rescue

Many people are unfamiliar with the term “human trafficking” or associate it with the storyline of the popular 2008 Luc Besson film Taken. Solo travelers, especially women, are often advised against traveling alone because family members don’t have that “very particular set of skills” Liam Neeson’s character had developed. Human trafficking is a major societal problem, a condition that affects an estimated 35.8 million people, according to the International Labour Organization.

On a cool summer day I went with friends on what we knew would be a rigorous mountain hike. But rigorous soon turned to life-threatening. At the first viewpoint, we came upon a group of hikers screaming for help: a member of their party had fallen off the cliff.