Editor: Mark Little – Rotary Club of Norwich St Edmund, England

The current Rotary year 2018/19 is shortly coming to a conclusion and the new Rotary year will see changes in the leadership of the Rotarian Action

Dave McCleary - Newly elected Chairman of RAGAS

Dave McCleary has been Vice Chairman of RAGAS for three years. In 2012 Dave founded “End Human Trafficking Now” with the goal to bring awareness and action through, inter alia, business engagement, effective law enforcement and sustaining freedom through empowering sur-

Rotarian Action Group against Slavery (This RAG is not an agency of, or controlled by, Rotary International)

Website: www.ragas.online

19 June 2019

Issue No 92

Impending changes in leadership at RAGAS

Group after 10 years in the post. His successor as Chairman will be Dave McCleary from the Rotary Club of Roswell in District 6900 in the USA.

Group against Slavery (RAGAS). Although Mark Little will still remain on the Board as a Director, he will be stepping down as Chairman of the Action

vivors. He currently serves on Georgia’s State-wide Taskforce as workgroup chair “Deterring Traffickers and Buyers” through business engage-ment.

In 2015 he chaired a World Summit with President Carter on ending human trafficking and in the same year moderated a panel on Human Trafficking at

Rotary Day at the UN.

In 2018 Dave moderated a Panel for US Attorney General Jeff Session at the Department of Justice for business engagement and was also honoured to receive RI’s prestigious “Service Above Self” award for devotion and exemplary efforts which embodies Rotary’s motto.

“The only way that we can live, is if we grow. The only way that we can grow is if we change” (C Joy Bell C)

Dave McCleary

Dave McCleary’s Vision Statement “First, I would like to sincerely thank Mark Little for his incredible leadership, hard work and determination for the past 10 years - a job well done and a hard act to follow for sure! Also, much appreciation to Harry Payne for the last ten years of his dedicated service. I am sure we will continue to seek wisdom from you both for years to come. I am honored and excited to become the Chair of RAGAS beginning July 1

st.

This year’s theme of “Rotary Connects the World” couldn’t be a better description of where I envision the work of RAGAS to continue to grow and focus. RAGAS has made great strides in helping to increase awareness globally of the plight of Modern Day Slavery and Human Trafficking. With that increased awareness has come a plethora of amazing action by Rotary Clubs all over the world for freedom’s sake. As we enter our next phase of RAGAS, I see us being perfectly positioned to be an international hub of connecting all those Rotary Clubs engaged now and in the future to make a very large, collective impact”. (Continued on the next page)

“Vision without action is

merely a dream. Action

without vision just

passes the time. Vision

with action can change

the world”

(Joel A Barker)

Rotarians against Slavery

“Through RAGAS, our members would be able to help share not only the stories of their club’s actions, but action steps that could then be an inspiration for another club to do within their own community. Even their work in any one of Rotary’s six areas of focus intersects in the fight against Slavery/Trafficking as well. RAGAS would also be a primary resource to help clubs to become a connecting hub for government, business-es, NGOs, and the civil

New Chairman’s Vision Statement (Cont’d)

Page 2 of 9

society within their own communities. So many are doing great work individually, but through connecting them together not only does their work create a greater collective impact, but Rotary is connecting the world one community at a time through the fight against Modern Day Slavery and Human Trafficking

With this vision in place, we will be creating a 5-year plan for Rotary International. This plan will be a plan of hope for so

many and I am so excited to be a part of the vision and mission of RAGAS as we seek to continue to drive awareness and inspire Rotarians around the globe to take action to eradicate Modern Day Slavery and Human Trafficking.

Please feel free to reach out to me anytime” dave.m@ragas.online Many thanks Dave McCleary

Further changes to RAGAS leadership team Dave will be supported by three Vice Chairs who are existing Board members, Stephen Sypula, PDG Judith Diment and Dr George Belitsos.

Stephen is a member of the Rotary Club of Stevenage Grange (D1260) in England and is also the RAGAS Webmaster and Treasurer. A Board member recently described Stephen as the dynamo of the Action Group. She was so right.

