BY MINDI RAHN

GIRL FALLS IN LOVE WITH a boy. She is Pakistani, only 16 years old. He, a bit older, is originally from India. One day the boy asks the girl to accompany him to his native land. She happily consents, leaving her family and friends behind, desiring only to be with her beloved. After their long journey is complete, the boy takes the girl to a large house, hands her over to complete strangers, and promises to return soon. He never does. Shocked, betrayed, heartbroken--the girl realizes that she has been sold to a brothel and must perform sexual services to pay off her debt. She staunchly refuses to participate in such acts and is beaten and tortured until she ultimately complies. A few months later, the girl is taken to a doctor for a health exam. She tests HIV positive.

The tragic case of the Pakistani girl is not an isolated incident. Prostitution, trafficking, violence--these are the daily realities for many women all over the world. From the streets of India to the highways of the United States, women and girls are bought, sold, taken far away from their native lands, and forced to perform sexual services for complete strangers. Their human dignity and right to a safe and happy life, free from sexually transmitted diseases, physical abuse, and unwanted pregnancy, is stripped away. Instead these women are forced to become sexual slaves, caught in a system that perpetuates injustice and reinforces the perception that women are second-class citizens.

During March 2003 I had the opportunity to attend the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women. Delegates and nongovernmental organizations from all over the world have joined together to discuss the status of women and how to combat such endemic problems as prostitution, trafficking, and physical abuse. The commission has specifically targeted the Netherlands and Sweden as topics of discussion.

The Battle Is On
In the Netherlands prostitution is legal, much to the intense dismay of many women around the world. In recent years the country has become a popular destination for sex tourists who frequent the 2,000 available brothels and escort services. Studies indicate that approximately 30,000 women are employed in the Netherlands to meet the growing sex tourist population. Of these 30,000 women, up to 70 percent have been imported to the Nether-lands from countries outside of the European Union, and 40 percent are illegal immigrants. Because prostitution is legal, sex outside of marriage has been commercialized and condoned, and a clear tie between the trafficking of persons and prostitution has been forged.

In a contrasting scenario, owing to intense lobbying of nongovernmental organizations around the European Union, prostitution has been banned in Sweden. In 1999 the Swedish government passed the sex tourist law, which states that anyone who is found to be involved in trafficking or prostitution of persons will be arrested and dealt with accordingly. The ban in Sweden has been a huge victory for the battle against prostitution, a battle that is steadily picking up steam. While the statistics concerning prostitution have been rising steadily in countries around the world, the statistics in Sweden have remained constant. Because of the ban prostitution has been deemed unacceptable, a tool of degradation against women. Clearly, the Swedish people are working to preserve the dignity of women.

What Can We Do?
In comparing the Netherlands and Sweden, what can we, as the Adventist Church, learn from the two scenarios? How can we work toward the elimination of trafficking and prostitution around the world? One means is to instill in girls at a young age that they are valuable creations, worthy of love, respect, and, if needed, forgiveness. A second means is to contact governments and nongovernmental organizations around the world and urge our fellow human beings that prostitution and trafficking are violations of human rights and God's laws for humankind.

The situation of the Pakistani girl is deeply saddening and intolerable. The legalization of prostitution in the Netherlands is a blow to human dignity. We, as the Adventist Church, need to work toward the elimination of such scenarios and spread God's love to those who are especially in need.

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Mindi Rahn writes from Walland, Tennessee.