Honoring heroes who fight human trafficking

By Lauren Monsen
Jun 21, 2019
A victim of trafficking in a refugee camp in northern Kachin state, Burma, in March 2018. (©
Esther Htusan/AP Images)
Human trafficking is a stain on all of humanity, said Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
As the U.S. Department of State released its 2019 Trafficking in Persons Report on June 20,
Pompeo and presidential adviser Ivanka Trump paid tribute to eight individuals working to
combat trafficking around the globe.
“One of the biggest misperceptions about human trafficking is [that] it’s always transnational,”
but that’s often not the case, Pompeo said. In reality, “traffickers exploit an estimated 77
percent of victims in their own home country.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=12&v=W61Qhex5B-s
Right now, traffickers are robbing some 24.9 million people of their freedom and basic human
dignity, so “we must remain steadfast in our twin goals of freedom for every victim and justice
for every trafficker,” Pompeo said.
Here are this year’s anti-trafficking heroes honored at the State Department:
AdélaïdeSawadogo, of Burkina Faso, has worked for decades to combat human trafficking and
has directly helped more than 1,500 human trafficking survivors.
Daniel Rueda and Veronica Supliguicha, of Ecuador, co-founded an organization to care for
trafficking survivors. They operate a shelter and work with the Ecuadoran government to
prevent trafficking.
Agnes De Coll, of Hungary, leads the anti-trafficking unit of one of Hungary’s premier civil-
society organizations, which provides survivors with support and guidance.
Sister Gabriella Bottani, of Italy, leads an extensive international network of Catholic sisters
committed to preventing human trafficking and connecting survivors to critical services.
RoselineEguabor, of Italy, is a trafficking survivor who works to help other survivors get the
support they need and reintegrate into society.
RaoudhaLaabidi, of Tunisia, is a judge who has been the driving force behind Tunisia’s efforts
to implement a new human trafficking law and a comprehensive anti-trafficking strategy.
CamiliousMachingura, of Zimbabwe, works with human trafficking survivors in rural
communities across Zimbabwe and has helped elevate the issue of human trafficking as a policy
priority for Zimbabwe’s government.

A top U.S. priority

At the State Department, “we engage in year-round activity with our partners in more than 80
countries to support anti-trafficking programs all over the world,” Pompeo said. The message “is
very clear: If you don’t stand up to trafficking, America will stand up to you.”