Prayer vigil held for trafficked persons

By Judy Albiani

WINNIPEG — On March 26 the Winnipeg Diocesan Catholic Women’s League held a prayer vigil in the form of the Way of the Cross at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church in Charleswood.

The program was written by Sister Johanna Jonker of Micah House, Winnipeg’s centre for social justice. The reflections between the stations were on the story of a young woman named Liliana, who had been exploited and abused.

Msgr. Maurice Comeault led the praying of the stations, which were linked to the experiences and suffering of both Jesus and the trafficked.

The story of Liliana was told by four voices: two female and two male, two younger and two older. This interplay reflected the reality of who is affected by the issue of human trafficking.

The summary at the end of the service included excerpts from the Palermo Protocols — the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, and the Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air — which were adopted by the United Nations in Palermo, Italy, in 2000.

The summary also included statistics of the sexual exploitation of young people in Winnipeg. The experience shone a light on the situation these women find themselves in.