this case, a plan to combat poverty as the root of sex trafficking. Captive Daughters ten years in this fight has taught us that slowly, but surely, progress can be had and that results will come over time with dedication, research and willing individuals. Unfortunately, funding is always the element most lacking in a well-meaning plan. We want to encourage those with the funds, most especially The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, to consider sex trafficking as one of the most horrendous byproducts of poverty. Sex trafficking is slavery in the 21st century; not only are the majority of these trafficking victims struggling with poverty and day-to-day concerns of providing for themselves and their families, they dont even have the personal rights that every human should be affordedpoor or otherwisesuch as dignity and the right to do what they choose with their bodies and minds. Finally, we want to pledge ourselves to work in conjunction with a global plan to fight and end sex trafficking, and its cause: poverty. We believe that with proper funding that both can be successfully combated, and that eventually, every woman and child currently vulnerable to sex trafficking will be healthy, safely employed and have enough money to live without having to turn to slavery. Article References: 1. U.S. Census Bureau. Current Population Survey (CPS), 2005 Annual Social and Economic Supplement (ASEC). 2. BusinessWeek. Bill Gates Get Schooled. June 26, 2006. 3. U.S. Women Without Borders. We Mobilize to Address Modern Day Slavery. October 25, 2005.

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4. IOM International Organization for Migration. Trafficking in Migrants: Quarterly Bulletin. No 23 - April 2001 - Special Issues. 5. Medical News Today. March 1, 2005. Child sex-trafficking study in Bosnia reveals misperceptions. 6. Monte, Janice Lee. GABRIELA News and Features, 25 February 1999. Across borders: Sex trafficking of women." 7. Malig, Jun A. SunStar Pampanga. Malig: Unqualified Japan-bound entertainers? July 4, 2006. 8. United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs - Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN) Kenya: Drought, poverty forcing young women into risky commercial sex. March 29, 2006. 9. Namlola, Juma. The Nation (Nairobi). Kenya: 1,500 Underage Girls in Sex Trade, Says Unicef." June 23, 2006. 10. United Nations, Resolution 2768. 18 November 1971. 11. Kennedy School of Government Bulletin, Harvard University. MPA Graduate Exposes Sex Trafficking. Summer 2004. 12. World Education. Nepal and United States: Preventing Trafficking and Violence through Education. 13. U.S. Department of State. Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000: Trafficking in Persons Report: 2004 Report. 14. Grant, Matthew. BBC News. Girl-trafficking hampers Aids fight. November 30, 2004. 15. Avert, "HIV & AIDS in Thailand". June 18, 2003. 16. Ministry of Health and Sanitation, National AIDS/STD Control Programme Annual Report for 1998 (Freetown, Ministry of Health and Sanitation, 1998, p. 3. 17. The Economist. June 29, 2006. The new powers in giving. pg. 63-65.

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