Post Conference Prayer Day 15

Find Your Voice. . .Break the Chain

Partnering Against Trafficking

From The Washington Post

By Hillary Rodham Clinton

Wednesday, June 17, 2009 

Information:
The Obama administration views the fight against human trafficking, at home and abroad, as an important priority on our foreign policy agenda. The United States funds 140 anti-trafficking programs in nearly 70 countries, as well as 42 domestic task forces that bring state and local authorities together with nongovernmental organizations to combat trafficking. But there is so much more to do.

The problem is particularly urgent now, as local economies around the world reel from the global financial crisis. People are increasingly desperate for the chance to support their families, making them more susceptible to the tricks of ruthless criminals. Economic pressure means more incentive for unscrupulous bosses to squeeze everything they can from vulnerable workers and fewer resources for the organizations and governments trying to stop them.


The State Department's annual Trafficking in Persons Report, released this week, documents the scope of this challenge in every country. The report underscores the need to address the root causes of human trafficking -- including poverty, lax law enforcement and the exploitation of women -- and their devastating effects on its victims and their families.

Since 2000, more than half of all countries have enacted laws prohibiting all forms of human trafficking. New partnerships between law enforcement and nongovernmental organizations, including women's shelters and immigrants' rights groups, have led to thousands of prosecutions, as well as assistance for many victims.

The 2009 report highlights progress that several countries have made to intensify the fight against human trafficking. In Cyprus, where Oxana Rantchev was trafficked and killed, the government has taken new steps to protect victims. Another example is Costa Rica, long a hub for commercial sex trafficking. This year, it passed an anti-trafficking law; trained nearly 1,000 police, immigration agents and health workers to respond to trafficking; launched a national awareness campaign; and improved efforts to identify and care for victims. This progress is encouraging. Much of it is the result of the hard work of local activists such as Mariliana Morales Berrios, who founded the Rahab Foundation in Costa Rica in 1997 and has helped thousands of trafficking survivors rebuild their lives. Advocates such as Mariliana help spur change from the bottom up that encourages governments to make needed reforms from the top down.

We must build on this work. When I began advocating against trafficking in the 1990s, I saw firsthand what happens to its victims. In Thailand, I held 12-year-olds who had been trafficked and were dying of AIDS. In Eastern Europe, I shared the tears of women who wondered whether they'd ever see their relatives again. The challenge of trafficking demands a comprehensive approach that both brings down criminals and cares for victims. To our strategy of prosecution, protection and prevention, it's time to add a fourth P: partnerships. (World Vision Advocacy uses prevention, protection, prosecution, and the fourth is policy) 

The criminal networks that enslave millions of people cross borders and span continents. Our response must do the same. The United States is committed to building partnerships with governments and organizations around the world, to finding new and more effective ways to take on the scourge of human trafficking. We want to support our partners in their efforts and find ways to improve our own.

Human trafficking flourishes in the shadows and demands attention, commitment and passion from all of us. We are determined to build on our past success and advance progress in the weeks, months and years ahead. Together, we must hold a light to every corner of the globe and help build a world in which no one is enslaved.

The writer is Secretary of State.

Prayer Focus:
Praise God for the progress that was made in Cyprus and Costa Rica in 2009.  Praise God that the Obama administration views the fight against human trafficking, at home and abroad, as an important priority on our foreign policy agenda.  Praise God that the United States funds 140 anti-trafficking programs in nearly 70 countries, as well as 42 domestic task forces that bring state and local authorities together with nongovernmental organizations to combat trafficking.  Praise God that since 2000, more than half of all countries have enacted laws prohibiting all forms of human trafficking.  Ask God to be the Light in every corner of the globe exposing the practice of human trafficking and setting slaves free.  Ask God to empower the US government to use its influence to impact this darkness in an even greater way.   

