Petition fights slavery

A petition of more than 100,000 names calling for an end to modern slavery has been handed to the Government.
The Wilberforce 2007 petition, which was started in Hull as part of commemorations to mark the end of the British slave trade, includes the names of world leaders, Hollywood actors, pop stars and prominent business people.
It was handed over to home secretary Alan Johnson in a ceremony at WISE (the Wilberforce Institute for the Study of Slavery and Emancipation), on High Street, by Deputy Lord Mayor Cllr David Gemmell.
"When we established the petition we only hoped to achieve 20,000 signatures, so to have achieved this amount is extremely gratifying," said Cllr John Robinson, portfolio holder for image and culture in the city, who presided over the ceremony.
The petition calls on governments across the world to work together to help more than 12 million people who are believed to be enslaved in forced and bonded labour.
Many are women and children, who are trafficked and bought and sold as property while being threatened with violence.
Pop singer Mutya Buena became the 100,000th person to sign the petition last month on the 250th anniversary of the birth of Hull MP William Wilberforce, who collected almost one million signatures in his fight to end the slave trade more than 200 years ago.
The Hull petition has been signed by tens of thousands of local people as well as Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Reverend Jesse Jackson, Hollywood director Michael Apted, actor Ioan Gruffudd, and members of pop band The Kooks.
Also present at the handover ceremony were the Wilberforce Partners, including the University of Hull, Hull College and Hull and Humber Chamber of Commerce, who together with Hull City Council and Anti-Slavery International, helped set up the petition.