Judith Diment is a member of the Rotary Club of Maidenhead Thames (D1090) in England. Judith is also a recipient of RI’s “Service Above Self” Award, is Chairman of Rotary International’s Global Polio Eradication Advocacy Task Force and is a RI Representative to the Commonwealth of Nations.

George Belitsos is a member of the Rotary Club of Ames (D6000) in the USA and is currently Chair of the Central Iowa Service Network against Human Trafficking.

The Board is sad to lose Gillian Booth-Yudleman who has resigned from Rotary and therefore is no longer eligible to be a Board member and Harry Payne who is a member of the Rotary Club of Burnham on Crouch (D1240) in England.

Harry has been our RAGAS Secretary well before the Action Group was approved by the RI Board in January 2013 and has been hugely instrumental in keeping the Group on the right track and in accordance with RI’s Code of Policies in relation to Rotarian Action Groups. He will be sorely missed by all of us who are still on the Board and by all supporters and members of RAGAS.

Four new members have been appointed to the RAGAS Board. These are Simon John, from England, Malcolm Baird from Australia, Jim Johnson and Brian Rusch from the USA.

Further information about our new Board members is included on the next page.

Above: Judith and Stephen

working in the RAGAS booth at

the RI Convention in Hamburg

Below: George (in the middle)

working in the RAGAS booth at

the Toronto Convention in 2018

Simon John has agreed to succeed Harry as RAGAS Secretary. Simon is a member of the

Rotary Club of Thetford in District 1080 in the UK. He studied law and qualified as a solicitor (attorney) in 1969. In 1973 he co-founded his own law firm and specialised in representing people who had suffered catastrophic injury. Simon was a fellow of the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, a senior fellow of APIL and is a member Emeritus of FOCIS.

He has been a lifelong member of Amnesty International and is currently chair of a local Amnesty Group. Simon is also a member of Anti-slavery International and has been a life member of RAGAS for a number of years. He believes slavery can and will be largely brought to an end but it will need a sustained effort from all walks of life.

Malcolm Baird will be filling the gap in the Board left by Gillian. Malcolm is a member of the

Rotary Club of Brighton North (D9800) in Australia and a Paul Harris Fellow. He was born in Melbourne, attended Monash University and graduated with a Finance Degree. He represented Australia in the 110 metre hurdles in the Commonwealth Games of 1970 and the Olympic Games in 1972. His professional career commenced as an accountant and subsequently moved to roles as a finance and executive manager and director in the general insurance industry. This included 4 years spent in London as the International Division Finance Director with a major British insurance company.

Malcolm has been a member of RAGAS since 2009 and recently decided to raise his voice for those that cannot speak. He feels Rotarians as humanitarians are well placed to influence and to take action to ease and alleviate the plight of millions suffering under this evil practice

Brian Rusch is a member of the Rotary Club of Peninsula Starlight in District 5150 in

California, USA. He is also the Executive Director of the Human Thread Foundation (HTF), the international non-profit organization started by acclaimed humanitarian photographer, Lisa Kristine. The mission is to educate the public and build awareness about human dignity and human trafficking through interactive exhibitions, educational programming, and global awareness campaigns.

Brian was the Executive Director of the Desmond Tutu Peace Foundation where he concentrated on inspiring youth to become change makers for peace, and developed educational programs focused on reshaping conversations about peace, equality, and forgiveness. Prior to working with Archbishop Tutu, Brian was the Director of the Dalai Lama Foundation, where he developed and managed projects and curricula to guide youth on their personal exploration of ethics and peace.

Brian is a member of the Global Sustainability Network, a group of faith leaders, NGOs and philanthropists working to eradicate slavery. He actively works on policy and legislation to fight modern slavery, notably with the Mexican government, British Parliament, the ILO, the Vatican, and the U.S. Department of Labor. Under his guidance, HTF is working with Rotary projects to create sustainable employment opportunities for survivors, as well as in vulnerable communities.