Post Conference Prayer Day 14

Find Your Voice. . .Break the Chain

Singapore, Thailand Backslide in Trafficking Fight

From Bloomsberg Business Week

Information: 

June 15 (Bloomberg) -- Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam all regressed last year in their efforts to battle trafficking of men, women and children for labor or commercial sex, according to the U.S. State Department.  The three Southeast Asian countries were placed on a watch list of middle-tier countries, putting them one level above the worst offenders such as North Korea, Myanmar and Saudi Arabia, the report said. Malaysia was upgraded from the worst ranking, while Cambodia and Pakistan were removed from the watch list.  The department’s 10th annual report grades 175 nations on their efforts to fight this modern form of slavery. The U.S. is listed for the first time, placed among those countries that are doing their best to comply with the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, the American law against human trade.  Singapore’s government showed an “inadequate response” to sex trafficking in the city-state with only two convictions last year, the report said. Thailand and Vietnam similarly made little progress in prosecuting trafficking offenders, it said.

‘Certainly Not Weakened’

“The Singapore government is committed to tackling the trafficking in persons issue and our efforts in dealing with this issue have certainly not weakened since last year,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in an e-mailed statement. “It is rather puzzling because the U.S. has not satisfactorily explained how it had arrived at its conclusions.”

Thailand “has expressed its disappointment” with the report, foreign ministry spokesman Thani Thongphakdi said by telephone. “We believe that the report did not give due recognition to Thailand’s efforts to address the trafficking problem,” he said. “Be that as it may, we will continue with our efforts to prevent and suppress the trafficking problem.”

Malaysia moved out of the worst tier with increased criminal charges against offenders, according to the report. Cambodian authorities made a “significant increase” in convictions over the past year, including a public official, and Pakistan boosted efforts to combat bonded labor, the U.S. said.

The U.S. is a source as well as a transit and destination country for people forced into labor, debt bondage and prostitution, according to the report. The work is predominantly in manufacturing, janitorial services, agriculture, hotel services, construction, nail salons, elder care, strip-club dancing and domestic servitude, the U.S. said.

‘Tears of Families’
“Behind these statistics on the pages are the struggles of real human beings, the tears of families who may never see their children, the despair and indignity of those suffering under the worst forms of exploitation,” Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said at a State Department event to mark the release of the report yesterday in Washington.

The International Labor Organization estimated there were 12.3 million victims of forced labor, sex trafficking, debt bondage and recruitment of child soldiers worldwide in 2009. In the same year, there were 4,166 successful prosecutions for trafficking, the State Department report said.

The U.S. report lists three tiers of nations. Among those in the bottom section -- nations that don’t comply with the law and make no effort to do so -- are Zimbabwe, Cuba, Mauritania and Sudan.  Japan, Israel and Oman are listed in the middle tier -- nations that don’t fully meet the law’s minimum standards yet are making “significant” efforts to do so. Oil-rich Qatar is listed in between the middle and lowest tier on a watch list of countries that don’t meet minimum standards and whose progress is less certain.

The trafficking report calls for better law enforcement, improved laws and more prosecutions for trafficking. The report changes each year and countries can move from tier one, where the U.S. and others are, to the bottom tier.

Prayer Focus:

Ask God to bring conviction to America about this country being a source as well as a transit and destination country for women and children forced into labor, debt bondage and prostitution. Ask the Lord to stop these atrocities from happening in manufacturing, janitorial services, agriculture, hotel services, construction, nail salons, elder care, strip-club dancing and domestic servitude in the US.  Ask the Lord to call all countries to accountability through the efforts of the US State Department.  Praise God that these issues are being brought into the light and that countries are getting upset if they believe that they are placed on the wrong tier in an annual report for the US State Department.  Praise Him for the reported progress that has been made in Malaysia and Cambodia and ask Him that all countries move to tier one through better changes in law enforcement, improved laws and more presecutions for trafficking.  

Post Conference Prayer Day 13

Find Your Voice. . .Break the Chain

Sex Trafficking in the U.S.

From World Vision Report

Information:

The U.S. State Department says up to 17-thousand women and children are brought into the U.S. each year in a form of modern day slavery – primarily for sexual purposes. But that’s only 10-percent of the trafficking problem. Host Peggy Wehmeyer talks with former Congresswoman Linda Smith who says thousands of young girls already living in the U.S. also are being duped into the sex trade – primarily through the Internet. Smith heads the organization “Shared Hope International” which found two-million sex sites on the Internet, 5,000 of them dealing in child pornography.

