In the peaceful and tropical landscape of the Solomon Islands of the coast of Papua New Guinea in the Asia Pacific, child-trafficking and the commercial sexploitation of children has become a major problem around international logging camps.

Problem

1. Male workers (foreigners) in logging camps are engaging in the commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC) as young as 9 years old. Loggers are also using logging boats for the purposes of human/child trafficking of children back to Malaysia. South East Asia has the largest supply-side market for forced sex work in the world.

2. Logging companies from Malaysia are clear-cutting trees and not replanting – the product is being sent to China. At current rate of cutting, no trees will be left in the Solomon Islands in less than 5 years.

Good Deeds International is going to change this.

In cooperation with the newly formed Task Force Addressing Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children in the Solomon Islands (TACSEC) and the Christian Care Center, we are creating counter trafficking programs to address the issues of trafficking at or near logging camps.

Opportunities

In July 2007, Sisters from the Church of Melanesia and a Lawyer from Australia with funding by UNICEF, conducted extensive research related to the problems associated with logging and the CSEC and trafficking within the logging camps. Given the Sisters’ high status as spiritual leaders in a country that is 95% Christian, they were able to investigate in a way that foreigners could not have. Their final report is based on individual interviews with communities and victims of abuse.

Read the full report (opens in a new window):

Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children in the Solomon Islands: A Report focusing on the Logging Industry in a Remote Region (PDF)

Local Communities Call for Help

The affected communities in the Solomon Islands have requested support to deal with the various problems associated with logging and the camps.

Good Deeds International is rising to the challenge.

Doing Good Deeds

GDI met with the Christian Care Center (CCC) in February 2008. This included a site visit to Honiara located on Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands. GDI was invited by the only women’s shelter for domestic violence and abuse in the Solomons. Based on recommendations and community calls for support during this visit, GDI is committing to the following during the remainder of 2008:

1. Financial support of the Christian Care Centre (i.e. hire/train more staff and cover operational costs). This will allow the Sisters to focus a portion of their time on trafficking within the logging camps. The Centre operates on less than AU$14,000 / year (USD$12,000). In fact, last year the Centre ran out of food a total of 14 days.

2. Sponsor for a Women and Youth Empowerment Rally, July 3-5 2008. The rally will be located at the base of a logging camp and is expected to attract 7000 Solomon Islanders.

3. During the rally, GDI will present an anti trafficking theatre performance using newly recruited and trained GDI volunteers - Solomon Islander youth. The local volunteers will be trained by GDI student volunteers from Queensland University of Technology. Once trained, the Solomon Island volunteers will be able to take the theatre performance around the island in order to educate other communities about the dangers of trafficking.

4. With the Christian Care Center, GDI will visit one of the communities in June 2008 affected by logging to conduct an environmental scan. Driven by community needs, GDI will return to that affected community in November spending roughly 1-2 months building the capacity of locals to engage in counter trafficking and sustainable logging. This will be driven by a Peaceful Counter Trafficking Demonstration. Key components of this demonstration include: trafficking awareness, education, strengthening communities in peaceful ways, individual’s rights and sustainable logging. This campaign will serve as the impetus for the development of a long-term strategy for community development, i.e. what programs and approaches are needed and how will they be funded and by whom will they managed.

5. Through all of these events, GDI will create digital stories and a documentary about the communities and individuals affected by logging and loggers themselves. These stories will focus on what is ‘beautiful’ in the communities – the values and customs that locals embrace to generate equity, justice and peace.

6. GDI is creating a counter trafficking and sustainable development policy in consultation with an Australian law firm and logging companies themselves.