Trafficked Our World

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In the heart of Mexico since the town where, for a generation so,

coupes have grown rich from sex trafficking. To me, when I hear the

name of that town, I think of naive young women. Women are a commodity

to be consumed and thrown away. Thousands of Mexican women are

deceived by the traffickers and forced into prostitution in New

York, a life so degrading that some, like an the seer, risk everything

to run away. I had a man who told me that with drugs, you can sell

the drugs and they will be gone. With a woman, you can sell her

again and again and again. We have come to Mexico to see how Alyssia

was trafficked from here it to New This state in central Mexico is

supposed to be one of the safest in the country. Largely untouched by

the vicious drug wars. Yet this ancient land of the Aztecs is, we

discovered, the epicentre of the sex trafficking trade. This man

works for a charity that helps victims of sex trafficking. He is a

young man who dares to stand up to the traffickers. He shows us a

He estimates there are 1,000 traffickers in the town of only

10,000 people. Entire families are steeped in the seduction and

We went to see the town for ourselves. The town thriving on sex

trafficking. Traffickers live in mansions like this, which locals

say were built on the profits of prostitution. The only reason you

can build them is because you have forced someone to prostitute

herself 30 or 40 times per night. In New York, where many women end

up, the US Department of Homeland Security tries to help. When I hear

it the name of that town, I think of young women who are naive and

have not been educated. They are invalid into these romantic

relationships by sex traffickers, who are very manipulative, have

been doing this for years and know how to emotionally take control of

a woman. It is a story many are familiar with. Lawrie is a New York

lawyer who has represented a militia and other victims of the

gangs. Typically, they are very traditional and naive. They come

from families where sex is not discussed. Prostitution is unknown.

The women are completely unsuspecting. They think they are

meeting the families of their betrothed and then they are held

hostage and cannot go home. They are forced out of -- they are

forced into prostitution. Some are raped the first night and there is

such a sense of shame that they do not go back to their family.

Alyssia's case, which is typical, she was held hostage. She went

through a process of seasoning. That is when traffickers repeatedly

viciously sexually assault a woman to greet her down. And they

threaten her and her family with murder. As we approach the town, it

felt like we were being followed. By the time we arrived, it was

menacingly quiet, like a ghost town. We have just left the town. It did

not feel safe to film their openly. We have been told that in a town of

10,000 people, virtually everyone is either involved in the trade war

Why can't these traffickers arrested? Because of local

corruption, we were told. In Mexico City, the federal authorities want

to combat sex trafficking but there are many obstacles. Why is it so

difficult to prosecute the Sex trafficking is a crime that is

largely hidden from view in Mexico. The reluctance of victims to

testify against their abuses helps to keep it under wraps. The biggest

challenge in the prosecution of human trafficking is how to

convince the victim to provide solid and reliable testimony for

the court. Victims of human trafficking are very special

because they have suffered a lot and for them, to face a police line

will prosecutor would judge, this is a form of lease victimisation.

This is why we are trying to help the government to develop those

Despite all she has endured, Maria is one of the few women who will

testify against her former trafficker. This teenager who

dreams of becoming a professional footballer left her baby boy behind

in Central America and travelled to Mexico. She was recruited by women

Through a translator, Maria told me that when she got to the restaurant

in Mexico, she was taken down to the parking lot where men gathered

to by prostitutes. She was told to have sex with them to pay back her

Maria was forced into prostitution, sold from one owner to another,

beaten when she tried to escape. Then she found refuge in a women's

shelter in Mexico City. The scale of the problem is rooted deep in

Mexican society. What can the Mexican government do to stop

Persuading women to have faith in officials is difficult. Will

reassess she was sexually abused by one of the immigration officers who

rescued her -- Maria says. The Mexican government is trying to

tackle corruption. The UN helps to train prosecutors. Corruption plays

a key role in the prosecution and the lack of prosecutions in human

trafficking not just in Mexico but worldwide. This is going to take a

long time to clean up the entire system and take those officials to

account. And to find officials who do not want to be linked to an

organised crime Group. Maria is safe for now and is prepared to

take a stand against her abusers There is more trafficking going on

today than what people are aware of. We have seen a number of

investigations rise sharply, doubling in more than three years.

Also the number of people taken into custody and charged with

trafficking violations. That has doubled in almost three years.

