VIENNA, Nov. 5 (Xinhua) -- Oscar-winning actor Nicolas Cage on Tuesday renewed his appointment as the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime's (UNODC) Goodwill Ambassador for Global Justice.
Attending an event in Vienna, Cage called for greater attention to the issue of human trafficking.
"As a global society, we cannot tolerate people being bought and sold as commodities," he said.
A highlight of the event was the auction of a specially designed "Blue Heart" carpet, an international symbol increasingly being adopted in the fight against this scourge.
Proceeds from the event will go the UN Voluntary Trust Fund for Victims of Trafficking in Persons, which supports grass-roots organizations that rescue, shelter and reintegrate victims into society.
UNODC Executive Director Yuri Fedotov said, "Since 2010, 1.5 million dollars have been contributed to the Trust Fund. Thanks to this money, 11 grass-roots organizations around the world have been able to support victims and survivors of trafficking, especially women and children."
According to a recent UNODC report, women and girls make up 75 percent of detected victims, with girls constituting two out of every three child victims.