It is a tragedy that in this century, notwithstanding the progress in human development and civilisation, human beings still use and exchange their fellow humans for monetary gains through organ harvesting, cheap labour, sexual exploitation as if they were chattels to be bought and paid for. It is dehumanizing and cruel like in the old form of slavery. The victim is manipulated to think that life is better on the other side but once let into the power and control of the trafficker, the victim has no choice, but to surrender to the dictates of the master or mistress.

In our country, we have not fared so well against this scourge. Children as young as 7 years are exploited in forced labour, mining, begging, herding, agriculture, etc. Girls and boys are also exploited in prostitution. Karamojong women and children are particularly vulnerable to domestic servitude, commercial sexual exploitation, and street begging. Young girls and women are targeted for domestic sex trafficking. Most victims of internal trafficking are Ugandans. Young boys and girls are the most vulnerable to internal trafficking while young women are more vulnerable to transnational trafficking, usually seeking employment as domestic workers in the Middle East and other countries.

These victims are our brothers and sisters whom we know and do not know. Moreover, in most cases the traffickers are people who are known to the victims; relatives, friends or associates. Remember how in the bible, the older brothers sold their young brother Joseph as a slave and he was enslaved in Egypt! (Gn.37:12-36). There is no true religious leader who would fail to denounce the horror of human trafficking taking place in our country, affecting our people and undermining their dignity and rights.

There is no doubt that, the idolatry of wealth and riches significantly contribute to this inhuman trade which attracts huge sums of illicit profits. This is further complicated by the rampant unemployment, poverty and our education system which produces job seekers instead of job creators. Our young ones, who are, in constant search for opportunities to work abroad and in the urban cities sometimes end up satisfying the demand for body organs, demand for cheap labour, and demand for commercial sexual services. These multifaceted and underlying causes need to be addressed by all duty bearers to curb the high level of vulnerability among the citizens.
Therefore, given the complexity of this evil trade, no single individual, organisation, nor government can overcome the human trafficking that deprives our brothers and sisters their dignity and freedom.

We should, therefore, join hands in the struggle against this evil at all levels of our society; starting from the individual, family, local, national and the international. Remember that Jesus Christ proclaimed the liberation of captives (LK. 4:18-19).

I conclude by re-echoing Pope Francis’ lamentation, “It is a disgrace that people are treated as objects; deceived, raped, often sold many times for different purposes and, in the end, killed or, in any case, physically and mentally damaged, ending up thrown away and abandoned. But it would be a more terrible disgrace if we who hear or read about the fate of victims could only think of ourselves lucky that we have been spared from such fate, but feel no compulsion to share or mitigate the suffering of the victims or wish to curb it…”(Carol Glatz, Catholic News Service, Dec 12, 2013).

My God bless you all.

Signed:
Rt. Rev. Joseph Antony Zziwa
Chairman of Uganda Episcopal Conference and
Bishop of Kiyinda–Mityana Diocese