The heads of the task force Ronny Alony Sdovnik and lawyer Yadida Wolf applaud
in the beginning of the letter the passing of the bill that forbids human
trafficking, that was passed on Wednesday in the Justice Committee, and they
call for a prompt second and third reading. Following that, they express their
concerns regarding the arrival of the soldiers to Israel's northern border.
"We wish to caution you and to ask that you get involved in order to prevent
the north from becoming an area plagued by woman trafficking in light of the
arrival of the 15,000-strong multinational force to our territory," states the
letter.
"The arrival of this mass of solitary men will lead to their need for short
vacations and breaks from their service in south Lebanon.
They will prefer to spend their free time in the northern areas of recreation
and will increase tenfold the demand for prostitutes. Past experiences prove
that when aircraft carriers arrive to the shores of Haifa, for example, and
thousands of foreign soldiers go to the city, it triggers the increase in the
exploitation of women, violence and it amplifies the trafficking of women."
The heads of the task force point out in the letter that Olmert should include
the struggle against this potential phenomenon in the list of issues dealt with
in the cabinet for the rehabilitation of the north, which he leads.
"Areas such as Naharia, Haifa and Kiriyat Shmona, as all other villages in the
border with Lebanon are at the center of the cabinet you coordinate, as well as
anything related to their restoration following the war. We're calling on you
to bring up this subject as an integral part of the struggle to keep their
cities from becoming hubs of trafficking of women, crime and any other related
social disaster."