James Johnson is a member of the Rotary Club of Bellingham Bay in District 5050 in

California, USA. Jim’s passion for anti-slavery work began at the 2009 Rotary International Convention in Birmingham, England. After meeting there with Mark Little and learning of the breadth and tragic cost of modern slavery, he has dedicated himself to eradicating enslavement in all its forms. Over the past nine years Jim, has shared the story of the enslaved at hundreds of Rotary Club and District meetings, seminars and organizational outreach into civic, business and religious organizations throughout North America and Asia.

Once RAGAS was approved, Jim was one of the first to recognize the importance of sharing the work of RAGAS with likeminded NGO’s fostering the establishment of ties to the Hong Kong based Mekong Club, the Salvation Army, Catholic Charities and the International Justice Mission. He firmly believes that the abolition of slavery is 100% possible and that Rotary and RAGAS should be at the forefront of that effort

Rotarians against Slavery

New Board Members w/e/f 1st July 2019

Page 3 of 9

Above: Brian Rusch

Below: Jim Johnson

Above: Simon John

Below: Malcolm Baird

Rotarians against Slavery

“For many years it (modern

slavery) seldom captured the

world’s attention or outrage –

allowing all of us to look the other

way as we benefitted from the

forced labour of this growing

underclass”

(UK Prime Minister, Theresa

May)

This issue of the News-letter, ie number 92, will be the last Newsletter edited by yours truly. It is 10 years since the first issue went out in July 2009. That was a month after our Action Group on Slavery was formed at the Birmingham Convention.

Like Janus, the Roman God with two faces, I find myself looking two ways at once, ie reflecting on what had happened in the past which led to the formation of our Rotarian Action Group and contemplating on the fut-ure of the Group under the guidance of the new leadership team.

Looking back in time I can recall the catalyst which kick started the formation of the Action Group. It was the RI Board’s rejection of three specific submissions on the issue of “slavery” to the Board. These sub-missions were a) a Rotary in Great Britain & Ireland (RIBI) Resolution on Child Slavery to the Board via the 2007 Council on Legislation, b) a Memorial (legal document) contain-ing resolutions on slavery submitted directly to the RI Board by the Rotary Clubs of Norwich and Norwich St Edmund in 2008 and c) a Paper entitled “Can Rotarians end Child Slavery” to the Board and signed by 27 incoming District Gover-nors in RIBI in 2009.

On page 8 of the Newsletter is an extract of a potent speech on modern slavery by the UK Prime Minister, Theresa

Editorial

Page 4 of 9

May, to the International Labour Organization’s Centenary Conference a few weeks ago. Here Mrs May offers an observation on society’s attitude towards contemporary slavery. “For many years it (modern slavery) seldom captured the world’s attention or outrage – allowing all of us to look the other way as we benefitted from the forced labour of this growing

underclass”

This indeed was the period when our applicat-ion for approval as a Rotarian Action Group was declined by the RI Board in 2011, albeit on the stated grounds that we were only an “appraisal” group and not an “action” group. Certainly on some of my visits to clubs as a speaker, I was advised that Rotarians should not be involved in slavery matters because it was a political, a social or a cultural issue rather than a humanitarian one.

Happily a sea change in perceptions and attitudes on slavery and human trafficking has taken place mainly as a result, in my view, of statements made by certain influential politicians and world leaders.

President Barak Obama was the first to declare his abhorrence of the crime. During a speech in New York in September 2012, , he described modern slavery as “a debasement of our common human-ity….it is barbaric and it is evil and it has no place in

a civilized world” This was the first time that a sitting US President had given a speech dedicated to slavery since Abraham Lincoln.

Less than a year later in the UK, under the auspices of UK Home Secretary, Theresa May, a Modern Slavery Bill was introduced to the UK House of Commons (October 2013) and some months later the first meeting of the Santa Marta Group met in Rome. This was hosted by Pope Francis who described modern slavery as “an open wound on the body of contemporary society” and “a crime against humanity”

Did President Obama’s New York speech in 2012 play a part in persuading the RI Board in January 2013 to support our Action Group’s application as an approved Rotarian Action Group ?