Listen to the full story

Shared Hope website

Prayer Focus:

Ask the Lord for exposure and convictions for those demanding and those providing 100,000-300,000 human  trafficking victims along the truck routes of America. Cry out to God on behalf of those 11-13 year old little girls on the Internet thinking that they are communicating with another innocent who end up taken advantage of and even killed as they respond to predators on line.  Ask the Lord to let America wake up to its own sin and repent from human trafficking.  Ask God to stop the online growth of child pornography in the US.  Ask God to shut down these sex industry sites.  Ask God to bring freedom and healing to those like Amy who are rescued.   Praise God for the progress that has been made through Shared Hoe International and World Vision in America.

Post Conference Prayer Day 12

Find Your Voice. . .Break the Chain

MYANMAR: Tricked by Traffickers

 The international community needs to put pressure on countries of destination

Information: From a May 31, 2010 article of IRIN Humanitarian news and analysis; a project of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

From IRIN News: “…Due to limited job opportunities and low incomes, tens of thousands of Burmese seek work abroad, hoping to earn a better living, but many…fall prey to human traffickers. Although there is no reliable data on human trafficking in Myanmar, experts believe several thousands are trafficked annually. 

Human prey
According to the UN Inter-Agency Project (UNIAP) on Human Trafficking, Burmese women, children, and men are trafficked to Thailand, China, Malaysia, South Korea, and Macau for sexual exploitation, domestic servitude, and forced labour.

Myanmar is also a transit country for trafficked Bangladeshis to Malaysia and Chinese to Thailand. The Burmese government says China is the main destination, followed by Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore. Women and girls are trafficked to China for forced marriage and sex work, while adults and children are sent to Thailand and Malaysia for forced labour and sexual exploitation. “The victims of trafficking blindly believe whatever they’re told by the brokers without trying to get correct information regarding the job,” Nan Tin Tin Shwe, anti-trafficking coordinator of the international NGO World Vision, told IRIN…”

The country also has internal trafficking from rural areas to the Chinese and Thai borders – known international trafficking routes.  “Children can fall prey to traffickers once they have migrated internally to these areas – or they may end up in exploitative and abusive labour in these areas,” said Lamia Rashid, director of child protection for Save the Children.   Agencies say traffickers with job offers are targeting children and young people in the Ayeyarwady Delta, which was devastated by Cyclone Nargis two years ago.   “Children and young people are keen to take these risks and migrate, and there is a high possibility for them to end up in exploitative working conditions, including sexual exploitation,” Rashid said.

Coordinated fight
The government and international agencies have been working on a national plan of action to combat human trafficking, raising awareness through the media and community meetings. In addition, the government has 23 anti-trafficking task forces to rescue survivors and stringent laws to punish the traffickers. Experts say ongoing efforts are needed to protect victims once they have returned home and to scale up prevention efforts in vulnerable communities. “Victims of trafficking come from source communities that are spread across the country, often living in villages that are remote and situated a long distance from services available from the Department of Social Welfare, the Myanmar Women’s Affairs Federation, and NGOs,” said Maciej Pieczkowski, programme manager of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Myanmar.  Just raising awareness in the country of origin is not enough,” said Ohnmar Ei Ei Chaw, national project coordinator of UNIAP. “The countries of destination, too, should take action effectively against the industries that use cheap labour and exploit the workers… The international community needs to put pressure on those countries of destination.”

Prayer Focus:
Ask God to bring unity between the governments in the countries of origin and the countries of destination of human trafficking.  Ask God to bring into light these transit countries that are lurking in the shadows as victims are transported from one country to another under the turned eyes of their governments.  Bring these governments into the spotlight so that more powerful governments concerned about humanitarian affairs will see these inhumane activities and step in to put pressure on these remiss governments.  

Ask God to give potential victims wisdom so they can detect warning signs and danger when they encounter human trafficking agents who disguise themselves as employers with good intentions.  Pray that the Lord will take away the timidity of these potential victims and replace it with boldness.  Ask God to cause them to use logic and reasoning inspite of the despair and emotion they are cloaked in from poverty.  Pray for open doors for microenterprise in these countries so that people can be empowered to economic independence.  Pray that God will stir the hearts of people with resources to begin to share their wealth with these areas of the world where people have so little.

Praise God for what He is doing through these nongovernment organizations like World Vision and Save the Children and others that are making a difference in these areas of the world in the fight against human trafficking.

