Colleges, corporates and human rights organisations from Ri-Bhoi and 100 other locations in India will collaborate to host the awareness Walk for Freedom at public spaces on Saturday.
The Walk for Freedom is the world’s largest event to raise awareness against human trafficking, happening simultaneously in 500 locations across 50 countries. It is a silent walk in solidarity with unheard victims of human trafficking. Participants at the walk are first made aware of the signs to spot human trafficking as well as given the national helpline numbers (1098, 181) and local police and NGO contacts to report suspicious activity. Participants then take a pledge to help end human trafficking in their lifetime and walk single file in a public place holding up statistics about the reality of human trafficking, which raises awareness among the watching public.
Nearly 50 million people are caught in various forms of modern-day slavery globally, including exploitation for sex, labour, organs, baby selling, forced marriages and domestic servitude, reports the International Labour Organisation. This means that one in every 150 people globally are enslaved. In India, eight children were trafficked every day in 2021 according to the National Crime Records Bureau.
In Meghalaya, as many as 603 incidents of crimes against women and 416 cases of crimes against minors were recorded in 2022. These include instances of human trafficking, rape, assaults, kidnappings and murders of women and children.
It is in this context that the Walk for Freedom is being hosted for the third time in Meghalaya, led by the NGO Faith Foundation