When I look to the future I can see RAGAS going from strength to strength under the leadership of Dave McCleary and his team. I like the idea, expressed by Dave, in his Vision Statement of RAGAS becoming the “primary resource for helping clubs to become a connecting hub for governments, businesses, civil society and NGOs” because when like-minded people combine together they can be a force for good in this world. (Continued on the next page)

Above: Theresa May speaking on Slavery

at ILO Centenary Conference, Geneva –

June 2019

Below: President Obama speaking on

Slavery at the Clinton Globa Initiative in

September 2012

Rotarians against Slavery

Already we have started the process of partnering with anti-slavery organ-izations like IJM, Freedom United, Hope for Justice, the Mekong Club and many others.

Supporting and working with these organizations is important because they are so few in numbers. They are like mice fighting a herd of elephants.

These activists and their organizations know how to set slaves free, they know how to rehabilitate the survivors, how to teach them about their rights, how to ensure that they do not return to enslavement, how to reintegrate them back into their own homes. What they find difficult is mobilizing the funds to extend their work further. This is where RAGAS and Rotarians can help. If we can mobilize millions of dollars to almost eradicate the polio virus, we can do the same by providing the necessary funds for the anti-slavery activists to combat the epidemic of modern slavery and human trafficking.

I am confident that the new leadership of RAGAS will be successful in taking the Group to a higher level and will at the same time succeed in persuading the Board of RI to eventually throw its full weight behind the Group’s aims and aspirations, once polio is eradicated

Earlier this month I was present at the 110

th

Editorial (Continued)

A Selfie with Estela’s Breakout Team

Page 5 of 9

Rotary International Con-vention in the historic port city of Hamburg, Germany where some 25,000 Rot-arians assembled to connect with people of action from across the globe, whilst learning the latest news and strategies for keeping clubs strong.

Each convention is indeed an opportunity to learn and be inspired by the energy and enthusiasm which is displayed not only by many of the plenary and breakout session speakers but also by the dedication of the rotary volunteers manning booths in the House of Friendship.

As usual as Chairman of RAGAS, I was there primarily to construct and to man the RAGAS booth for 5 days in conjunction with other Board mem-bers, volunteers and some very supportive wives, who on this occasion definitely clocked up the greatest number of man hours of any of the volunteers.

We were there specifically to encourage more Rotarians to become paid up members of the Action Group which provides its members with information about modern slavery and opportunities to participate in anti-slavery projects. Tiring as the sessions usually are, working in the booth, they are also rewarding, meeting old friends and making new ones, engaging in deep and meaningful discuss-ions with many of the

booth’s visitors and, during slack periods, visiting other project booths. In between there is always the chance to take off and listen to some of the inspiring speakers in the main and breakout session venues.

During the last four RI Conventions, RAGAS has been fortunate in being able to organize breakout sessions on “modern slavery and human trafficking”, all of which were extremely well attended. This year we were not so lucky, but nevertheless RAGAS members were able to attend a very well organized breakout session entitled “ You Can Stop Human Trafficking” organized by Rtn Estela Landeros from the Rotary Club of The Hague- Metropolitan, Netherlands.

On page 6 of the Newsletter, Rtn Caroline Evans provides us with a summary account of that breakout session.

The Newsletter also includes a request for help from our Incoming RAGAS Secretary, Simon John and a request for volunteers by the CEO of

Hope at Home an NGO which helps survivors of

slavery to get back on their own two feet.

Above: Conversing with delegates at the

RAGAS booth in the House of

Friendship at the RI Convention on

Hamburg

Below: Rtn Estela Landeros moderating

the Human Trafficking Breakout Session

at the Convention

Rotarians against Slavery

You Can Stop Human Trafficking – A Breakout Session in Hamburg (by Caroline Evans, RC of Norwich St Edmund, D 1080, England)

Attendance at the breakout session entitled “You Can Stop Human Trafficking” provided the opportunity to hear four speakers, who each in turn, provided information on how this global tragedy affected their lives and what they are doing to combat the crime that is Human Trafficking. The session was passionately moderated by Estela Landeros of the Rotary Club of The Hague Metropolitan in the Netherlands..

