Since the CCAT started nearly three years ago, we have been fighting hard against Human Trafficking in Croydon. The fight is not over, but we have had some wins along the way. Here are some of the ways we have made a difference so far.
1. Making the fight against human trafficking a Policing priority in word and action.
We believe that the accepted approach of tolerance of off-street prostitution by local authorities and police is holding women captive. Police are under-resourced to deal with the situation because it is not a priority in practice, only in theory. Previously the police only responded to complaints by local neighbours. Now the Croydon Police have assigned an officer to coordinate and oversee Police efforts in regard to Human Trafficking in our borough, a ground breaking move and one of the first appointments of it's kind in the UK.
There are a variety of businesses in Croydon that hold a licence for special services issued by our local council. Our original assumption was that many of the brothels we believe to be holding trafficked women were licensed businesses. The sale of sex in a brothel is illegal and as such we believed these establishments should be closed down. What we actually found is that only one of the brothels we identified in Croydon was licensed. The issue was therefore one of illegal businesses operating in our borough.
We believe that a cooperative approach between local authorities and police, involving pro-active investigation and prosecution of traffickers, pimps, brothel owners and maids, will liberate women from slavery. So far, police have acted on the intelligence we have provided them with and are liasing with the council in response to the identification of illegal businesses in our borough.
As a result of lobbying by the CCAT, the Police have also established a sub-group of the Partnership Action Group. The Partnership Action Group is a meeting of key stakeholders (organisations, service providers and local authorities) in the community to tackle issues of crime and identify solutions. There is now a sub-group focussed on 'Sexual Crimes', which looks at this issue of human trafficking for secual exploitation. The CCAT is an active and vocal member on this group. Because this group has been established, the issue of tackling Human Trafficking can remain on the crime-fighting agenda for our borough regardless of any leadership changes that take place.
The Metropolitan Police have recently cited our work in their communications as well. Click Here to read it.
2. Closing brothels in the Croydon area.
We believe that shutting down prostitution in our area will have a very significant impact on the trafficking ‘industry’ that is so prolific in our borough. The operation of brothels is illegal and is also not a licensed business activity. We believe trafficking women for prostitution hurts and exploits. Our research indicates that this is ‘highly likely’ to be happening in Croydon. We are also aware of cases of trafficking of adults and children which are subsequently dealt with by the Police.
In January 2008 we assisted in the gathering of intelligence to close down a brothel which was operating just metres from Croydon Police Station. The brothel was linked with another in neighbouring Raynes Park. The Trafficker was arrested and victims were freed.
On January 23, 2008 the Croydon Guardian reported on the closure of a brothel in the Croydon Area. The brothel is one The CCAT have been aware of for over two years and have previously reported to Police and the Council, because of our concerns for the women we believed were enslaved there. This proves that women are being trafficked to Croydon for sex slavery.Finally victory has been won in this situation. But the fight is not over yet.
Our fight is not one focussed on anti-prostitution campaigning. It is focused on freeing adults and children that are forced into prostitution through Human Trafficking.
The CCAT is also committed to helping women in the transition to a better life and where chosen, return to their home country. With this in mind we have also set up a support network which can be utilised for any victim that is rescued.
3. Stopping adult services advertising in the Croydon newspapers.
We believe that allowing adverts for sexual services to be printed in local newspapers promotes and encourages the enslavement of women and children and fuels business and profits for traffickers and pimps. Now common front-page headlines about sexual attack and assaults on women, printed weekly in our local papers, cannot be disassociated from the advertisements for all kinds of sexual services printed in the back of the newspapers. We believe that the very base concept of “supply and demand” for enslaved women and children is being perpetuated by this advertising.
The Croydon Guardian has been a leader in the response to this agenda. As a direct result of lobbying by the CCAT, The Croydon Guardian finally agreed to meet with us. They were keen to find some ways of making progress towards our ultimate agenda of no 'adult services' adverts. As a response to our meeting and lobbying, they printed a front page article in their newspaper. (You can read it by clicking here)
On July 16th, 2008, NEWSQUEST - the owner of The Croydon Guardian (and dozens of other newspapers and publications around the UK) announced they would pull all adult adverts out of their publications because of the proven links with human trafficking and constant campaigning by CCAT. (You can read about this by clicking here) Three years of passionate campaigning paid off for the active members of CCAT and resulted in this landmark decision, not only for Croydon but for communities all over the UK. This decision will have a significant impact on the 'punters' - men who use trafficked women for sex - by making it harder for them to access brothels that are exploiting enslaved, trafficked women.
So far, The Croydon Advertiser and Croydon Post have not responded to our letters and call for action...yet! But continued pressure will, we believe eventually lead to a reality that sees our family newspapers free of adverts for the sale of trafficked people.
Croydon Council have also referred a number of advertising businesses in the local papers to police in an effort to clamp down on illegal businesses advertising in the borough. Whilst this is a good start, we also feel the council have a potentially much greater role to play in closing down these businesses that enslave people in our town. We will continue to work with the council on this issue.
4. Making the community aware of the issue and how they can take action.
Human Trafficking is a dark and secretive industry. Exposing it to the light of justice and truth is the best way to tackle it head on. Making people aware of the issue is how we shed light on the problem. Making everyone aware of the issue, ensures that it is difficult, if not impossible, for human traffickers to operate in our town. Making people aware also reduces the demand for services that exploit trafficked people.
We have spoken about this issue and shared our findings with thousands of people in the last two years. The message is catching on, and now with the support of published media, the message is getting through. We also do visits to schools to educate young people about the issue and help to ensure this problem does not repeat itself for future generations.
In coming months we will be increasing the amount of awareness raising activities we do with the help of new media tools and opportunities and partnership with global anti-trafficking movement 'STOP THE TRAFFIK'. We will also increase our focus on 'Punter Education' - messages aimed at the men who use trafficked women - to ensure a significant impact on the demand that fuels the supply of human lives for exploitation. We recently had a feature article written about the supply of trafficked women for sexual exploitation in the UK's national Guardian newspaper. You can read about it by clicking here.
You can also watch a report on our work by the BBC. Click Here
