25 November is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. Promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment worldwide remains a priority for the Coalition Government. The Government is also committed to work on women’s rights and combating violence against women and girls overseas. The Government’s action plan on tackling violence against women and girls can be found at: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/crime/call-end-violence-women-girls/ .
The issue is one of many social issues that we discuss with the Holy See, and we welcome Pope Benedict’s recent message to African Bishops urging “all Christians to combat all acts of violence against women, speaking out and condemning them”. One particular aspect of violence against women is the global trade in human trafficking. In his address to African Bishops, Pope Benedict made clear that the Catholic Church must continue to make its voice heard and campaign against the practice. African women, and other women from poor countries, are particularly affected, with 79% of global trafficking being accounted for by sexual exploitation.
This embassy is looking for ways to engage with the Holy See on this issue, and is supporting a seminar to take place in London on 1 December, under the auspices of the Catholic Migration Forum, on human trafficking. Baroness Scotland of Asthal will chair the meeting. One of the keynote speakers is Sister Eugenia Bonetti of the Union of Major Superiors, an indefatigable campaigner to improve the treatment of women caught in the trap of traffickers at both ends of the chain, source countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and Eastern Europe, and destination countries like the United Kingdom.
I hope to be able to organise a further event in Rome to give profile top this brutal trade, and explore some of the ways forward. It is a complex issue, as the 1 December seminar will no doubt conclude. But as we reflect this 25th November on the many causes of violence against women, tackling the scourge of human trafficking should be one of our principal aims. I am sure that the British government and the Holy See, with our global networks and concerns, can find practical ways to collaborate in this area, and I would welcome ideas from readers of this blog.