Susan Young, a mother of four children from Northern Virginia, USA, enlightened all in the session as to how her family had been affected by Human Trafficking. Her teenage daughter had met another teenager, been groomed on line, and was then videoed whilst being raped multiple times. The perpetrators ‘enslaved’ Susan’s daughter with the threat that they would go viral with the video if she reported their actions to anyone. She was basically in the control of an organised trafficking group, originally from South America, called MS13 who use young attractive people to enslave others. What followed was to change Susan’s family life forever as her daughter became withdrawn and isolated as a result of being raped. When eventually the crime was discovered Susan quickly realised there was little to no help for her family in the situation they found themselves. Threats were made to her other children; one of her son’s was raped, her three year old daughter was threatened with being taken into slavery, the family were followed, intimidated etc. all in fact becoming the victims of modern slavery. One key factor in this harrowing story was the point made by Susan’s daughter that ‘no one asked’ what was wrong or going on in her life! As a result of this Susan is now a keen advocate of the ‘Just Ask’ organisation which promotes a curriculum for pupils in school to be aware of the dangers of traffickers, in a similar way to how pupils are educated about drugs. More information can be found at www.justaskprevention.org

Bill Woolf, originally a law enforcement officer in the US, is now the Executive Director of ‘Just Ask Prevention’. His experiences led him to believe that more needs to be undertaken under the headlines of a) training, b) awareness and c) professional development and training.

Ebere Akadiri, originally from Lagos, Nigeria and now living in The Hague, was astonished to find girls from Nigeria who were being trafficked to Europe. She explained how parents of girls in Nigeria thought their daughters were being offered a rich and rewarding life in Europe and, therefore, allowed their daughters to travel, in order to achieve the dream of a better life. In 2017 alone, 30 000 Nigerian girls were trafficked into Italy. As a result of this Ebere established “Beauty In Every Life”, an organisation which sets out to make the dangers and methods of human trafficking in Nigeria known to all concerned, to train and educate people into the issues of human trafficking, empower victims of trafficking and vulnerable youths by developing their entrepreneurship and life skills and finally to partner with International organisations to provide learning resources for local NGOs working in the field of human trafficking in Nigeria.

The fourth speaker, Amelia Stansell, Assistant Governor elect District 7610, explained how she was made aware of the issue of Human Trafficking at the Atlanta Convention in 2017, prior to this she thought slavery was an historical subject. As an outcome she has advocated the engagement of all groups to make people and organisations aware of the issues of this crime. She believes in engaging with social services, politicians, the media, schools through developing appropriate curriculums, judges, officials and Rotary. She believes there needs to be a voice which will make a difference and for people to consider a) the victim, b) the trafficker, c) the buyer. Without the ‘buyer’ there wouldn’t be a need for the trafficker, and therefore people wouldn’t be victims! As a society we need to consider who the ‘buyer’ is and overcome and eradicate the need for buyers!

Finally, during a question and answer time, the relationship between this group and the Rotary Action Group Against Slavery, was raised. The answer is in how much the two groups can work together

Page 6 of 9

A small group of RAGAS members led by Malcolm Baird from Australia, is planning the promotion of slavery preventative education. The strategy is to greatly increase the availability and use of best practice slavery preventative education, worldwide, aimed at adolescents. It should become the norm.

The rationale is twofold. First: prevention is better than cure. If we can prevent a person falling into slavery it will be better for them and much cheaper than rescuing them later. Secondly for those who are not so vulnerable; but will become indirect employers of slaves, by buying slave made products, teaching them at an early age to become knowledgeable & ethical buyers is a desirable aim. “What we instil in our children will be the foundation upon which they build their future.” Inspiring children will be a lot easier than converting the present adult generations who, in general, are either unaware or appear to leave their consciences at home, when going shopping, according to the research.

