The story of ‘Mercy’ goes like fiction. At 17 years, Mercy (the short form) found herself struggling to continue with her education dream. This, even after she scored an enviable 316 points at Kenya Certificate Primary Education (KCPE) which earned her admission to Moi Girls Nairobi school, a prestigious national girls’ school.

Being an orphan, she relied on her older siblings to pursue her education. She found herself living with her older sister married to a gospel preacher. In the run up to KCPE, the older sister’s husband convinced Mercy to register in the name of the man (as her father) and the sister as her mother. Thus, Mercy’s birth certificate bares the brother in law’s name as her father.

When Mercy approached her sister about support to join Form One (F/1) at the Moi Girls’ school, she was told that this was not possible due to financial constraints. The sister proposed that Mercy joins a cheap day school which she accepted.  However, the sister’s husband turned against Mercy and asked her to leave the family since she was a burden to them. This was the beginning of Mercy’s deep tribulations. “I had to shift and go to live with another sister of mine who could hardly support herself for basic needs yet, this was the only option available to me and my life. As soon as I moved in with my second sister, I realized that she was pregnant and due for delivery in a few months’ time”, Mercy quipped with wetting eyes.

This was at the beginning of 2024 and she had joined F/2. During the 2^nd term opening, Mercy was given KES 2000/- Stg2.00 (two sterling) to pay part of the KShs 5000/- termly fees. After one month, she was sent away after the mid-term break due the fees balance. Days turned to weeks and weeks into months.  Still a minor, Mercy had to make the painful decision of giving up her education to go out and look for work in the hope that she could support her expectant sister and save some for her education in the future. One morning, as she was walking from door to door asking for placement in domestic work, she bumped into a friend who advised her to visit Our Lady Queen of Peace Catholic Church, and look for Sr Mary O’Malley, a renowned giver.

Even though Mercy did not find Sr Mary when she finally arrived at the church, she met a colleague who ushered her in and listened to her with compassion. She produced a set of documents which included KCPE certificate and her last school’s report form. According to the record, Mercy had scored very high grades giving her an average mean grade of B+. A call was made to the school’s Principal and a deal was struck to get Mercy back to school with immediate effect with a commitment to settle the fees’ balance in the shortest time possible.

“I am unable to believe this”, Mercy quipped. “How have you taken up my case so fast and did everything to ensure that I get back to school? I promise you, I will work hard and ensure that I achieve the dreams of both myself and that of my deceased parents”  she continued. “I will never shame you. I will preserve myself against any temptations for relationships by boys and men until I achieve my desired future”, she concluded.

Mercy’s case is a pure context for potential child trafficking, exploitation or abuse. At her tender age, she could have fallen into the wrong hands in pursuit of her dream. Even though it might look simple, hers is a classical case of a vulnerable minor lacking proper care and protection by the same society which claims to value it’s children as a future generation. The society needs deeper and sincere engagement with issues of human/child trafficking and more so the protection of vulnerable populations such as girls  & boys, the elderly and disabled. 

Education is the surest way out of poverty – vast numbers are trafficked due to lack of school fees.  It is extremely painful to see great potential wasted and forced to eake out a bleak/dreary existence in filthiest sub-human slums.  Then they try to raise their generation in the same conditions and poverty is never truly eliminated.  Without your assistance the likes of ‘Mercy’ could never achieve her dreams, my hope is to get her into a good boarding school. Sasumua is the name of one where I have placed three other ‘genius’ girls – Judith (A’s x10, B x1 with 100% in five subjects)  Nicole* Lisa and hopefully now, it will be the turn of Mercy also.  I know for a fact that even if I fund her in the day school she will not attain the vast potential she is capable of achieving.

Thank you again for the vast support you give to the most vulnerable of young people, they have yet a long way to go but remain there – they will make us all proud.

Best Regards

Mary O’ Malley, MMM

* I was present at the exorcism of her mother, she was a returned Survivor of Human Trafficking.  It was an awesome experience for me and I thank God for giving me such a privileged occasion to be part of.

A recent investigation by Newsweek reveals the alarming use of social media and cryptocurrency in the organ trafficking trade. Modern technology is being misused on platforms like Telegram, where human organs are sold in exchange for cryptocurrency.

Demand and desperation

The demand for organs is fueled by a global shortage, with about 90,000 people waiting for kidney transplants in the U.S. alone. This scarcity drives desperate individuals to sell their organs to escape poverty, or they are tricked into giving them up.

“[Organ harvesting is] primarily an activity of people preying on the desperate – migrants, refugees from war zones. They have no sort of financial wherewithal at all. The most valuable thing they may possess is their organs. Some people get so desperate, they’re willing to sell them.” – Tom Cardamone, President and CEO of Global Financial Integrity (GFI)

The World Health Organization estimates that 10,000 kidneys are traded on the black market annually. Newsweek’s investigation uncovered how traffickers exploit vulnerable people, offering organs from unwilling donors and victims of coercion. Advertisements for organs, like lungs for $10,800 and bone marrow for $1,500, are posted on social media, facilitating transactions through cryptocurrency.

Organ trafficking and cryptocurrency

Organ trafficking operations exploit the anonymity provided by cryptocurrencies and the reach of social media, making it challenging for law enforcement to crack down on these networks.

