Thailand Flooding

Attention WAR family! This article is a call to urgent action to all our prayer warriors: an extraordinarily harsh monsoon season is wreaking havoc on Southeast Asia, causing severe flooding in Thailand which has proven to be the worst the country has experienced in half a century. Thai government reports this country-wide flood to be causing a similar devastation as that of the 2004 tsunami. The country has been devastated in a matter of days, but it will take years for Thailand to recover.

While rushing water fills the streets, the flood waters retreat at a far slower pace than the onset, and are expected to stay through the end of November. Over one third of Thailand is flooded; many places submerged under 10 feet of water. Over 1,000,000 people have had to evacuate their homes and over 366 have died as a result of the flooding.

Affecting over 8 million people in 60 of the country’s 77 provinces, floods have closed down hospitals and other public facilities. Dead livestock decay and spread bacteria in the waters which people must walk through or drink from every day. Canals and drainage systems overflow, adding more germs to the flooding. Yet another danger is the risk of air-borne diseases and diseases spread by mosquitoes rapidly multiplying in stagnant waters.

The economic toll to this country is increasingly astronomical. Thailand is a major regional agricultural producer, manufacturer and exporter. Flooding in rice paddies destroys the nation’s staple food supply. It also is reported that 1,000 factories have been flooded causing immediate unemployment of over 600,000 workers.

The days are deceptively beautiful and sunny, but the rain starts again every night, making it difficult for families to go to sleep, fearing what their world will look like in the morning. Will they be next among the growing numbers of homeless?

As is the case with any natural disaster, newly displaced or orphaned children will be easy targets for traffickers. Furthermore, with so many people now unemployed and stripped of their homes and possessions, the future is precarious and the numbers of women at risk of trafficking will sky-rocket. This current disaster is yet another battlefront which our partners in Thailand must now face, all the while engaging daily in spiritual battles as they continue to provide safe and healing homes for at-risk and rescued women.

Although Bangkok has not experienced the more drastic flood levels, the prime minister recently announced that flood levels were expected to reach at least half a meter. Many superstores have sold out of bottled water and ramen noodles, testifying to both the panic levels and poor government guidance. The track record of the government has been to downplay both the threat of flooding along with the actual depth of the water, thus our dear partner in Bangkok, Samaritan Creations, has decided to avoid taking any chances and will temporarily close. The women will return to their respective villages, where they will be safe, until Samaritan Creations gives the green light for them to return. Those who are unable to travel to their villages will travel with the safe house staff to Phitsanulok.

To add to all the dangers coming with the rising flood waters, a number of crocodile farms in Thailand have been flooded, which means that crocodiles have become another safety concern for those living traveling in flooded areas. Our partners in Bangkok live 19 kilometers (a little less than 12 miles) from the largest crocodile farm in the world!

We at WAR, Int’l request our WAR family to fall to your knees and lift our Thai partners and the Thai people up in your prayers to the Most High God. Pray that the drainage system in Bangkok will continue to hold fast against the worst of the flood damage. Pray that God miraculously intervenes to quiet the raging waters. Pray that aid continues to arrive every day in the form of food, clothing, medical attention and shelter. Pray that God continues to sustain and protect our partners and the women they rescue and train.

Pray for our dear partners in Bangkok, who have requested prayers for safe travels for their family, and the women and staff of Samaritan Creations. They also request prayers that the damage would be minimal and that churches would take the lead in relief and rebuilding efforts, as well as for the preservation of life. Lastly, pray that our partners efforts to flood-proof their home and business will stand against the waters.

We are so thankful to have our WAR family to unite with us in prayer for our dear partners and for the devastated people of Thailand! God is our rock and our refuge, and He alone has the power to work miracles and bring calm to the raging waters. To Him we must turn, and in Him we must hope.

P4WB: Pray for WAR Babies

Worldwide, babies are sold, some as young as two-weeks old and for as little as $25.00. WAR, Int’l is committed to fighting this evil through prayer, rescue, and prevention.

P4WB: Pray for WAR Babies


 

 

WAR Babies

At two weeks old, she was sold to human traffickers by her mother. Despite threats, the safe house was able to rescue her. Placed in a safe home, she is now valued for the precious child she is,instead of a product to be exploited. She has a name: Elliana. She has a future.

But there are others like her who have not been rescued. The Chicken Farm in Cambodia is an entire “village” where young children are offered for sale. The law turns a blind eye toward this injustice and the crime of preying on children goes unpunished.