Please refer to Malcolm’s article in Annex B of RAGAS Newsletter No 88 issued in December 2018 - https://ragas.online/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/ragasnews88.pdf for his preliminary research. We are now embarking on a more comprehensive world review of identifiable practice in slavery preventative education. Thereafter a university will coordinate identification of best practice. The next step will be to exhort local/central educational authorities/government to follow California State’s lead in making slavery preventative education compulsory for all.

The start of this process is to review the databases for organisations which appear to be providing preventative education on slavery. We have identified an authoritative directory with 1323 organisations (of the 2964 listed in that directory) appearing to provide preventative education services. For most of those 1323 organisations there is, in the directory, a link to their website. It is a relatively easy matter to scan their website and find what preventative education services they provide. There are clearly some hitherto hidden jewels out there: for example one organisation (In the first 100 or so reviewed) providing an integrated model for child harm prevention at 39 locations across a country.

At this stage all that is needed is about a dozen people who are prepared to review around 100 organisations. This shouldn’t take more than a few hours and could easily be accomplished over a month or so. As our new secretary (and the person who has prepared a preliminary small table from another smaller directory) I have volunteered to guide and coordinate these efforts. No special skills required!

Please contact me if you are willing to assist - so that I don’t have to go through all 1323 entries, alone.

Simon John john_simong@hotmail.com

Help Needed – A Request from our Incoming RAGAS Secretary

Preventing Survivor Homelessness by Jared Hodgson, Co-founder & CEO, Hope at Home

“What you are doing is showing survivors what love is.” Referrer and Support Worker

We know that survivors of modern slavery are vulnerable to homelessness which leaves them open to being re-exploited. Hope at Home is a UK-wide hosting scheme, training and supporting hosts to welcome a survivor who would otherwise be destitute into their homes for an agreed time period.

Hope at Home works in partnership with professional organisations eg “The Snowdrop Project”, “Unseen”, who provide support for the survivor.

Hope at Home hosts offer not just a safe, warm bed but their guest (survivor) becomes a member of their family and their wider community. This sense of belonging allows the guest to breathe out and begin to find a new life for themselves. Our collaborative working with partnership agencies gives survivors the best platform on which to rebuild their lives.

M arrived in her host’s home as a withdrawn and anxious woman. She didn’t eat or sleep regularly and couldn’t leave the house without her body shaking. After several months experiencing the acceptance and love of her hosts, she began to volunteer at the local hospital. She started to laugh and make new friends. Eventually she found a job and a flat of her own. She is now a confident and vibrant woman who visits her hosts often, bringing chocolate and wine and cracking jokes with the family. Her transformation is miraculous.

Rotarians against Slavery Page 7 of 9

Preventing Survivor Homelessness (Cont’d)

Over the last year, other guests have also gone on to find jobs and homes of their own and have become part of the community in which they live. Some have been reunited with family and some have made new friends. Not only has homelessness been prevented, but new lives have been built.

You can be involved in seeing survivors’ lives restored.

Hope at Home is looking for volunteer hosts, film-makers, graphic designers, translators, fundraisers, corporate sponsors and more !

Check out the website for more information (www.hopeathome.org.uk) contact us on info@hopeathome.org.uk or donate at www.give.net/hopeathome

A host family with a survivor guest

Extract of a Speech by UK PM Theresa May

(ILO Centenary Conference – 10th

June 2019)

“Well over 100 years ago, in nations across the world, governments condemned slavery to the history books. It should not exist anywhere today. Yet around the world it remains a daily reality for more than 40 million men, women and children.

People like Ajoba, who was lured to Britain with the promise of decent work, but ended up spending nine years as an unpaid domestic servant, banned from leaving the house or meeting other people. Or Olive, from China, who was told that she could pay back her husband’s gambling debts by taking a job in a London restaurant, only to be forced into prostitution. Raped seven days a week for several years she considered killing herself – but was told that if she did so, her parents would be murdered.

