The following is an excerpt from the forthcoming book Disappointed by Hope: Migrants and Refugees in Search of A Better Country
Visit www.raisetheirvoice.com for more details.

A Child Among Men:

Children in Immigration Detention Centres

“Mother!” Bao yells as the man in green uniform pulls her away. She stretches out her hand toward him and screams. The man grabs her by the waist and lifts her off the ground. Her hair falls over her eyes and all Bao can see is her mouth, screaming his name. Another man easily picks up Qui, his little sister, as she cries uncontrollably, watching the scene unfold. The man yanks her from the ground and shakes Qui roughly. “Enough!”

Before Bao can think he is on his feet, running toward the men who swooped into their small village to round up people without identification papers. Bao grabs Qui’s hand and tries to pull her away from the men. But just as quickly another uniformed man is upon him, strikes the boy across the face with his baton. Qui screams loudly, the guards push her into a truck. The look of horror on his mother’s ashen face the last thing Bao sees before everything fades to black.

* * *

Bao wakes with a start, calls out his mother’s name. It’s dark, and he’s lying on a cement floor. He has no shirt, no pants, wears only the underwear he had on when the officers raided the kampong. All around him lie men, sleeping on their sides, packed together like sardines in a tin can. Sounds of the jungle fill the night air, insects hum. Bao’s head throbs in pain. He moves to touch his forehead.

“No, don’t touch.” An old man’s voice. “Leave alone. Or else it won’t heal.” Bao runs his hand along his cheek and neck where warm, sticky blood has hardened to his skin. “How old are you?” the old man asks.

“14,” Bao says through swollen lips. “My mother. My sister!”

The old man hands Bao a cup that holds very little water. “Sip, but only a little. They give water twice a day. You need more than that to heal your head. They keep the women in separate blocks.”

Bao takes the cup, puts it to his lip. He forces himself to only sip, would swallow a whole river if he had the chance.

“Now lay down and rest,” the old man says. “You will need all your strength to last even one day in this place.”

::

Facts: The total number of detainees in Malaysia’s 13 Immigration Detention Centres from 2004 – 2008 was 235,397 persons (SUARAM Press Statement, August 2009, “Arbitrary Detention of Migrant and Refugee Children”). Of those detained 3,675 were children. 2,652 of the detainees were boys, and 1,023 of the detainees were girls. Detainees often suffer from over-crowding, poor quality of food, poor nutrition, insufficient clothing, and inadequate access to health services.

Prayer: Father, Malaysia has ratified the Convention of the Rights of the Child (CRC). Please cause the government to uphold its obligation to protect
all children, including migrant, asylum-seeking, and refugee children. Please help and comfort those children presently in Immigration Detention
Centres or separated from parents who are detained in these facilities.

Action: (In Malaysia) Visit a refugee community and get to know the children there. Ask them about their experiences living in Malaysia. Ask if there are any children in
detention who you can visit. When you visit, buy them food, toiletries, and other basic necessities at the supply stores run by guards at the IDCs. Ask the guards if you can bring clothes and toys for them next time you visit. Contact UNHCR Malaysia – www.unhcr.org.my and www.unhrc.org; (Outside Malaysia) Connect with the work of YWAM Penang to help support them in their efforts to help migrants and refugees in distress -www.ywampenang.org.

##

All stories are adapted from actual accounts, case studies and interviews with migrants and refugees. They have been
fictionalized to protect their confidentiality. For the same reason the photographs are representations.

Photograph by Jonathan Kwok.  Story by Andrew Kooman.
© 2010 YWAM Penang and Raise Their Voice.  All Rights Reserved

A common question I ask and am encountered with when I talk with others about issues of global justice is, “What do I do?”

I decided one thing I could do to answer that Q is to put together an annotated list of organizations, causes, resources, and other justice-related work that I think worthwhile and useful.  It’s a work in progress.

Please let me know what you think I should add to the list, which follows in no particular order:

International Justice Mission | ijm.org

IJM is a human rights agency that secures justice for victims of slavery, sexual exploitation and other forms of violent oppression. IJM lawyers, investigators and aftercare professionals work with local officials to ensure immediate victim rescue and aftercare, to prosecute perpetrators and to promote functioning public justice systems.  They have downloadable advocacy resources on their website, as well as helpful fact sheets about issues like slavery, sex trafficking, and illegal detention.

Books by IJM President and CEO Gary Haugen that I’ve read and found helpful in understanding more about the world of injustice and the work being done and required to secure justice for victims of slavery and sexual exploitation:

The Good News About Injustice

Terrify No More

The Life and Influence of William Wilberforce

Like many others, I’ve been deeply impacted by learning about the life and work of William Wilberforce, a British Member of Parliament who led the parliamentary campaign against the British slave trade for 26 years until the passage of the Slave Trade Act 1807.  He did not work alone, but was surrounded by people from all levels of society committed to the same cause.  Here are a few works about him that have made impact:

Amazing Grace, dir. Michael Apted

The Wilberforce Connection, Clifford Hill
The book is an important read for individuals, especially Christians, interested in social justice issues, who not only want to be connected to the heritage of effective vital faith and social activism, but want both a model of vibrant missional community and a blueprint by which to initiate strategy for effective change.  Read my book review here.

Amazing Grace, Eric Metaxas
A sobering and enlightening book upon which the film above was based.

Canadian-based Organizations Addressing Justice Issues

Raise Their Voice Against Justice Red Deer
In 2007 I helped to found this society, which exists to creatively and effectively address different issues of injustice.  Since its inception RTV has done work in print, film, for the stage, and television to affirm the value of life and the dignity of the whole person and to raise awareness about specific issues of global injustice.  Read our inspiring 20 Qs with Modern Day Abolitionists.