In India, a mother wondered what to do with her 1 1/2 year old son, Mahesh. She was forced to work in prostitution, and “she did not have a safe place to leave him while she served her clients…. She tied one end of a rope to Mahesh’s ankle and the other end to the foot of the bed. On the bed above him, his mother earned money to feed him and herself” (J. Bundello, ’Rescuing Children of Sex Workers,” in P. Kilbourn and M. McDermid’s Sexually Exploited Children).

Internationally, the age of entry into prostitution is 12 years of age (Int’l Justice Mission). There is a myth that the younger the child, the less likely they will have STDs or AIDS/HIV.

In 2009, a Detroit, MI man was arrested for running a child prostitution ring—he was selling 89 children (Detroit Free Press, March 19, 2009).

There are no statistics on the unborn, though the number must be unthinkably high. Prostitutes may be forced to have violent and unsafe abortions to continue to serve their clients.

“Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these” (Mt. 19:14). Jesus loves the little children, and He has placed this burden on the heart of WAR Int’l. WAR Int’l seeks to rescue these young ones—and prayer is the first step. Our God is mightier than anything we can do, and He hears and responds to prayer. Through our prayers, He works.

US History of Sexual Exploitation of Children (News)

When it comes to sexual slavery and exploitation of children, Americans tend to view it as a problem somewhere else. Slavery doesn’t exist in the United States anymore, we tell ourselves. Certainly the selling of children here is unimaginable. And no, slavery as it existed in the early years of our country’s formation does not exist openly. But make no mistake: the buying and selling of people, especially children, for sexual acts occurs today.

Whether Americans realize it or not, this horrible threat against our children has existed here for many years. In fact, the first laws created to indirectly fight child exploitation were enacted over 100 years ago.

Between the 1880’s and 1900, most of the states changed a child’s age of consent from ten years old to sixteen. The winds of change slowly blew across the nation, as this transition marked the first action to protect the purity of young girls. Though rarely reported at that time, sexual abuse was more prevalent than people knew. Raising the age of consent showed the first sign of concern from authorities.

The first law that touched on human trafficking was the Mann Act of 1910, or the White Slave Trafficking Act. Enacted to fight forced prostitution and transportation of women from state to state, it didn’t specifically protect minors. An amendment in 1917 broadened the scope of the law to include any noncommercial immoral acts. However, it wasn’t until 60 years later in 1978 that the Mann Act was amended to protect male or female minors from sexual exploitation. The introduction of child pornography came in the late 70’s, prompting the government to take action.

With the sexual revolution and vast change in America during the 1960’s and 70’s, people felt more comfortable speaking out about child exploitation. Authorities started flexing their muscles within the family institution. Doctors were more likely to investigate physically abused children for sexual abuse and then notify law enforcement. A problem that always existed finally received some attention.

1986 saw another revision to the Mann Act. This change protected minors from “any sexual activity for which any person can be charged with a criminal offense.” Around the time when the Mann Act was amended again, child pornography was nearly extinct in America. Law enforcement agencies organized a series of successful campaigns and child pornographers became isolated, hunted people. But the rise of technology in the 90’s changed everything.

Once expensive and difficult to reproduce, child pornography could be in front of you with the click of a button. The internet allowed predators to communicate with each other and find victims easily. The law tried to keep up. The Mann Act was amended again in 1994 and currently makes it a felony to willingly transfer anyone under the age of 18 in the U.S. or in foreign countries for the purpose of prostitution or criminal sexual acts. Another law instated in 1994 was the Violent Crime Bill and Law Enforcement Act. It included a provision called the Child Sexual Abuse Prevention Act which makes it a crime to travel to a foreign country with the purpose of having sex with a minor. Prosecutors looked to both of these laws to combat child exploitation.

The year 2000 brought the first law intended to fight human trafficking. The Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act criminalized human trafficking and zeroed in on prevention, protection and prosecution. While the Mann Act needs proof of transportation across state lines, TVPA needs no such evidence of trafficking. It can be in state. In 2002 Congress passed the Sex Tourism Prohibition Improvement Act, criminalizing the actions of sex tour operators. Laws are coming along but the problem of child sexual exploitation continues to grow. With the constant threat of HIV or AIDS, victims are getting younger. The average age a child first becomes a victim to exploitation is 13 or 14. 300,000 children are at risk of exploitation in this country. This isn’t an overseas problem. It is here in America. It isn’t just in impoverished communities but flourishes in middle class communities as well. Child sexual exploitation occurs everywhere.

We must continue to fight this. The law often lags behind technology and in the area of child exploitation it’s no different. Let those in government know that this is a huge problem and that you support anti-exploitation laws.

To help, exercise your right to vote! Beyond voting, you can search pending legislation in Congress and your own state online.