ACTA NON VERBA
“a lot of people sell themselves short. they say, I'm not the attorney general, so I can’t put together an [anti-trafficking] task force in my state. You can do a lot more than you think.’
(Luis CdeBaca, of the U.S. State Department’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons)
In the last couple of years, human trafficking has been spotlighted by Hollywood and Martial arts films, for example, the film Merantau (2009), starring Iko Uwais, the film Six Bullets (2012), starring Jean-Claude Van Damme, which is about an ex-mercenary that is hired by a famous mixed martial arts fighter to find his kidnapped daughter, and the movie Skin Trade (2015) starring Tony Jaa just to name a few.
You don't have to be a martial arts action movie star to do your part in the fight against trafficking. As a martial arts professional, it is important to notice the signs of trafficking in order to take action. This is why MAAT was created.
USE YOUR SKILLS AND TALENTS TO DISRUPT OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING
DEFINING HUMAN TRAFFICKING
Organized criminal activity in which human beings are treated as possessions to be controlled and exploited (as by being forced into prostitution or involuntary labor).
Although the legal definition of human trafficking is complex, its simple meaning is not. It is the act of buying or selling people or making money from work they are forced to do, such as sex work.
The fight against human trafficking has three components: the prosecution of traffickers, the protection of trafficked persons, and the prevention of trafficking.
Almost every country in the world is affected by trafficking in some way, whether as a country of origin, transit, or destination for victims.
ABOUT MARTIAL ARTISTS AGAINST TRAFFICKING (MAAT)
MAAT is made up of NGOs, martial artists, and other experts from the anti-trafficking sector across the globe. It was created for the martial artists to take action and disrupt trafficking operations by conducting extensive outreach and education throughout their community and thereby exposing how traffickers function and attempt to conceal their operations.
MISSION STATEMENT
To develop an outreach and awareness resources and products that will help increase understanding of human trafficking through action, not words.
VISION STATEMENT
To disrupt human trafficking through advocacy and outreach activities. We believe that a single action can make a difference in the community, and that collective action can greatly impact the world.
VALUES
Justice
Integrity
Collaboration
Service
It is impossible for any single agency or organization to respond comprehensively to the problem of human trafficking, but TOGETHER, WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
