Talitha Kum: An Interview with Sister Carmen Ugarte García

Sister Carmen Ugarte García, osr, serves as Associate International Coordinator of Talitha Kum at the UISG office in Rome. Talitha Kum, the international network of consecrated life against human trafficking, brings together congregations from around the world, including the SNJM, which have been engaged in various ways in this effort since adopting their corporate stance on human trafficking in 2004.

1. In today’s global landscape, what makes Talitha Kum’s mission more vital than ever?

The crime of human trafficking is a global social phenomenon that currently affects more than 50 million people, especially women and girls, severely undermining their dignity and fundamental rights. It is not an isolated act, but the result of social, economic, and political systems that perpetuate inequality and the commodification of life and amplify the effects of climate change, armed conflicts, and wars.

Women and girls remain the most affected. In some regions, forced labor has surpassed sexual exploitation. Furthermore, the use of digital technologies for recruitment, online manipulation, and victim control is growing exponentially. The migration crisis leaves people highly vulnerable, and trafficking is on the rise, with a significant increase in child trafficking.

In this bleak context, the mission of Talitha Kum is vital. Our call to action is constant; it calls on all of us, because trafficking is closer than we think. For this reason, we raise our voices for a world free of trafficking and human exploitation, to denounce the commodification of life, and to affirm that there is hope for those at risk, victims, and survivors. Peace in our world is impossible as long as slavery exists.

2. What are the main challenges or systemic barriers that Talitha Kum currently faces?

Human trafficking is an ever-evolving crime, understood today as a “multiplier of vulnerabilities.” We face major challenges:

• Making the crime visible: In many parts of the world, trafficking and exploitation remain insufficiently recognized. It is essential to address the exploitative systems that trap people in situations of severe vulnerability, especially economic vulnerability.
• Lack of legal frameworks: The lack of structures that ensure protection and assistance to people at risk, victims, and survivors allows trafficking networks to operate freely.
• Challenges of the digital era: Technology has become a powerful means of recruitment, where anonymity and artificial intelligence facilitate large-scale manipulation. It is essential to raise awareness, especially among young people.

Raising our voices means denouncing the structures of exploitation. Talitha Kum is called to bear witness to compassion and hope. We live the Gospel in concrete, everyday ways, so that love, justice, and protection are present wherever we serve.

3. Reflecting on your journey so far, what milestones or achievements are you most proud of?

Officially, Talitha Kum has a 17-year history. According to our latest report, Talitha Kum comprises 64 networks in 108 countries, 841 religious congregations, and 6,043 active members. We have become a global network of compassion and transformation that transcends borders and languages.

Talitha Kum stands with those whose lives are under threat:

• In 2019, at our 10-year mark, we held our first General Assembly and launched our manifesto with three priorities: we denounce the power imbalance between men and women, we denounce the dominant model of unregulated neoliberal and capitalist development, and we denounce unjust or inadequate immigration laws.
• In 2021, in the midst of the pandemic, we launched our Call to Action to guarantee access to justice and psychosocial and health support for victims, the empowerment of women and girls, support for safe and legal migration pathways, and the promotion of an economy of care and solidarity.
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  2024 General Assembly / Credit : www.talithakum.info

  In 2024, at our second General Assembly, our final declaration focused on systemic change in response to new vulnerabilities, a holistic survivor-centered approach, and expanding collaboration and partnerships.

Being part of this commitment fills me with hope. Seeing the strength and consolidation of the Network, along with the involvement of young Talitha Kum ambassadors and other people, brings hope to those realities where life cries out for help.

4. How do you imagine the evolution and long-term impact of Talitha Kum in the coming years?

I imagine Talitha Kum as a global leader for systemic transformation in addressing human trafficking, further strengthening our mission, in which all of us can play a part in achieving the following:

1. Prevention: Promote education, awareness, and systemic change in response to new vulnerabilities, with particular attention to the involvement of youth.
2. Protection of victims and survivors: Provide compassionate support, defend dignity and access to justice and comprehensive support services, promote safe spaces, empower women and girls, and foster a culture and economy of care and solidarity.
3. Advocacy: Work toward systemic transformation, support safe and legal migration pathways, live justice as “love in action,” standing up with courage and hope to denounce, through our voices and daily actions, everything that fuels exploitation.
4. Networking: Expand collaboration and partnerships. Networking is a gift from God; it requires a clear mission, purposeful coordination, and strong communication channels.

Ultimately, I dream of a Talitha Kum network present across the world, continuing to write stories of hope and liberation, until the word “trafficking” becomes a thing of the past for every victim.