The Last Word
“Human trafficking disfigures dignity.”
Perspectives From the President by Msgr. Peter I. Vaccari
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herever I have traveled in CNEWA’s world, I have witnessed the church confront the scourge of human trafficking, from preventative programs in the Caucasus and Eastern Europe to efforts to heal and restore hope in the Middle East, Northeast Africa and southwestern India. CNEWA, as it seeks to answer the question put to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor,” has long funded the church’s outreach among those vulnerable to exploitation. These include initiatives that raise awareness of this growing social problem as well as programs offering protection and healing to survivors — all in hope that this open wound, on its victims and on society, is not the final word. This edition of ONE is dedicated to the issue of trafficking in persons and the church’s own role in the war against what Pope Francis has called a “crime against humanity.” Olivia Poust, a member of ONE’s editorial team, opens with a brief survey of the history of human trafficking and its multiple forms, explains the sociopolitical and economic factors driving trafficking and presents the work of the church to offer healing and hope. In her letter from the United Nations, Good Shepherd Sister Winifred Doherty, writes about the efforts of Catholic religious and representatives of other nongovernmental organizations in advocating for laws and programs that will contribute to the prevention and elimination of human trafficking. The war in Ukraine has ignited significant concern about an increase in human trafficking. The movement of people — internally displaced persons and refugees who have fled Ukraine to neighboring countries, especially women and children — has created a new and very vulnerable population. Claudia Ciobanu traces this tragic story and the efforts of the church in Poland to address and prevent this horrific crime. In Armenia, the problem grows as men leave to find work in Russia, some of whom are held against their will and prevented from returning. Their wives and
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