Casting Crowns Praise You In The Storm

Post Conference Prayer Day 10

Find Your Voice. . .Break the Chain

World Vision: 
 Jesse Eaves in Southeast Asia

Information:

This information is taken from a March 2009 blog

Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Part 1: Introduction to trafficking

Okay, we need to cover some basics about human trafficking. So bear with me. After that, we can dive right into some of the problems I’m hearing about right off the bat here in Cambodia. And it’s only my first day here!!  Let me give you a quick primer:

Simply put, trafficking is the use of fraud, force, or coercion to exploit a person for profit. It’s that simple. It can take the form of abduction, fake job offers in another country, even a parent selling a child. But trafficking is more than just a person moving from one location to another. As one activist Siddharth Kara puts it “trafficking is about slavery.” And that’s exactly what it is. From the transport of the victim, to the final location where they are exploited sexually, physically, or emotionally without a choice — trafficking is slavery. Case in point: There are more slaves in the world today (12-30 million people) than during three centuries of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade (9-12 million people).

Today I met with a bunch people about a bunch of different things. The one I’ll highlight is a meeting with Helen Sworn, director of the Chab Dai Coalition in Cambodia. “Chab Dai” in Khmer means “Strong Hands” and it is a group of Christian NGOs (nongovernmental organizations) that are committed to ending sexual exploitation and trafficking in Cambodia. Helen is simply amazing. She knows every aspect of the fight against trafficking and sexual exploitation in Cambodia, the good, the bad, and the so very ugly. With her animated personality and sharp British wit, a conversation with Helen is like strapping into racecar at the Indy 500 — it never slows down and keeps you on the edge of your seat.

When I asked Helen to tell me about the issues faced by the coalition in their fight against child exploitation, what I got was a litany of problems in Cambodia that perfectly typify the challenges and tragic nature of fighting trafficking and exploitation found all over the world. For instance, while it may seem opposite of everything a family stands for, many families in the world view daughters either as a burden or a financial nest-egg. In certain communities of the Vietnamese population living in Cambodia, 80-90 percent of the families sell their daughters either to individuals, or to organized trafficking networks. The girls are sold for their virginity. When that is taken from them, the girls are often returned to their families, where they will either be sold again or be forced to flee the community for the shame of no longer having their virginity, which is their greatest asset in finding a husband to marry. Many girls who are sold into sexual slavery often escape only to find they are outcasts in their home communities. Scorned by neighbors and ignored by their family, these women often fall forlornly back into sexual slavery, viewing it as their only option.

This tragic situation is replayed in communities across Cambodia. The cultural significance given to a girl’s virginity cannot be overstated. In short, it is all these girls have to offer if they are to marry. When that is taken from them by force, there is often little hope for them. The case in point is found in the rise of widely available hardcore pornography and a rising number of child rapes. Curious about the correlation? So was I.

I’ll let Helen explain.“You see, on every street corner and in every market around the country you can find both locally produced and imported pornography showing every imaginable horrible thing you can do to a woman. These movies are played openly in bars, restaurants, barber shops, and even after weddings and funerals. In some communities it has become the form of entertainment, and everyone’s invited. In communities where porn is prevalent, we are seeing a shocking rise in child rape cases. What’s even more shocking is that the offenders are often children themselves. Just two weeks ago an 11-year-old girl was walking home late at night and was raped by four boys. None of the boys was older than 14. It’s children raping children. And right now, the only link we can find is the ‘XXX’ factor of readily available pornography.”

So look, I can hear the quantitative minds out there groaning “Hold on now, correlation does not equal causation.” And maybe you’re right. But that doesn’t change the fact that in recent years, organizations like World Vision and Chab Dai Coalition have seen the rise in child-on-child rape along with a rise in pornography. Whatever the cause of the rise in rapes, the number is rising, which means there are that many more girls who find their most precious possession taken from them. This leads to increased vulnerability as they lose the support network found in communities and family. Vulnerability is what traffickers prey on. Through no fault of their own, the rape victims of these communities all over Cambodia are now prime targets for falling into sexual slavery, and many already have.

