10 Boys Rescued from Slavery on Ghana's Lake Volta

ACCRA, Ghana, March 27, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- 10 boys are now free from a brutal life as slaves on fishing boats in Ghana's Lake Volta region.  On Friday, March 20, International Justice Mission (IJM) embarked on its first joint rescue operation with Ghanaian authorities on Lake Volta. IJM worked side-by-side with Ghanaian police and social services for two days to secure these historic rescues in IJM's new partnership with the Ghanaian government.

"This rescue operation represents months of planning and collaboration between Ghana's anti-trafficking unit, local police, EMT officials and government social workers. We can stop child trafficking in Ghana's fishing industry if we work together to rescue the children and hold the traffickers to account under the law. When the laws are enforced, the violence stops," said Kaign Christy, Field Office Director for IJM Ghana. 

In 2013 IJM conducted an investigative evaluation of the scale of child slavery on Lake Volta, the world's largest man-made reservoir measuring 600 miles wide at its widest point. There they encountered hundreds of young boys working long days on the water, suffering at the hands of their masters and from the sheer back-breaking nature of the work, improperly cared for, and not attending school. During the investigative evaluation, IJM investigators met Gideon; a teenager trafficked into slavery as an older child who suffered repeated beatings and abuse.  The inaugural operation, "Operation Gideon," was named for him.

The 10 children--as young as 5 years old-- received immediate medical attention, food and water after the operation and are currently being cared for in a safe location. They will eventually be transferred to long-term aftercare shelters or reunited with their families. 

Lake Volta covers 3,283 square miles and is lined by numerous fishing villages. Ghana's thriving fishing industry is primarily powered by as many as 50,000 children, a significant proportion of which have been sold and trafficked for slave labor.

Transforming the justice system in Ghana

In early 2013, Congress passed the Child Protection Compact Act, allowing the U.S. to partner with other countries that had expressed the will to combat child slavery within their own borders but lacked the means. This February, Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights Sarah Sewall announced to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that the U.S. has chosen Ghana as its first Child Protection Compact Partner. The two countries will engage deeply in a strategic partnership focused on eradicating child slavery in Ghana.

IJM's model for Justice System Transformation works to increase will and capacity of host countries to deliver a strong law enforcement response to restrain and deter violence against the poor.  Learn more about our model here.

For the full story on Operation Gideon, visit the IJM Newsroom.  View a behind-the-scenes interview on the operation with IJM's Kaign Christy here.

International Justice Mission is a global organization that protects the poor from violence throughout the developing world. IJM partners with local authorities to rescue victims of violence, bring criminals to justice, restore survivors, and strengthen justice systems.

Contact: Julie Eckert
[email protected] 
443-878-5996 (m)

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150327/195027

SOURCE International Justice Mission

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