"I felt a sense of great relief that finally someone was doing something about a global problem that has been ignored," Poellot says. "I wanted to find out what I could do, and realized that IJM was a place to start."

Poellot and her husband, Mike, had long ago become child advocates. Their oldest daughter was molested and almost raped by a hotel resort employee when she was just a teenager. They adopted their youngest daughter from a Korean orphanage, and later became sponsors of an orphan in Romania.

Like so many of us at this moment in world events, the Poellots' attention is drawn to Asia's twin disasters wrought by an earthquake and a tsunami of epic proportions. As the waters recede, an even greater tragedy is now revealed: child-trafficking.

The U.S. Department of State estimates that 600,000 to 800,000 people are trafficked across international borders annually. Of the victims, 80 percent are female and up to 50 percent are minors. Increasingly, children are sold into prostitution or bonded slavery, despite international covenants and protocols obligating governments to criminalize these activities.

While slavery is outlawed around the globe, it is estimated that there are more than 27 million slaves in the world today. That is more than all the slaves seized from Africa in four centuries of the trans-Atlantic slave trade. This plague of modern-day slavery is evidenced in forced labor, sex trafficking, denial of citizenship, and illegal detention.

The good news is that human rights organizations like Washington, D.C.-based International Justice Mission are seeking justice in ways that protect the rights and freedoms of the oppressed, and promote enduring change in their communities. These efforts reflect the vision of Haugen, who put his law degree to work in the civil rights division of the U.S. Department of Justice and as director of the United Nations genocide investigations in Rwanda.

IJM's efforts go far beyond ministering and financial aid. When IJM receives word of a problem, the agency documents and monitors the conditions of oppression. IJM leaders educate the church and public about the abuses, and then partner with local law enforcement and judicial agencies to provide victim relief and hold perpetrators accountable under the law. By strengthening community factors to deter trafficking, and providing access to monitored after-care services, IJM helps to empower victims in their transition to new, productive lives.

Bev Poellot became a prayer partner with IJM, and learned that widespread sex trafficking in Cambodia involves children as young as 5 to 10 years of age. According to Poellot, "The only life they've known is providing sexual favors for their survival, and smiling through it all so they won't be beaten."

During the Vietnam era, when Mike was stationed in Thailand, the Poellots saw how native hill tribes were marginalized and systematically denied citizenship, which restricted their ability to own land, travel, obtain medical services or educate their children. The same abuse of these indigent tribes continues today.

"Many Southeast Asian children and teenagers are sold to brothels by desperate, often destitute parents," says Poellot. "Others are either abducted, or duped into forced labor or the sex slave trade by relatives, friends or acquaintances who hold out the promise of decent jobs, only to sell out their victims to traffickers for money."

In 2000, the Poellots introduced IJM leaders to Arvin Engleson, then International Ministries Pastor at Saratoga Federated Church, and Jim Martin, a pastor at The River Church in San Jose. After Haugen spoke at several Sunday services at Saratoga Federated Church, members were so moved that they donated thousands of dollars to IJM. Bev Poellot is a tireless champion of IJM's work, sharing information and news about the organization with anyone who is interested in learning or doing more to support the cause.

As International Compassion Pastor, Jim Martin had been inspired by Gary Haugen's book, Good News About Injustice, after reading it in 1999 and meeting Haugen the following year.

"We began working in Peru," says Martin, "a region in which familial sexual abuse of children is very common." Of the estimated 25,000 women and girls who are raped in Peru each year, most are under 14. Without proper law enforcement or advocates for justice, most of these victims have never seen their rapist punished for his crimes.

Martin helped recruit an international team of observers including church leaders, a counselor and a nurse practitioner, among others. IJM acted as an advisor and resource provider to Paz y Esperanza, a Peruvian non-profit civil rights organization focused on providing holistic care to victims of political violence and civil injustice. The team traveled to Peru where they met local law enforcement officers, judges, prosecutors, educators and pastors. The team provided guidance and training on victim advocacy, evidence collection, use of a rape kit, and victim examination and interview techniques.

