Albania is a truly wonderful and beautiful country, but it has a lot of problems as well. Human trafficking, organised crime, drugs, and violence towards women are just some of the things that this country are grappling with. NGOs and charities work desperately to provide services to the community that the government does not have the funds, or the motivation to do so.

Human trafficking is one of the big issues in the country. Women are often tricked into relationships with men that lure them abroad into prostitution, some are kidnapped, others go willingly, promised a “better job” only to find out they are nothing more than a sex slave when they get there. Those that escape or are liberated, struggle to return home as there is a social stigma around the issue. Many find themselves shunned and disowned by their families, particularly if they have a child. There are cases where women have actually returned to being trafficked because the alternative is a life of poverty, being ostracised by their entire family and social circle.

It is impossible to calculate how many Albanian women become victims but in the UK in 2018, a total of 947 Albanians were found to have been trafficked. This is just in the UK and just the ones that were discovered. When you consider those that never get reduced, and those that end up all over the EU and US, you can imagine the scope of the problem.

The Albanian government, whilst aware of the problem does very little to help. Whether it is a lack of funds, or a lack of knowledge, responsibility ends up in the hands of a few NGOs who work tirelessly to support victims and also to prevent women from becoming victims. They go into communities and educate families and women on the dangers, risks and warning signs, they try to reduce the stigma, they work with the government and police, and they provide counselling, medical care, education and refuge to those who have returned. The work they do is priceless, but they are all struggling for funds. Most funding comes from outside of Albania and many are relying on donations on a month to month basis- this means the work that they can offer both short term and long term is severely limited. They need help because the problem is not going away an is not getting any better.

 I am not a fan of EL James or her bookand I am quite upset by the portrayal of Albania, Albanians and women in her new book, but I understand that my personal taste is of little relevance here. The reason I am writing to you is because I feel that this book, its portrayals, and the negative stereotypes that are propagated are harmful and disrespectful to any individual who has suffered and survived a trafficking ordeal.

EL James has an opportunity here to make a huge difference to the lives of the people in the country she has written about. What would be a small donation from her, has the power to fun a number of NGOs for a significant amount of time, or to help them expand the work that they do. I feel that there is an opportunity here for her to extend her good will to the people of Albania and the thousands of women like Alessia that suffer the reality of this every day, but without the romantic love story.

Whilst what she wrote is a fiction and a fantasy, the reality is that there is little help out there for the women who actually go through this, without the happy ending. They are violated, beaten, dehumanised, raped and even murdered, and if they do manage to return home, they are disowned by their families and left in the street. There is nothing romantic about their story.

Please sign to ask EL James, who is worth $150 million to donate some proceeds from her book "The Mister" to Albanian human trafficking charities. Her book portrays Albania, Albanian people, and victims of human trafficking in a bad way and the victims of this deserve financial help to improve their situation.