By Corrie Pelc

Human trafficking is a real problem in the world today and the statistics are shocking. According to the group Justice for Youth, there is a larger number of slaves worldwide today than we have ever seen and of those trafficked 80% are under the age of 24, the youngest being six years old. And the US Department of Health and Human Services says on the list of today’s biggest criminal industries around the world, human trafficking is tied for second place with illegal arms and directly under drug dealing

One human rights organization fighting the good fight against human trafficking is the International Justice Mission (IJM)

- a conglomerate of lawyers, investigators and social workers that have joined forces to help rescue those being victimized by prostitution and other forms of violent oppression. With its headquarters in Washington, DC, International Justice Mission works through 14 field offices in countries such as India, Thailand and Cambodia, to help rescue those that need it and also work with local police and court systems to provide support for the victim and ensure the aggressor receives the appropriate action.

An example of International Justice Mission’s work can be seen through its office in Cambodia.

In Cambodia, the Coalition Against Trafficking in Women says about 15,000 human slaves – most brought over from Vietnam – are prostituted in the red-light district known as Svay Pak in the city of Phnom Penh. There the girls are forced to work off their debt to the brothel owner that brought them over, which usually takes about six months to a year.

After receiving a tip from a Cambodian mother whose daughters were missing,

the Cambodian International Justice Mission helped the country’s Siem Reap Anti-Human Trafficking Police in a sting

on a karaoke bar that was actually a brothel trafficking women and girls. Thanks to the work of these combined organizations, 10 victims of the brothel were released, including the two daughters of the woman who had tipped off the authorities.

All those saved courageously testified against the owners of the brothel and many were given the crisis counseling they needed after such an experience as that. And IJM reported that four of those that escaped the brothel are also filing criminal charges against the brothel owners to ensure they are held responsible for their actions.

This is just one of the many stories of IJM’s work throughout the world to help eventually see the end of human trafficking.  Visit www.ijm.org. for more information on International Justice Mission and their work around the world.