Events in Terrify No More

Terrify No More

The book Terrify no More by Haugen and Hunter concerns the efforts of the International Justice Mission to rescue 37 young girls who have been taken from their homes outside Phnom Pehn to become sex slaves. The mission of the IJM manifested in four basic components: providing immediate relief for the victims, holding perpetrators accountable, providing aftercare for victims, and preventing the crime from occurring again, as well as strengthening the community. While the IJM has succeeded in these components on the micro-level, the nature of the crime and the systems that allow this crime to perpetuate is such that these four components can necessarily only be partially fulfilled.

The first component, which is immediate relief for the victims of the abuse is the most easily fulfilled, in the form of providing the young victims of the abuse with a comfortable setting in which to begin rebuilding their lives. Once the girls have been rescued from the perpetrators of the abuse, the IJM worked to provide them with aftercare in the form of activities such as outings to the zoo (Haugen and Hunter, 2005, p. 47). Most importantly, they were taken into care in a way that ensured their sense of safety, security, and youth.

The second component, which entails holding the perpetrators of the crime accountable, is not as easy to achieve. According to the authors (p. 59), there are several reasons for this. First, there is the nature of the industry. According to the authors, rescuing a number of girls would simply mean that perpetrators look for more girls to replace the ones that have been rescued. Furthermore, even if a certain perpetrator were to be held accountable, there would simply be another to take his place. The entire nature of the industry and the demand of the industry would have to change if the perpetrators were truly to be held accountable.

Another reason is the nature of the authorities in the region, most of whom either turn a blind eye to the industry or are part of it. According to the authors (p. 57), few high-level authorities are willing to act, while the court system is also either highly corrupt or absolutely ineffective in terms of prosecuting perpetrators. Indeed, many court officials do not even have sufficient training for their positions. It is simply a game of power, where those with the most friends in high positions receive the most power.

The third component, which is helping the girls to rebuild their lives, is also notoriously difficult to achieve, and often depends upon how long the girls have been in the industry. The nature of the abuse is of such a nature that it damages the girls on a very fundamental level, particularly because they enter the industry at such a young age. Hence, although the effort to rescue and help them is significant and more effective than no effort at all, it is difficult to help them heal to the extent necessary to start living normal lives.

The most difficult component of all, however, is the effort to ensure that the crime no longer occurs. The sheer scale and nature of the industry in the region is simply too overwhelming to ensure this. However, this does not mean that no effort towards this should be made. The IJM has made valiant efforts in this regard, and has indeed partially fulfilled the purpose of strengthening communities and prosecuting offenders.