 Sex Traffickers |
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Week In Week Out uncovers the extent of a shocking trade that's emerging in Wales, where sex traffickers are buying and selling young women into a world of fear and violence. |
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The programme features the stories of Eastern European women who were duped into leaving their homes and families in search of a better life in Britain. Instead they have ended up being forced into working as prostitutes, selling sex to strangers in Cardiff.
One young woman describes how she came here to the UK on the promise of a job in a pub. She accepted the offer in a bid to help her family escape poverty. But after being trafficked across Europe she ended up in Britain, bought for £4,500 then beaten, raped and forced into prostitution."They say you need £4,500 and I said something has gone wrong, something is terrible when they tell me I am going to work as a prostitute.
"I was shocked when he beat me. They told me you are going to work but because I started shaking and was so scared they said leave her for three days to relax her because she is going to scare the customers." She ran away but with no passport, no friends and too scared to turn to the authorities for help she could not escape prostitution and has ended up selling sex to strangers in Cardiff.
Her story is being echoed across South Wales. Outreach workers who provide advice and medical help to prostitutes in the South Glamorgan area say casualties of the trade are starting to emerge here.
Consultant Clinical Psychologist Dr Richard Pates, who set up the outreach scheme 15 years ago says:"We think of the abolition of slavery more than 150 years ago, and yet this is what these women are ending us as being, they are ending up as being slaves." Dr Pates says that of the 50 or so prostitutes his outreach colleagues see every week, around 40% are foreign and though some have admitted to being trafficked, others they suspect are too terrified to talk about their situation because they fear reprisals. He says:"It's very hard to quantify the numbers, because it is obviously a hidden trade, a hidden profession. But if I asked our outreach worker to take you out today, she would have no trouble in introducing you to 2O women, today that would probably have been trafficked, so it is not difficult to find women if you know where you are looking and therefore it is a real problem in this city and in Wales." The programme also follows police as they try to stay one step ahead of the traffickers. Giles York, Assistant Chief Constable of South Wales Police, warns:"I have covert operations running, testing the stereotypical places to see if there is prostitution happening there, to see if there are people being exploited there.
I also have post prosecution cases running where we are taking away the assets from those organised criminals who have benefited from this criminality. And this is significant money, we are talking of money up to the millions that these people are able to bank and exploit when they have a whole network of brothels working to them." Here are the details of some organisations which can help:
Trafficking:
The Poppy Project
www.poppy.org
The Poppy Project works to develop services to enable women to exit prostitution and the situations into which they have been trafficked. Find out more about the project and how you can help with a donation by going to the website or calling 0207 840 7129 (staffed during office hours, recorded message at other times).
Anti-Slavery International
www.antislavery.org
Anti Slavery International calls for national and international changes to policy that will protect the human rights of trafficked persons, penalise the traffickers and address the root causes of trafficking. To find out more about these issues and how to get involved go the website or call 0207 501 8920.
ECPAT UK
www.ecpat.org.uk
End Child Prostitution and Trafficking, runs various campaigns against the commercial sexual exploitation of children including child sex tourism and trafficking. Their post card campaign is aimed at ending child trafficking. To find out about how you can support ECPAT, go to the website or phone them at 0207 501 8927 (Mondays to Fridays 10am-4pm).
Asylum
Asylum Aid
www.asylumaid.org.uk
Asylum Aid is a national charity assisting refugees in the UK and it helps the most vulnerable and disadvantaged people with free legal advice and representing them in their asylum application, and campaigning for the fair treatment of refugees. Find out about becoming a member or friend of Asylum Aid by calling 0207 377 5123 or by going to the website.
The Refugee Council
www.refugeecouncil.org.uk
The Refugee Council is the largest organisation in the UK working with asylum seekers and refugees. They not only give help and support, but also work with them to ensure their needs and concerns are addressed. The Welsh Refugee Council has four offices across Wales in Cardiff, Swansea, Newport and Wrexham - details on the website.
Other help:
In Wales, some outreach work with people involved in prostitution happens through:
Cardiff: Community Addiction Unit,
House 56,
Cardiff Royal Infirmary,
Newport Rd,
Cardiff CF24 0SZ.
Tel: 029 20 461 742, and ask for Jill Coles.
Deeside: The Harm Reduction Team,
Deeside Counselling Centre,
Rowley's Drive,
Shotton
CH5 1PU.
Tel: 01244 818 513. This covers Shotton, Wrexham, Flint, Denbigh and Conway. Ask for Hayley Davies.
Swansea: Swansea Drugs Project,
8 Calvert Terrace,
Mt Pleasant,
Swansea
SA1 6AR.
Tel: 01792 472 002.Ask for Karen Harry.
Rape Crisis Centres
There are two main services for Wales:
New Pathways
www.newpathways.co.uk
They also have outreach centres in Cardiff, Swansea, Newport.
Tel: 01685 350099
North Wales Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Centre
Tel: 01286 669266
For urgent help call the Police on 999, otherwise:
Crime Stoppers
www.crimestoppers-uk.org
If you think that any crime needs to be reported anonymously: 0800 555 111
Victim Support
www.victimsupport.org.uk
There to help the victims of crime: 0845 30 30 900
The Samaritans
www.samaritans.org.uk
Confidential emotional support 24 hours a day: 08457 90 90 90
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