“Social media is the primary way that criminals offer illicit services. Yes, the Dark Web is used to sell organs, but social media is used to both seek out illicit organs that are being sold and to find buyers.” – Jarrod Sadulski, School of Security and Global Studies at American Military University

The use of coded language and emojis in communication among traffickers further complicates detection and intervention efforts. With an estimated $840 million to $1.7 billion generated annually by the global illegal organ trade, according to Global Financial Integrity, the problem is pervasive yet difficult to address due to limited resources.

“I think proving organ trafficking is really tough as most of the time the victims are not willing to cooperate, and to tackle this problem we need to make organ trafficking illegal – which is much easier to investigate.” – Silvia Tabusca, Human Security Program at the European Center for Legal Education and Research

During the validation of the Network Against Human Trafficking and Smuggling of Migrants (NAHUSOM) on 16^th August 2024 at the CHTEA offices, a new heroine was celebrated in the most special of way.

Edith Murogo, the Executive Director and Founder of the Center for Domestic Training and Development was recently honored with the prestigious 2024 Trafficking in Persons Report Hero Award by the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C, on June 24,2024. This was in recognition of her relentless effort to curb human trafficking and irregular migration, among other services in support of victims and survivors.

Edith’s story started way back in 2001 when she first set up a training unit for domestic workers in Kenya at her own residence in Nairobi. She later moved to a rented unit where the demand turn a twist as she got higher recognition to train domestic workers for foreign placement and her center got accreditation from the Government. The rest is history.

The US recognition was a testament to Edith’s unwavering dedication and the tremendous impact of her collective effort at CDTD. It was also a significant milestone not only for her organization but also for NAHUSOM where she has been nominated to be the “Goodwill Ambassador” at large.  In this new role, Edith edifies the broader fight against human trafficking and the smuggling of migrants. In a show of hands and demonstration of solidarity, all NAHUSOM members present during the meeting affirmed Edith’s new status.

WE, AT CHTEA CELEBRATES EDITH MUROGO AND WISHES HER ALL THE BEST IN HER ENDEVOUR TO CHAMPION THE CAUSE OF COUNTER HUMAN TRAFFICKING AND SMUGGLING OF MIGRANTS.

Above: Edith Murogo receives her award from the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at Washington DC

In her NAHUSOM acceptance speech, Edith reiterated that, “I am deeply grateful for your support, which has been instrumental in helping me advance my mission to create a just and peaceful world where every individual enjoys their rights and dignity”.  She continued, “This award would not have been possible without the collaboration and partnership of allies like you”.

Above clip: The moment of glory and address to the world

“As I continue this vital work, I look forward to your continued support. Together, we can end human trafficking and all forms of modern slavery”, she concluded.

Migration from anywhere involves a certain amount of risk, and migration routes across Africa are some of the most dangerous. In pursuit of safety, security, and a better life, African migrants travel across oceans and deserts to reach various parts of Europe, Middle East and the Far East Asian countries. Migration routes are not only about movement out of Africa but also within the continent. One such a route is the Southern, where migrants move from the East and Horn of Africa toward the south, with the ultimate goal of reaching South Africa and other a few other Southern Africa countries. Due to the vulnerable movement context, many migrants run out of money before they reach their intended destination. This scenario triggers a vicious cycle that sometimes ends in human trafficking. Nasty experiences such as abductions and forced labor, or, for girls and women, forced prostitution and forced marriage, the risk of becoming trapped in modern slavery looms large over each journey as unscrupulous smugglers and criminals turn a lucrative profit.

Kenya MRP Partners Coordination Meeting

In 2024, the MRP formally included two countries of the Southern Route7, Kenya and Tanzania. To practically advance this inclusion and identify concrete next steps in implementing the Southern Route components of the MRP 2024, the MRP Coordination Unit convened an in-person meeting for MRP partners from Kenya and Tanzania on 26 March 2024 in Nairobi. Nineteen MRP partner representatives from the Counter-Trafficking in Persons Secretariat for Kenya, Counter Human Trafficking Trust East Africa (CHTEA), Candle of Hope, International Organization for Migration (IOM), Salvation Army, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and World Vision Kenya attended the meeting. The outcomes of the meeting included an improved overall understanding of the MRP structure and operational modalities, mapping of country-level coordination mechanisms, a working understanding of MRP reporting and data systems, and an overview of the MRP communications and visibility strategy. The discussion culminated in the drafting of the MRP Action Plan for the partners to operationalize the agreed coordination and programming activities that will contribute to the successful implementation of the MRP 2024

The Regional Migrant Response Plan (MRP) for the Horn of Africa to Yemen and Southern Africa is a multi-stakeholder, multi-year and multi-country coordination framework bringing together governments, the United Nations (UN), the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) as well as international and national NGOs in Ethiopia, Somalia, Djibouti, Kenya, Tanzania and Yemen to strengthen humanitarian, protection and development assistance to migrants and host communities in vulnerable situations. While the framework is implemented by a wide range of 48 UN agencies, governments and NGOs (as stated in the Q3 report for 2023), the coordination of the framework is overseen by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and managed through the Migrant Response Plan Coordination Unit and the MRP Regional Coordination Committees for Regional Directors and technical focal points comprising 16 partners. The regional coordination meetings are complemented by three thematic working groups and country-level coordination meetings.