Stop Sex Trafficking of Children And Young People 2009
The Most Caring Hand Cream Around From The Body Shop
Discover the SPECIAL EDITION Soft Hands, Kind Heart
Hand Cream, which is caring in a number of special ways.
It is kind to your hands, featuring wonderful skin caring
ingredients, has an uplifting fragrance and the benefits
of Community Trade. It is also symbolic of a kind heart
- as each purchase supports the “Stop Sex Trafficking of
Children and Young People” campaign. This campaign is the
biggest of its kind stretching across the globe, offering us a
chance to end one of the greatest human rights abuses of
the 21st century, affecting children in every country in the
world.
SPECIAL EDITION Soft Hands, Kind Heart Hand Cream,
Available from 10 September 2009 (@ 390 bht) is a protective
hand cream that leaves your handssilky soft to the touch, and with its non-greasy formula it
sinks into your skin to moisturise and condition. Infused with soothing angelica extract to help soothe and soften the skin, and with its wonderful fragrance, it is lovely to use – it features notes of fresh citrus, leading to an elegant floral heart on a warm amber background.
All profit is donated directly from each purchase to ECPAT International, Thailand as part of The Body Shop “Stop Sex Trafficking of Children and Young People” campaign, which launches in Thailand on 10 September. You can nurture your skin with the Soft Hands, Kind Heart Hand Cream, which in turn helps provide protection and care to children and young people trafficked or at risk.
Soft Hands, Kind Heart Hand Cream also features Community Trade olive oil from Italy, sourced through the unique The Body Shop fair trade programme. This trade provides a sustainable income for olive growers and their families, all the while making your hands feel great.
About the campaign:
This hand cream is a key part and symbol of the global campaign “Stop Sex Trafficking of Children and Young People”. The campaign marks a new chapter in The Body Shop story around the world. Working in partnership with ECPAT International this campaign aims to inspire long term change, to stop the unimaginable abuse that affects an estimated 1.8 million children and young people each year* (UNICEF UK 2003).
ECPAT International – which stands for End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and the Trafficking of Children for Sexual Purposes - is a global network made up of independent grassroots organisations, working in 81 countries worldwide to combat child exploitation. Activist-driven, often operating with very limited funding, ECPAT’s activities support and protect trafficked children, whilst working with governments and decision makers, advocating changes to offer children greater protection from trafficking.
Katherine Desbaillets, The Body Shop Thailand Ambassador says: “Many of us will be shocked to hear that at least 1.8 million children and young people are exploited in the global sex trade each year, not just overseas but in <insert country>. Many of us might feel powerless to help those abused and defenceless children, who are subject to unimaginable acts of cruelty.
However, by supporting the Stop Sex Trafficking of Children and Young People campaign, we all have the chance to inspire real change on an issue which, until now, has been largely hidden from the world.
Our vision for the campaign is to create a world where, instead of being treated by criminals as
commodities that are simply sold for cash, children are protected and treated with the care, love
and respect they deserve.”
Carmen Madrinán, Global Director of ECPAT – “Once a child has been trafficked, the child has lost their protective environment, and has fallen in the hands of those that will compromise their dignity, violate their rights and shatter their trust.“
“Change is only possible when the world wakes up to the fact that the trafficking and sexual exploitation of children is happening all around us, in every country in the world. We agreed to launch this campaignwith The Body Shop because it will make a real difference, raising awareness and inspiring those with decision-making power to effect change.”
The entire The Body Shop network across more than 60 countries is supporting the Stop Trafficking
campaign, to raise awareness of this issue. Dame Anita Roddick, the late founder of The Body Shop, was passionate that this “modern-day slave trade” should be brought to public attention. The Body Shop has been involved in this issue since 2007, participating at the World Congress III Against Sexual Exploitation of Children, which took place in November 2008 in Brazil. The Body Shop team introduced the world’s leading experts on the issue, international governments, NGOs and activists, to the “Stop Sex Trafficking of Young People and Children” campaign.
Sex Trafficking
If you believe you have seen something suspicious that could involve a trafficked or exploited child, contact <insert local details> or e-mail
protect@ecpat.net.
Learn More About Trafficking
The trafficking of children and young people is a complex issue and it manifests itself in various ways, depending on the region or country where the children are located. However, three steps are typical of the trafficking experience.
1 - Recruitment
The child or young person is taken away from their home, sometimes by force but often the trafficker
will trick them or their parents into going, with the promise of a better life. On some occasions
desperate parents will sell their child to a trafficker.
2 - Transport
Moving the child to their intended destination can often be dangerous and uncomfortable. The trafficker may hide the child in cramped conditions to prevent anyone finding out what’s happening. If ever questioned, they will lie about their relationship to their human ‘cargo’ to avoid suspicion.
3 - Destination
On arrival at their final destination, children and young people are often abused, beaten or raped into
submission and can be repeatedly sold. They are psychologically and physically damaged but too
frightened or ashamed to ask for help. If they try to escape, their lives or the lives of their families are
threatened. If they do manage to escape the authorities don’t always provide immediate protection for them leaving them just as vulnerable.
Stories From Children And Young People
I feel ashamed of what they made me do.