Alberta Coalition on Human Trafficking (ACT)
ACT Alberta is a coalition of government agencies, nongovernmental organizations, survivors of trafficking and the general public who are concerned with identifying and responding to human trafficking in our province.

Scarlet Cord
A ministry out of my church in Red Deer, Scarlet Cord assists ministries in Ethiopia, Thailand, and Romania giving care and support to women and children rescued from trafficking.

My Canada
A national organization committed to educating young Canadians on how they can shape Canada in a positive way for generations to come and practically mobilizing them to do it. My Canada focuses on legislation, justice issues, especially human trafficking.

Justice Organizations with Great Resources

ECPAT UK (End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and the Trafficking of Children for Sexual Purposes).

A leading children’s rights organisation, ECPAT UK campaigns against the commercial sexual exploitation of children in the UK and on its international aspects. It focuses on the protection of trafficked children and children exploited in tourism and the prevention of such crimes.

Chab Dai
Founded in Cambodia in 2005, Chab Dai aims to bring an end to trafficking and sexual exploitation through coalition building, community prevention, advocacy and research. With offices in Cambodia, the USA and Canada, Chab Dai provides useful research and resources you can download online.

The Heritage Foundation | Seeking Social Justice
Problems like poverty, addiction, and homelessness are serious and complex. Passion alone won’t solve them. Seek Social Justice is a six-lesson DVD small group study guide that provides a framework for understanding and engaging human need. Combining real-world examples of effective action with the wisdom of Christian leaders like Chuck Colson, Al Mohler, and Marvin Olasky, it will challenge your ideas about social justice and how to transform lives in need.

Dalit Freedom Network
The Dalit Freedom Network partners with the Dalits in their quest for religious freedom, social justice, and human dignity by mobilizing human, intellectual, and financial resources.

US State Department Trafficking In Persons Annual Report | Read the Report

A thorough and informative document, the TiP report places nations on one of three tiers to rate how well countries are battling trafficking.  The document includes victim stories, country narratives, law enforcement data, maps, and much more.

Aftercare programs for Trafficked Children

Love 146 combats child sex slavery & exploitation and restores survivors with excellence.

Hagar is an international Christian organisation committed to the recovery, empowerment and reintegration of women and children in Afghanistan, Cambodia and Vietnam.

Somaly Mam Foundation
Sold into slavery at the age of 12, Somaly Mam later escaped and made it her mission to rescue, rehabilitate, and reintegrate victims. Her organization has transformed the lives of thousands of victims of the illegal trade since its inception in 1996. Somaly is now regarded as one of the most prolific activists fighting sexual slavery.

photogenX | photogenx.net

I’ve had the privilege to work with Paul and Susi Childers, founders of photogenX, a justice ministry out of Kona, Hawaii.  photogenX trains and disciples believers and equips them to document injustice. The work is expanding to include books, publications, DVDs, and documentaries that highlight global issues of gender-based injustice with an emphasis on trafficking.  I’ve had the opportunity to teach in their schools (on creative writing), and contribute to a few of their publications, some of which can be purchased through my store.

30 Days of Prayer for the Voiceless
A look at 30 issues of global gender-based injustice.

Sex and Money: A Global Search for Human Worth
A photographic coffee table book that highlights the world of human trafficking and the people vulnerable worldwide to the horrific trade in human lives.

Hakani, dir. David Cunningham
A film about infanticide among tribes in the Amazon Rainforest – a project that has influenced law and lawmakers in Brazil.

The Plight of Refugees

In 2009, I was invited by YWAM Penang to collaborate on a project highlighting the plight of migrant workers and refugees in Malaysia.  The book that resulted from my time there Disappointed by Hope: Migrants and Refugees in Search of a Better Country (forthcoming 2010) sheds light on the realities of exploitation refugees face, a story repeated in different forms all over the world.  Here are links to organizations I connected with during my time, doing important work in different parts of the globe.

United Nations High Comission for Refugees
The agency is mandated to lead and co-ordinate international action to protect refugees and resolve refugee problems worldwide. Its primary purpose is to safeguard the rights and well-being of refugees. It strives to ensure that everyone can exercise the right to seek asylum and find safe refuge in another State, with the option to return home voluntarily, integrate locally or to resettle in a third country.

Suaram, Malaysia
Working for Human Rights in Malaysia, Suaram is doing important activist work to lobby the Malaysian government to change its policies on the treatment of refugees and migrants from South East Asia to Malaysia.

YWAM Penang
Migrant workers are abused and lied to by employers, thrown into a foreign culture while working long hours for low wages, and looked down upon by local Malaysians. YWAM Penang Migrant Workers Ministry seeks to be a hand of compassion and justice.

Products Whose Proceeds Go Directly to Support Justice Work

The Body Shop – Soft Hands Kind Heart Skin Lotion ($6 goes toward ECPAT)

Read their report on Trafficking

Toms Shoes – for every pair purchased, one pair of shoes is given to a child in need.

Justice Advocates on Twitter

The following people are worth following on Twitter to get up-to-the-moment updates about their work to combat injustice around the world.  Please add me too!  @akooman

Aaron Cohen | @AaronCohen777

International Justice Mission Headquarters | @IJMHQ

Rob Morris, President of Love146 | @ROBLOVE146

Charity Water | @charitywater

The A 21 Campaign (Australia) | @TheA21Campaign