Prayer Focus:
Pray that God will help us continue to be faithful to be informed about and faithful in praying against human trafficking.  When you are tempted to stop reading another thing about human trafficking because it is so difficult, ask God to help you focus on creative ways to take action steps to combat this evil.  Pray against discouragement as we press into the darkness on behalf of human trafficking victims.  Lift up these children in Cambodia whose very parents who should be protectors of their children are placing these girls in harm's way.  Pray that these girls will be able to find Jesus and His forgiveness which they can in turn pass on to their parents for selling them into slavery.  Pray for improvement in the economy of Cambodia so that families are not put in a place of such desparation that they would sell their own children.  Pray that families will hear of World Vision's microenterprise projects and become business entrepeneaurs to support their families rather than selling their children.  Pray that laws protecting the children of Cambodia will be passed and enforced.  Praise God for what He is doing through World Vision and Chab Dai Coalition against human trafficking and ask Him to bless these organizations and expand their work.  Praise Him for the heart of compassion that He is growing in you as you learn about human trafficking and take action against it.  Praise Him that none of this goes unnoticed by God and that there is nothing hidden that won't be revealed as we pray and ask God to expose places and people of corrupt living who are benefitting financially from this vile practice.  Praise Him that He is faithful to hear our prayers.  

Post Conference Prayer Day 9

Find Your Voice. . .Break the Chain

Concerns Raised About Illegal Sex Trade

World Cup in South Africa heightens awareness about human trafficking
By John Barr and Nicole Noren

ESPN
Updated: June 7, 2010, 1:27 PM ET
  CAPE TOWN, South Africa
 

Editor's note: For more than nine months, "Outside the Lines" has investigated whether the presence of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa will have an effect on human trafficking in the country. OTL interviewed dozens of sources in South Africa and around the world, including officials in law enforcement, government agencies, research institutes and advocacy groups, as well as pimps and prostitutes who will work the brothels and streets of South African cities that are hosting World Cup matches. The investigation included undercover footage, recorded from within the South African sex industry in Cape Town and Johannesburg. The reporting process led to multiple sources who said more young people have been trafficked either into South Africa from other countries or internally to work in a rapidly growing sex industry because of the monthlong soccer tournament.

 

Through coercion or deception, and sometimes force, traffickers lure people into exploitative situations. A person does not have to cross a border into another country to be trafficked. In fact, in South Africa, internal trafficking is as much a problem as, if not more than, external trafficking. According to the U.S. State Department's most recent (2009) Trafficking in Persons report, "The government of South Africa does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, however, it is making significant efforts to do so."

 

There is no law against human trafficking in South Africa making it difficult for police to come against the practice.  Without hte legislation in place it makes it difficult for police to act and there are not enough recources in place make a lack of cohesion between agencies to work together.  People's hands are tied to work against human trafficking.  Police are doing what they can and even risking their own lives to rescue victims.  It is a new issue and there is not a lot of understanding about it and what to do about it.  Often they go into a house and blanket arrest anyone there including the victims.  The government is not doing its part.  The end game for victims is grim at best.  Even if agencies can get the victims off the streets, many return to the streets.

Tonya Stanfield, network director of Justice [ACTS], a Cape Town anti-trafficking group spoke with ESPN reporter John Barr outside a Cape Town warehouse, where police rescued five teenage trafficking victims in late April. Stanfield's organization distills the often murky practice of human trafficking down to four core elements. Trafficking victims, Stanfield said, are tricked, transported, trapped and traded. As South Africa awaits an estimated half-million soccer fans for the World Cup, there are increasing concerns that more people will become victims of human trafficking and that younger women and girls, in particular, will be at risk.

One-third of all workers in South Africa are unemployed and nearly 70 percent of South African children live in poverty, according to Patric Solomons, director of the Cape Town-based children's advocacy group Molo Songololo.  Solomons fears relaxed visa controls at South Africa's already porous borders, the decision by South African public school officials to give children vacation during the month-long soccer tournament starting Friday and the influx of hundreds of thousands of foreigners with deep pockets have created a perfect storm for sex trafficking.   Solomons pointed out that South Africa, unlike Germany, has a host of factors that make it uniquely susceptible to exploitation by human trafficking syndicates: a huge, impoverished lower class and, unlike more than half the world's countries, no law specifically criminalizing all forms of human trafficking.   Last month, South African President Jacob Zuma signed legislation that makes trafficking in minors a crime, but more comprehensive anti-trafficking legislation remains stuck in a committee within the South African Parliament and won't be passed into law until late 2010 at the earliest, according to Errol Naidoo, an activist and lobbyist who pushed hard to get the legislation passed before the World Cup started. "I think that most people are just appalled that government is not taking this seriously enough," Naidoo said in a recent interview near his Cape Town office, just outside the gates of Parliament. "Recently, they arrested nine Nigerian traffickers … and they don't have the law in place to effectively and comprehensively deal with these guys." An ordained minister who runs the conservative Family Policy Institute, Naidoo said sex traffickers see the World Cup as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to "cash in." "They are operating on the principle that there are many desperate young women in South Africa because of the high levels of unemployment, of poverty and desperation, so they are feeding off that and they know that they stand to make millions and millions of rand [South Africa's currency] over the period [of the World Cup]," Naidoo said.

