This weekend the nation commemorates the momentous event that took place 200 years ago on March 25 when Parliament abolished the slave trade in the British colonies.

This was largely due to the dedicated campaigning work by William Wilberforce over decades, who was challenged by his Christian faith to fight evil in his society. Who says that individuals can't change history?

Sadly, people are bought and sold today. Perhaps more people are trapped in its vice than in Wilberforce's day - from girls spirited across the world into brothels in Europe (and yes, in Kingston and Richmond) to children sold by poverty-stricken parents or kidnapped to work in farms.

Nearly half the world's cocoa is grown in Cote d'Ivoire where it is estimated that 12,000 children are in forced labour, picking the crop that goes into our chocolates.

Think about this this at Easter.

Why not find manufacturers that guarantee that their ingredients are not farmed by slave labour: stopthetraffik.org gives the details.

Peter Flower Chairman, Kingston & Richmond Christian Peoples' Alliance Party