New awards raise profile of religious sisters in anti-trafficking work

Sr Seli with USIG President, Sr Mary Barron, OLA

The exceptional contribution of Catholic religious sisters to the anti-trafficking movement was recognised at the inaugural Sisters Anti-Trafficking Awards (SATAs) in London on 31 October. The event was co-hosted by the Arise foundation, the Conrad H Hilton Foundation and the International Union of Superiors General (UISG), which represents about 600,000 women religious from 80 countries.

The event honoured Sr Seli Thomas of the Sisters of Mary Immaculate from India, Sr Patricia Ebegbulem of the Sisters of St Louis from Nigeria and Sr Francoise Jiranonda of the Sisters of St Paul de Chartres from Thailand. The three women "have demonstrated courage, creativity, collaboration and achievement in the protection of their communities from human trafficking," Arise said.

Former British Prime Minister Theresa May delivered a keynote address stressing the importance of front-line leadership, including Catholic sisters and survivors of trafficking, in the fight against this exploitation. May spoke after the recent launch of the Global Commission on Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking, which she chairs. May discussed the ability of sisters to spot vulnerabilities and build better lives for survivors. "Local groups are key to eradicating slavery," she said. "We also need to provide better opportunities for those who have survived slavery," she added. May also drew attention to the importance of listening to the voices of survivors of trafficking when making policy and developing business practices.

British athlete and Olympic gold-medalist Mo Farah, who last year revealed he is a survivor of human trafficking, said during the ceremony: "While many people feel powerless against this crime and look the other way, Catholic sisters are doing the work daily, bravely, humbly, across the communities all over the world. Whatever faith or values we hold, we can all look to those women for wisdom and inspiration. And that is why I'm here today."

Sr Seli, from Krisnanagar, India, prevents young people from being exploited by reaching out to children in Krisnanagar's brothel district as well as running awareness camps and training women. She provides free legal aid, and conducts seminars and workshops for the villages, schoolteachers and students on safe migration and human trafficking. She has helped rescue exploited girls and prosecute traffickers.

Sr Patricia, from Lagos, Nigeria, established and is running a shelter for victims of human trafficking, organising support services for returning survivors of sex trafficking. She runs mass awareness programs across high-risk rural areas and schools and is a national leader on the issue of trafficking.

Sr Francoise, from Bangkok, has opened two schools which protect vulnerable young Thai women from the sex trade. The schools teach young women vocational skills for free after high school and raise awareness. She has been the director of Talitha Kum Thailand, whose prevention efforts and advocacy work are recognised by the Thai government. Talitha Kum is an international umbrella organisation of anti-trafficking efforts by women religious, based in Rome.

Sr Patricia Murray, executive secretary for the UISG, stressed the importance of collaboration, saying: "While the awards honour sisters for their courage and creativity, collaboration with many people from different faith traditions and with women and men of goodwill is key to combatting the scourge of human trafficking which disfigures human dignity."