PETALING JAYA: A senior lawyer, who is an anti-slavery activist, will run a distance of 10km next Sunday to raise awareness of the evils of slavery and all forms of forced labour.
P S Ranjan, 71, who will be accompanied by son Prasad, 24, will start running at 7am from their home in Damansara to Bukit Persekutuan and back.
“It is a private event as I did not want to go through the formalities with the authorities,” he told FMT.
Ranjan, who has been training for the event since last April, said he hoped to complete the course within 90 minutes.
He said some 165 friends and well-wishers would gather at the Royal Selangor Club for brunch and lunch from 10am to 2pm to mark his run.
“I hope to raise between RM15,000 and RM20,000 from them in support of my effort,” he said.
He said the money would be channelled to Anti-Slavery International, the world’s oldest human rights organisation, which is based in the United Kingdom.
Ranjan, who has been a member of the international body for about 25 years, hoped his 10km run would help raise awareness about slavery.
“In Malaysia, there have been cases like child labour and forced prostitution,” he said pointing to a recent case of a man who was jailed for 10 years for forcing his wife into prostitution so as to repay his debts from her earnings.
“It was an outrageous assault on human dignity,” said Ranjan, who had in the past provided assistance to the group, when it highlighted media reports of the mistreatment of maids in Malaysia.
Ranjan hopes more young people will become anti-slavery crusaders.
He said there were several labour-related non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that had advocated and championed the rights of migrant workers who were victims of human trafficking.
Meanwhile, those interested in supporting Ranjan’s efforts against slavery and forced labour can send donations to www.antislavery.org/donate or www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Ranjan-Paramalingam. -FMT
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