1994 2004 Athens, Greece

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1994- 2004 Athens, Greece
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Lydias House? Who . . . What . . . Where . .
. How . . . Why . . .
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SALT. . .
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Your daughters will be like pillars carved to
adorn a palacePsalm 14412
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My soul died
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KATHIMERINI, 2004
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LYDIAS HOUSE .. telling the story
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What is sex trafficking?

• The recruitment, transportation and trading of
  women and children for the purposes of forced
  prostitution.
• Modern-day slavery.

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How many victims are in Eastern Europe?

• Reliable estimates for women trafficked
  from/to/through Eastern Europe yearly are over
  200,000.
• Most trafficking victims come from Russia (40),
  Ukraine (30), Romania and Bulgaria (10) and
  Albania (16).

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How many women and children in Greece are victims
of trafficking?

• Conservative estimates report 20,000 women and
  children are being held against their will.

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Why Does Trafficking Work?

• Highly organized crime rings
• Government corruption
• Legalized prostitution and pimping
• Relatively low risk/high profit business

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What factors place awoman at risk ?

• Severe economic and social decline in her country
  caused by wars and revolutions
• Opening of once closed borders
• Discrimination against women in her country of
  origin
• Idealized ideas about the West, especially from
  the Media

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How can this happen?

• Traffickers use
• Advertisements in local newspapers
• Lies, false promises, fraud
• Bribes
• Manipulation
• Kidnapping, force
• Technology, the internet

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What prevents trafficking victims from escaping?

• Threats of harm and physical impossibility of
  escape
• Beatings, torture and intimidation
• Confinement, confiscation of passport
• Threats of violence to the victims themselves or
  their families
• Fear of local authorities, corruption

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What are the living conditionsof trafficking
victims?

• Malnutrition
• Sleep deprivation
• No health care
• Drug and alcohol abuse
• Rape, beatings and humiliation
• Forced abortions
• Intimidation and torture

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My soul died
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LYDIAS HOUSE. . . telling the story
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The story
of
One
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Why does it happen?
Money the law of supply and demand 1990-2000
revenues from trafficking of women and children
in Greece were in excess of 6 billion euros.
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How much money does trafficking generate?

• United Nations estimates indicate that global
  trafficking in persons generates 7 to 10
  billion annually for traffickers.

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The missing component
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What is needed to rebuild broken lives?

• Legal Assistance
• Medical Treatment
• Secure, nurturing environment
• Counseling
• Spiritual support
• Vocational training and education
• Job placement
• Re-entry to society

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. . .as a daughter, carved to adorn a palace. . .
Ready for a job Ready to be part of her
community
With a place prepared for her . . .like you!
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Why is this girl smiling?
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At risk. . ..
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What can I do?

• Adjust my world view
• Model respect for women and children
• Speak up on their behalf
• Look for at risk people prevention is the
  best!
• . . . . .
• We can all do something.

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What can I do?

• Pray with us
• Ask God where you fit
• We can all do something.

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Greece Update

• In an effort to crack down on one of the
  country's fastest-growing criminal businesses,
  the government passed legislation in 2002 on the
  lucrative sex slave trade. 
• The Bill is supposed to protect victims of
  trafficking who are arrested by police, detained 
  and deported, but in reality only a small
  handful ever receive the aid and protection to
  which they are entitled. 
• According to figures from the ministry of public
  order, only 46 girls were recognized in 2004, and
  for the first six months of 2005, only 11 were
  given aid and protection.                      
                                                   
                                           

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Greece Update

• The question is that in many cases we do not
  know what happens to these girls when they
  are freed," says Lazos. "They need health care,
  psychological support, legal aid and a chance to
  stay and find legal employment -- but
  unfortunately there is no such service available
  from the government." 
• Doctors of the World opened Greece's first
  shelter for victims of trafficking a few years
  ago only to close it down again in September last
  year, citing financial constraints.
• "If a victim of human trafficking wanted to
  escape from her captor, there is virtually no
  social system set up to help her -- and of course
  there is always the fear that, if caught,  the
  perpetrators will be allowed back on the street
  again," says Kanakis.                           
                                                   
                                         

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Greece Update

• Of the 480 traffickers who were arrested in 2004
  and 2005, only 11 were convicted.  
• Despite the law that calls for sentences of up to
  10 years for the use of violence, threats or
  false promises to force an individual into
  prostitution, there is an unwillingness to
  enforce harsh penalties. 
• "At this point in time, pimps and bar owners know
  when the busts are coming and use them to unload
  the older women and the ones which are sick or
  have gone mad," said Lazos. "In Greece, there is
  no way out for these women. They can be killed by
  the pimps or face detention and deportation by
  the police."

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New ways of telling the Story . . .
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My soul died
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The missing component
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. . .as a daughter, carved to adorn a palace. . .
Ready for a job Ready to be part of her
community
With a place prepared for her . . .like you!
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How can this change to . . .
KATHIMERINI, 2004
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