York is the destination for thousands of Mexican women

trafficked by the criminals of that town. They are promised a better

life. Instead of the glittering existence they dream of, they are

sold into prostitution. I had a gent who told me that with drugs,

he can sell the drugs and the drugs will be gone. With a woman, he can

sell her again and again and again. There is something very sick and

yet incredibly profitable about that. The women are often smuggled

across the border. Other women come across by plane, using documents

forged by their traffickers. Once they arrive, they are exploited

using these kinds. I went to Queen's to learn more. How much of

a problem is prostitution and human trafficking here? It is a terrible

problem. It has been a problem for the last 20 years. Times Square has

been cleaned up. Every illegal activity that used to be in Times

Square has come here. This man is a state senator for Queens. He has

had enough of sex trafficking. Three women are advertised through

these small cards. And they depict naked women or pictures of flowers

or fruit, that say free delivery. Free delivery of women? Free

delivery of women. Interestingly enough, the hours are from 11

o'clock at night until three o'clock in the morning. A strange

time to be delivering flowers or fruit. Yes. That is the way it

works. You will have someone, usually a man, standing on the

corner and as you approach them, they will say the magic words - she

could she go. And that means girls girls. Johnny's then call the

number on the card. They connect with a driver. The woman is picked

up by the Driver and driven around from location to location over the

course of typically the 10 Allah shift. -- 10 per hour shift. Do the

women go to private homes? For the most part. When you call the number,

they ask for an address to deliver the woman to. What we have

uncovered over the last few years is that they have Mobil trucks with

mattresses in. You can get in, they will shut the door, the truck will

drive around for a while. They will wait until you are done and they

will let you off on a different street corner. And that's it.

will be required to service a Johnny and be done and on to the

next appointment within a 15-minute I have had clients who had to work

a double shift. They explained to me that chauffeur's will often

arrange for house parties where women will be taken to a location

and the gain raked over the next course by men. -- gang raked. And

the men were get money for each act of rape. Ali Shah says she was

delivered like this to 5,000 men in 18 months before she finally

escaped, running into a corner shop, If they are young and starting out,

they are terrified. They have been forced to do it. If they have been

doing it for 3-4 years, they look up and in numb. They become used to

it. They feel they do not have any options. They treat their victims

like commodities, like commerce, as opposed to humans. In New York,

efforts are being made to prosecute Mexican sex traffickers but it is

formidable. If is easy to go after anything. How easy is it to

infiltrate the organisation and bring them to justice and charge

the traffickers? That will be more difficult because you are dealing

with extraditions, witnesses who are reluctant to co-operate, and,

frankly, they have not in the best position to co-operate due to

trauma. As the hunt for sex traffickers continues, one

controversial programme in the Auckland Games have to confront

those who feel this trade. The men who pay for them - called Johns.

This is a one-shot deal. This does grip -- diverse group of men share

one characteristic - they have been arrested for trying to buy sex.

They are attending a class on the dangers of prostitution. Women are

often the victims of sex trafficking. The age of entry is

usually 11-14 years old. You smack are having their -- young women are

having their youth taken away from them. They might even be able to

help the victims. Some of John's saved the prostitute when she told

him she was being traffic. He brought her to the police. He did

not go into the station but dropped her off safely. What a male may

notice... Capital is left to the imagination during a presentation

on sexual diseases. Here is a plain-speaking former prostitute.At

helping! Rosetta is withering, telling they men they cannot ignore

the consequences of using a prostitute. We are going out there

and picking up some broken female and she's using drugs or giving it

to a kid who is fighting for territory. And you want to act like

you are not part of the downfall of the community by your behaviour.

Because it is only a (BLEEP) job. Some of man are solemn. Others say

this will change their ways. Will this make you think twice before

you patron as a prostitute again? Doing it in the first place was not

my intention. This was something I do not think twice born. Because I

had this experience, it will be something I will never if forget.

It was an eye-opener. I do not think it was a big thing in the

country. Now that I know, the only thing I can do is spread the word

to prevent anyone else from getting into trouble. It is a classroom

unlike any other. Consumers of sex then that their behaviour is

hurting women. After the men have gone through all about, how

effective is the Johns School? Only 1% of the men are re arrested for

patronising prostitutes. Critics question whether one class can

change the attitudes of men who pay for sex. Buyers need to look at

their own behaviour. Without demand, this need to consume an expose

women as if they are take-out food available for delivery, we've will

not be able to solve the epidemic of trafficking. And at a make which

has made the paeans rich. It is a quarter where boys are aspired to

the traffickers and girls believe it is glamorous to be prostitutes.