Speeches & Articles

Remarks of
Consul General Beth A. Payne
Inauguration of the film festival “Of Inhuman Bondage”
At the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR)
Thursday, March 5, 2009

March 5, 2009

Good afternoon.  I am pleased to be here to help inaugurate this film festival that carries an important message.  I am pleased to join noted dancer and activist Geeta Chandran, well-known actor Jaya Seal Ghosh, Ruchira Gupta, Founder/President of the NGO Apne Aap Women World Wide, and Dr. Reba Soma, Director of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations, as we inaugurate the film festival “Of Inhuman Bondage.” 

The package of films focuses on Trafficking in Persons or “modern day slavery” as some refer to this human rights abuse.
 
Human trafficking is a dehumanizing crime which turns people into mere commodities.  According to estimates, approximately 800,000 people are trafficked across international borders annually; 80 percent of these victims are women, and up to 50 percent are minors.  Hundreds of thousands of these women and children are trafficked into prostitution or slave labor each year.
 
The U.S. Government is committed to ending all forms of human trafficking.  To help galvanize international support to end trafficking we release an annual report that details the efforts that countries are taking throughout the world to end this crime.  The U.S. Government has also enacted several laws and policies against trafficking.  Our most recent law increased funding for the U.S. Department of State’s Global Trafficking in Persons office and established several important policy reforms.
 
Our Consulate here in Kolkata has conducted programs that help educate people about trafficking and encourages discussions on the best solutions to this problem.  We have provided grants, held film shows, workshops, and led discussions not just in Kolkata, but throughout the northeast and eastern India.
 
March 8 is Women’s Day.  With this in mind, the Film Festival aims to focus particular attention on the overwhelming majority of women and girls who are victims of this affront to freedom and dignity.  The effort to fight trafficking needs support at all levels of society.  We hope that each one of you, in whatever form or way possible, will dedicate your time and effort to rid the world of this dreadful menace.

Thank you!