Cheryl Perera (born 1986) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

children's rights activist. As a teenager, she founded OneChild, a

non-governmental organization A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see American and British English spelling differences#-ise, -ize (-isation, -ization), spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from g ...

which seeks to eliminate the

commercial sexual exploitation of children Commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC) is a commercial transaction that involves the sexual exploitation of a child, or person under the age of consent. CSEC involves a range of abuses, including but not limited to: the prostitution of ...

abroad. For her work, and in particular her achievements at a young age, Perera has received several accolades.

Advocacy

Perera first became involved in children's rights advocacy work after researching child sexual exploitation and sex tourism in

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...

for a high school class project. In 2002, at 17, she took three-and-a-half months off from school to continue her research in her parents' home country, Sri Lanka. Shocked at the ease with which children could be exploited, she met with a Sri Lankan Presidential Advisor and the National Child Protection Authority to discuss the problems she saw. The meeting led her to serve as bait herself in a sting operation to catch a sexual predator. Perera met with a man who had posted a solicitation for a 15-year-old girl on the Internet. After leading him to talk about his intentions on tape, they went to a nearby hotel where police were waiting to make the arrest. Sri Lankan government invited her to serve as an adviser on child protection, but then she declined. Perera returned to Canada, caught up on homework, graduated and enrolled at the University of Toronto. In 2005, she founded OneChild, a youth-driven and youth-run

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

, in 2005. She was successful in lobbying the Canadian Tourism Board and the travel industry to take measures against child sexual tourism abroad, like showing a video about child sex tourism on some

Air Canada Air Canada is the flag carrier and the largest airline of Canada by the size and passengers carried. Air Canada maintains its headquarters in the borough of Saint-Laurent, Montreal, Quebec. The airline, founded in 1937, provides scheduled an ...

flights. Perera has taken her advocacy to several countries struggling with sex tourism and human trafficking. In 2006 she went with a group to the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

to meet with the People's Recovery, Empowerment and Development Assistance Foundation (PREDA), an organization which provides support for former sex workers, and to provide monetary support for the creation of a rehabilitation center for rescued children. In 2010 she traveled to

Pattaya, Thailand Pattaya ( th, พัทยา, , ) is a city in Thailand. It is on the east coast of the Gulf of Thailand, about southeast of Bangkok, within, but not part of, Bang Lamung district in the province of Chonburi. Pattaya City ( th, เมือ� ...

and other sex tourism destinations in Thailand and Southeast Asia, meeting with agencies to learn more about local issues, efforts, and where help is needed. For her activism and role in the law enforcement operation, Perera was given the title "President's Nominee on Child Protection", a permanent placement in the Presidential Secretariat. Perera has been recognized as one of "Canada's Top 20 Under 20", received the 2005 Impact Entrepreneur of the Year award, and was named a BRICK Award Winner in 2007. In 2016 the

World Economic Forum The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental and lobbying organisation based in Cologny, canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German engineer and economist Klaus Schwab. The foundation, ...

named Perera one of its

Young Global Leaders Forum of Young Global Leaders, or Young Global Leaders (YGL), was created by Klaus Schwab, founder of the World Economic Forum. The YGL, a non-profit organization managed from Geneva, Switzerland, is under the supervision of the Swiss government ...

. In April 2017, Perera was among 10 Canadian women recognized by L'Oreal Paris "Women of Worth" program. In December 2018, she participated in the UN-sponsored The Global Compact on Migration conference in Marrakesh.

References

External links

OneChild
{{DEFAULTSORT:Perera, Cheryl Prostitution in Canada Members of the Order of Ontario Canadian activists Living people Sexual abuse victim advocates Canadian people of Sri Lankan descent 1986 births

Advocacy

See also

References

External links