In Johannesburg, where the World Cup begins Friday, the number of brothels has doubled within the past year, according to one law enforcement source. The source, who spoke to "Outside the Lines" in an extensive interview in early May, agreed to speak on the condition of anonymity because of the undercover nature of his work. He explained that he has spent years penetrating human trafficking syndicates and that he had found 10 trafficking victims in Johannesburg-area brothels alone in just the two weeks before the interview. "In the last couple weeks, there has been an increase in domestic trafficking, and it has been for the World Cup," the source said. He went on to speak of a Cape Town organized-crime syndicate known as "The Firm," an umbrella organization made up of roughly 100 smaller criminal groups that collectively run the sex trade in Cape Town. The Firm, according to the source, recently expanded to include Chinese crime syndicates. "Cape Town is cut and dried into organized crime like you can't believe," he said.

Safe haven

In a safe house on the outskirts of Cape Town a rescued victim, Jasmine, recounted the story of her final months in the sex trade.   She said she almost left South Africa when one of the German pimps she worked for in Mossel Bay told her he wanted to take her to Austria. Convinced she simply would be sold again and might not survive if she agreed to go with him to Europe, she searched for a way out. "I knew I wanted to get away, but I didn't know what reason I could tell them," she said. When her daughter's father died in May 2009, she saw an opening. She told the German pimps she had to return to Cape Town to attend to family matters. "'If you want me to come back, you'll let me go now,'" she said she told them. She never went back.

But Jasmine was hardly free. Still hooked on drugs, including crack cocaine, and fearing the Germans would find her, she avoided brothels and escort agencies and instead worked the streets of Cape Town, living for months in a budget motel. Earlier this year, she said, she was beaten and gang-raped by a group of customers. She said the men drove her to an unfamiliar area and simply left her. With nowhere to go, she reached out to a safe house that takes in prostitutes and former gang members. She said she has since rediscovered her faith and hopes to be reunited with her daughter.  It was Jasmine's mother who told her about the safe house where Jasmine has been since earlier this year.

"I was desperate for change," she said from the safe house where she has lived since February. She's convinced that because of the World Cup, more women will be drawn into a life she only recently escaped."The men of South Africa are OK with their wives, their mothers, their daughters, their sisters … being sold," she said. "It's already sick enough that we are being exploited by our own men; now it's to get exploited by people from other countries."

Prayer Focus:    

Pray that God will send help to the victims in South Africa who have the legal knowledge and skills to work with the government to pass and enforce laws against human trafficking.  Pray that the economy in South Africa will improve so that people are not so desperate that they are willing to allow their women to be victimized in this way for "rand" (South African's currency).  Pray that more safe haven shelters will be established during this World Cup to offer a place of safety to sex trade women and children.  Cry out to God on behalf of these teenagers who have no hope and feel as if no one cares for them.  Ask God to send them someone who cares, someone to be His hands, His feet and whose heart is broken for the things that break the heart of God.  Pray for the salvation of the pimps, the johns, the prostituted women and children.  Praise God for the workers who are there offering safe haven for these victims.  Ask God to provide for them, to protect them, and to encourage them as they face a seemingly overwhelming situation.  Praise God for what He will do in the midst of unbelievable evil knowing God's promise in Romans 5:20 that where sin abounds, grace does much more abound.  Praise and worship God as you pray, knowing that He rules and reigns despite this evil in our world.  Praise Him that one day there will be no more sorrow, no more tears and no more human trafficking.  That ultimately, the light will overcome the darkness because "The Life-Light blazed out of the darkness and the darkness couldn't put it out (The Message).