Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Soccer's Lost Boys

I told you Monday was a busy day. There was so much was happening that I somehow forgot to mention that the U.S. State Department had released its annual report on human trafficking. The 2010 report evaluates and ranks 175 countries based on their anti-trafficking efforts and finds that “12.3 million adults and children around the world are currently victims of forced labour, bonded labour or forced prostitution”. (Voice of America)

While the sex trade and forced labour are usually associated with human trafficking, it seems there is a lesser known side to the annual trade in persons. There are an estimated 20,000 young Africans currently stranded throughout Europe; victims of unlicensed agents and scam artists who prey on the boys' desire to ‘make it big’ as soccer players and escape the poverty of their countries.

From Der Spiegel:
More than 10 years ago, the United Nations Commission on Human Rights issued a report warning that "a modern 'slave trade' is being created with young African players." In Belgium, politician Jean-Marie Dedecker investigated 442 cases of alleged human trafficking with Nigerian players. Many of them ended up on the street, with some even falling into prostitution.

Here is a trailer from a Current TV documentary called "Soccer's Lost Boys", premiering today.



There are, of course, some who are trying to help. Jean-Claude Mbvoumin is a former player for the Cameroon national team. “Ten years ago he founded the non-governmental organisation Foot Solidaire, which assists the victims of the trade in African players.” (Der Spiegel)

I highly recommend reading Der Spiegel’s article, “A New Slave Trade?: Europe's Thirst for Young African Footballers” and watching Al-Jazeera's ‘People & Power’ episode, "Slaves to Football" (24min).



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