Like many teenage girls, “Sasha” had dreams of
becoming a model. With a mixture of excitement and
nervousness she answered an ad in her local paper
and couldn’t believe her luck when she was told
to come and see them the next day. Her interview
couldn’t have gone better and to her delight she was
offered the job there and then. It would be a fabulous
opportunity as the shoot was in another country and
she’d never been abroad. Scared her parents would
stop her, she decided not to tell them until afterwards
and made up a story that she was staying with a
friend’s family for a couple of days.
The next day she arrived at the agency and was
shown into a van with two other girls. Because
they were all quite young they travelled with a
chaperone who insisted on taking their passports
for safekeeping. The long journey didn’t dampen
their excitement and when they eventually arrived
at the location they were still too happy to notice that
something was wrong. The photographer was waiting
for them in the attic of a house and told them to
strip. Confused, they thought there must have been a
mistake but the chaperone became angry and started
threatening them. What followed was a weeklong
nightmare for the girls. Held against their will, they were
forced to prostitute themselves and had pornographic
photography and film made of them.
Back home “Sasha’s” parents were frantically searching
for her. None of her friends had any information to help
trace her and as the days passed they grew more scared
for her safety.
“Sasha” eventually managed to escape her captors but
alone and frightened in a strange city with no passport,
had no idea how to get home. Too scared to go to the
police in case they didn’t believe her and arrested her
instead and equally as scared they’d tell her parents the
shameful things that had happened to her, she roamed
the streets, trapped in a foreign country with no ID.
I felt so powerless. Everything was taken from me.
“Kit” didn’t have a very happy family life and escaped
his problems by surfing the net. While in a chat room
he made friends with “Ray” who came from a similar
situation so they shared their troubles and soon became
good friends. One day, a frustrated “Ray” said he
was running away and asked “Kit” to come with him.
Unhappy with his home life, “Kit” readily agreed and
they arrange to meet at a train station. At the station
they decided to head for the seaside as there would be
a good chance they’d both be able to find work there.
On board the train, “Ray” bought them both a drink. That
was the last thing “Kit” remembered about the journey.
When he woke up he was locked in a small room with
several other terrified young boys all shackled by the
feet and hands. A man entered the room carrying a
big stick and started beating them. Shouting, he told
them that they had to earn $40,000 before they’d be
set free. To pay off their debt they’d have to work in a
club entertaining clients and dancing in the bar. The
man warned them that if they tried to escape they’d
be severely beaten and their debt would increase. “Kit”
was forced into sex work a few months before the
police raided the club and rescued the abused boys. Not
wanting to go back home the police eventually found
him a place in a shelter for boys.
I was scared when they showed me what I had to
do with strangers.
“Maria” came from a very poor family. Both her parents
were too ill to work so she was the main source of
income for the family. Desperate for a higher wage she
met a woman who knew people in the USA who needed
a maid and would be willing to pay more than she could
get at home. The woman told her there was just one
problem, since she was very young with no work history
it would be impossible for her to get a work visa for
the U.S. Luckily, the woman knew someone that would
smuggle her into the country but because of the risk involved she’d have to pay them a fee. They asked for a small deposit upfront and the rest when she was safely across the border. Not sure what to do but desperate to help her family, “Maria” consulted her parents and together they decided it was worth trying.
When she got to the U.S. “Maria” was handed to her new employers who informed her that being a
maid would not earn her enough money to pay her debt and she would have to sell her body. When she refused they threatened to harm her family and she was locked in a room without food or water until she begrudgingly agreed to have sex with strangers.
“Maria” remained a prisoner for four months until the police raided the house and arrested her employers. Provided with care and medical attention, she was able to recover enough to help the police build a case against her traffickers before being returned home to the open arms of her beloved family.
Notes to editors
The Body Shop International plc is the original ethical cosmetics company, now operating more than 2,400 stores in over 60 markets worldwide. The Body Shop has constantly sought out wonderful natural ingredients from all four corners of the globe to bring you products bursting with effectiveness, to enhance your natural beauty. We strive to use our planet’s resources wisely, searching for outstanding natural materials and ingredients from across the globe to include in our range of products. We continue to lead the way, sourcing sustainable palm oil, introducing 100% recycled packaging, and raising funds and awareness to help prevent the spread of HIV/ AIDS, and continuing to support marginalized communities around the world through our Community Trade fair trade programme.
For over 30 years The Body Shop has believed that business has the power to make the right kind of difference to the world. Our unique philosophy continues to drive everything we do, allowing our customers around the world to become ‘activists’, simply by choosing from our range of products. As Dame Anita Roddick said: “Activism isn’t listed on The Body Shop labels as an ingredient, but it is there as surely as the bergamot and hemp oil”.
Community Trade
A purchase from our Community Trade programme can put a smile on faces as far away as Ghana, Nicaragua and Italy – improving the financial security, comfort and health resources available to farmers, producers and their families in more than 20 countries.
In 1986 we launched our pioneering Community Trade programme which now directly benefits over 25,000 people, as we seek to provide fair wages, for work in fair conditions, for all those involved in this unique programme. Our commitment to Community Trade continues to grow as over 60% of our products include the benefits of Community Trade.