Last year, a 12-year old Peruvian girl walking home from school was kidnapped by three men, imprisoned and raped repeatedly by one of the men. Upon her release the next day, she defied the rapist's threats of further violence if she was to talk, and she went home to tell her mother what had happened.

For cases like this one, IJM partners with Paz y Esperanza. Together, the two organizations' investigators and social workers documented the case, ensured the young girl received proper medical care, prepared her for interviews with the police and secured the arrest of the rapist. By providing legal counsel and emotional support, we empowered this young girl to work with us and seek justice. The rapist was to remain behind bars while awaiting his trial.

"The challenge is an emotional and spiritual one," says Martin, "because we are often dealing with 10 to 13 year old victims of sexual abuse who suddenly find themselves in the role of teenage mothers."

Another supporter of IJM is Moe Baniani, an agent with Alain Pinel Realtors of Saratoga. In Baniani's view, "there is a lot of pain and suffering in the world, involving young, innocent children who can't make choices for themselves. Third world countries are at a disadvantage. Their cultures and their economies debase children, making them the lowest echelon in these societies. Yet experience tells us that our children are our future."

In the past, Baniani has visited parts of Iran (Kurdistan), and witnessed the lack of value for children.

"I met a Kurdish countryman, maybe 65 to 70 years old," says Baniani. "In all his life, he'd never left his village of 250 people. This was a remote and isolated village more than six hours from anywhere. Children in this village don't even have shoes to wear. The women work much harder than the men at farming and running the household. Girls must marry at 12 to 15 years of age, and the rest of their lives are just hard work. Education is not a priority."

The current crop of college students has shown a renewed interest in human rights, prompting many to seek internships with organizations like IJM. College interns Kim Whittaker and Joe Rose discovered that unlike many college internships, working at IJM is not about paper-pushing or busy work.

In 2003, a year after graduating from Pepperdine University with a degree in inter-cultural communications and non-profit organizational management, Whittaker learned about IJM from a friend at Saratoga Federated Church. Whittaker joined IJM's Washington, D.C. office for a one-year internship, during which she worked with college campus groups to build awareness of oppression and the need to preserve human rights around the world.

According to Whittaker, "IJM maintains a high level of professionalism in their work on behalf of victims of oppression, many of whom are unable to pay for services." Once people are freed from situations of oppression, whether it is bonded slavery or child prostitution, they need a safe, secure transition back into a normal life. It's never assumed that they can simply return to their homes. In many cases, they were sold by their families in an act of desperation, or their homes and families were destroyed. "IJM provides amazing follow-through to ensure proper after-care services and support."

"Working with IJM is a life-changing experience. My internship helped me figure out what my role and purpose will be in my chosen career, and how I can contribute."

Joe Rose is currently a senior at the University of Chicago, where he studies law and public policy. A native of San Jose, Rose learned about IJM internship opportunities from a high school friend who had already worked for the organization. In the summer of 2003, Rose got involved with IJM's Education and Church Relations program.

"I'm managing and growing the program now," says Rose. "The focus on college relations programs includes working with IJM campus chapters, meeting with students to discuss human rights issues and to help raise awareness and funds to promote human rights programs."

"I knew I was interested in this work but didn't know where to begin," says Rose. "The issue of human rights is so broad-based. IJM gave me concrete things to consider and a path to take. We have to make human rights a priority in life. It's important to monitor human rights violations such as sex trafficking networks on the Internet, and a stronger after-care system needs to be developed. Rescue is just the tip of the iceberg."

For more information, email Bev Poellot, bellavina@comcast.net. To contact International Justice Mission, call 703-465-5495 or visit the IJM website, www.ijm.org.

On Jan. 5, IJM took steps to deploy experienced investigators to the region affected by the earthquake and tsunami and surrounding areas, with the goal of helping to safeguard children from potential trafficking attempts. To donate to IJM efforts on behalf of children abandoned or orphaned as a result of the disaster, visit http://www.ijm.org/ijm_donate.html.