B u d a p e s t – As Christians struggled for the abolition of slavery 200 years ago, so today they must fight against and loathe worldwide trafficking. This was demanded by the Swedish Baptist pastor Sven-Gunnar Liden (Stockholm), head of the European Baptist Federation’s (EBF) working group on anti-trafficking, at EBF-Council sessions in Budapest from 26 to 29 September. He presented a 10-point programme applicable to every Christian congregation. Most important of all is prayer, he added. Prayers should be offered for the victims as well as for the criminal offenders and men who desire such sexual services. It is a massive violation of human rights when violence is used to force women into prostitution. Liden expressed the conviction that prayer can lead to long-term change. Congregations could also collect money to aid victims and fund campaigns. They can show films to sharpen awareness of the plight of victims. Liden also called for the distribution of brochures, inviting the police to public lectures, bringing information on trafficking into the media and not least of all keeping one’s eyes open in hopes of discovering where involuntary prostitutes are forced to offer their services. If one meets a large number of women on a particular staircase who do not speak the local language, if many unknown men appear, if particular cars tend to park in front of certain houses- these can all be good reasons for suspicion. Even if these suspicions later prove to be unfounded, it makes sense to inform the police.

Liden also suggested that men be invited to discussion groups for dialogue on the Biblical foundations behind these efforts. “Already in the Old Testament God states clearly that women are not to be treated as a ware – that is a warning against trafficking.” He noted that God had called him to this kind of service. In his opening worship service as a pastor in Stockholm four years ago, an involuntary prostitute was present in the crowd. Her “owners” were waiting for her outside, planning to foil her escape. This incident moved him deeply. His congregation later decide to start an aid programme for involuntary prostitutes.

The two German representatives in the EBF-network on trafficking, Pastor Christine Schultze (Dortmund) and Shannon von Scheele (Berlin), quoted current numbers for Germany. In the past year German police freed 775 women caught in trafficking; in 2003 the figure was 1.200, In 40% of the cases the victims themselves had been able to go to the police, 16% were found through the observations of third parties. In the remaining cases, the police themselves had taken the initiative. Minors between the ages of 14 and 17 were involved in 8% of the cases. Statistics on the total number of new victims throughout Europe diverge widely – the range from 10.000 to 500.000 per year.