‘Free The Slaves’ trains media, partner NGOs in human trafficking
Free the Slaves (FTS) is an international NGO that helps communities to chart their own paths toward sustainable freedom based on their unique needs and circumstances.
Joana Somiah 
An international organization, Free the Slaves (FTS), has organized a two-day training workshop for some media organizations and NGOs in Ghana on the dangers of human trafficking, laws governing the canker and what can be done for its eradication.
Taking the media through what human trafficking stands for and the global statistics of the menace, Senior Country Programs Manager of FTS, Bismark Quartey, stated that the canker “goes beyond the mere fact that it happens across borders, that is perpetrators transporting persons from one country to other countries”.
According to him, human trafficking can also happen internally, within a country and even within households “for the fact that a child or an adult is given out to a third party in exchange to undertake hard labour, in exchange for his or her human right in exchange for money whilst he or she is subjected to threats and abuses."
"It does not matter whether the victim is transported from one household to the other, one country to another or region to another, it is human trafficking”, he stressed.
He urged the media to make it a priority and advocate for an end to the practice, which he said is causing more harm than good, hence the need for all hands to be on deck in fighting the canker. The CEO reiterated the readiness of his organization to help media personalities, NGOs and other bodies ready to champion a fight against the menace.
West Africa Regional Director of FTS, Joha Braimah, took the participants through how they can develop human trafficking contents, what to consider and what should be avoided. He urged the media to be factual in their content development and also to consider the mental wellbeing of victims of human trafficking when interviewing them.
On his part, a legal team member of the organization and a high court judge, H. H Malcom, took the media through laws governing the reportage on trafficking cases. He urged the media to ensure they have all the necessary evidence and cross-check them before proceeding to court.
He also urged the media and NGOs in human trafficking to make contacts with high ranked police officers to avoid being frustrated by low ranked officials in their line of duty. “The laws are very dicey so you need to embrace yourself with them and their interpretations to avoid embarrassment and disappointment at the court”, he advised.
Expressing their gratitude, the participants commended FTS for the training, indicating it had enabled them to learn new things concerning human trafficking that would help them in their duty.
Nana Ama Asiedu, Bono Region