Or Harry – British born and bred, always proud to have a job. Becoming homeless after struggling with mental health problems he was targeted by a gang who offered him work, food and accommodation. He ended up living in a damp, overcrowded caravan, doing hard physical labour for 16 hours a day. Weak and malnourished, when he asked for his pay he was beaten. And his suffering continued when he was sold to another gang – yes, “sold”, in modern Britain, for £3,000. These are just three stories among many millions.

Indeed, the sheer scale of modern slavery is frightening to behold. The UK is an advanced liberal democracy at the forefront of the fight against such exploitation. But if tonight we were to free everyone in Britain who is trapped in some form of slavery and bring them to the ILO so we might hear their testimony, they would not merely take every seat in this hall – they would fill it seven times over. To find room for every victim in the world, we would need a city 200 times larger than Geneva.

Modern slavery truly is a global epidemic. It hides in plain sight in our towns and cities, our fields and factories. It reaches into every corner of our lives – in the clothes we wear, the food we eat, the services we pay for. Yet for many years it seldom captured the world’s attention or outrage – allowing those who trade in human misery to quietly continue their work, and

Rotarians against Slavery Page 8 of 9

Extract of a Speech by UK PM Theresa May (Cont’d)

allowing all of us to look the other way as we benefitted from the forced labour of this growing underclass.

Throughout my time in government – first as my country’s Home Secretary, more recently as its Prime Minister – I have fought to change that. To put the issue of modern slavery firmly on the domestic and international agenda. To prevent men, women and children becoming trapped in modern slavery and free those who are. And to relentlessly pursue, apprehend and bring to justice the barbaric individuals responsible.

Over the past nine years we have made much progress, and the tide of international opinion is with us – almost 90 governments have now endorsed the Call to Action on Modern Slavery that I launched in 2017. But there is still much work for all of us to do. So as I prepare to step down as Prime Minister, I believe it is more important than ever that we not only continue the fight against modern slavery, but that we accelerate it. That we recommit ourselves to the task. That we match our words with actions. And do all that we can to meet the UN’s goal of ending this abhorrent crime by 2030. Because modern slavery is simply immoral.

No leader worthy of the name can look the other way while men, women and children are held against their will, forced to work for a pittance or no pay at all, routinely beaten, raped and tortured. Those of us who can speak out, who have a platform from which to be heard, have a duty, a moral duty, to raise our voices on their behalf”.

RAGAS Board for 2019/20

Chairman: Dave McCleary, RC of Roswell (D6900), USA dmccleary@fms-inc.us Vice Chairman: Stephen Sypula, RC of Stevenage Grange (D1260), England. stephen@sgrc.org.uk Vice Chairmanr: Judith Diment, RC of Maidenhead Thames (D1090), England judith@thediments.co.uk Vice Chairman: George Belitsos, RC of Ames, (D6000) gbelitsos55@gmail.com Secretary: Simon John, RC of Thetford (D1080), England john_simong@hotmail.com Treasurer and Webmaster: Stephen Sypula, RC of Stevenage Grange (D1260), England. stephen@sgrc.org.uk Board Member : Tony Stokes, RC Box Hill Central (D9810), Australia stokes9@optusnet.com.au Board Member: Marleina Broadhurst, RC e francophone (D9920), marleina_broadhurst@yahoo.com Board Member: Chuck Fitzgerald, RC of Peoria (D5495), USA chuckfitzgerald@gmail.com Board Member: Malcolm Baird, RC of Brighton North, (D9800), Australia brembaird@bigpond.com Board Member: Brian Rusch, RC of Peninsular Starlight, (D5150), USA brian@humanthreadfoundation.org Board Member: James Johnson, RC of Bellingham Bay, (D5050), USA antislavery@activist.com Board Member: Mark Little, RC of Norwich St Edmund (D1080), England. littlebmark@gmail.com

RAGAS Website: www.ragas.online Disclaimer: The views expressed by the contributors are not necessarily those of the

Editor or of the RAGAS Board

Rotarians against Slavery Page 9 of 9