Hello Mister Ellerman,
Today was the first time I'd heard of ASHOKA and the Polaris Project. All though I haven't read very far into your programs, I feel compelled to comment on your "Human Tracking: A Framework" article.
First of all, let me assure you that I believe in your efforts. I believe you and your organization represent one of the few international efforts toward this problem. But, I do believe you are wrong when you imply that the existance of poverty, the poor, inequality and exploitation, etc... are not responsible for this, at all. Your analogy, I believe explains why.
You say:
"Some people have asserted that the root cause of trafficking is poverty and inequality (because these conditions create a population that is vulnerable to crime).... An analogous argument would be to blame poppies for the heroin trade, as opposed to! those who create the demand for heroin and the drug traffickers who manufacture and distribute heroin to profit from meeting that demand."
Well, here we have to remember, the poppies exist, but heroin has to be created, just as the drug addict, the dealer, and the government that supports drug trafficing, just as poverty, inequality, and the government that supports human trafficing. Human traffic is the result of many overlapping problems that are much greater than the regions they sometimes occur in!
There are so people, meaning to do well, in many organization. We needed to combine our efforts, see the BIG PICTURE, and change the world. Please see my site at www.kushand.org.
It would appreciate it if you would consider what I have written.
Thank you, for your cencerity.
Robert Collins
aka. Kushand Fanti
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