The October 2013 issue is in tune with Cluny Sisters because of our presence in the Congo and because Blessed Anne Marie Javouhey founded the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Cluny and sent sisters to missions around the world to care for the sick, the orphaned and all those wounded by life; to educate the young and the old; to free the oppressed; and to proclaim God's loving plan for all people.
We hold our sisters in the Congo and the victims of trafficking in our prayers.
In this issue:
Awareness :
- Children and adults in the Congo are being forced to work in mineral mines. Girls as young as 13 are forced into "marriage", abused and forced into the mines or into brothels to service mine workers.
- Forced marriages in the Congo, which not only impacts those who become enslaved but society as a whole, fall into four classifications: marriage by rape, sale or kidnapping; or child marriage.
Advocacy :
- Health care professionals are being trained on how to recognize and treat human trafficking victims.
Action
- Shared Hope International will conduct a conference in Washington D.C. in November that highlights current trends and challenges in juvenile sex trafficking throughout the US.
- The Tahirih Justice Center's Forced Marriage Initiative is coordinating a national response to forced marriage in the US. Tahirih invites you to sign up for the National Network to Prevent Forced Marriage, as well as the quarterly Forced Marriage Newsletter which provides information on trainings, events, policy developments, and other news related to forced marriage in the US.
- At the request by Pope Francis, there will be a Vatican will have a Conference focused on human trafficking and ways to fight it.
- Slaves tell their stories in their own voices in the book To Plead Our Own Cause published by Free the Slaves' co-founder Kevin Bales and Zoe Trodd of Harvard.
- There will be a collaborative international summit in Ottawa Canada to develop a model framework a borderless International Resource and Coordination Center for the benefit of all nations.
