Pretoria, South Africa, May 11, 2010 / 23:06 pm
On the eve of the World Cup on Saturday about 1,000 people gathered in Pretoria to pray for an end to human trafficking. The Catholic Archbishop of Johannesburg said trafficking was a “degrading form of modern slavery” which Christians should oppose.
Among the invited guests were Advocate Malebo Kotu-Rammopo from the National Prosecution Authority and Colin Wrafter, who is the Ambassador of Ireland to South Africa.
Archbishop of Johannesburg Buti Tlhagale called on the South African government to root out “this form of corruption and slavery” in his homily at a Mass to pray for an end to trafficking. He said politicians’ neglect of such violence “strongly suggests complicity.”
An estimated 40,000 sex workers and prostitutes will be imported to South Africa during the World Cup, the South African Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC) reports.