21-36 Million Slaves in the “Modern” World – Did You Know about Them?

This January it’s Slavery and Human Trafficking Awareness and Protection Month. Human trafficking is modern day slavery and is something that most of us have heard about. In 2014 The Global Slavery Index estimated that there are 21-36 million people worldwide living in slavery. This is in spite of human rights legislation – The Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, which comes under The United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and the criminalisation of human trafficking in 90% of countries worldwide (UNODC, 2014). Human trafficking is a widespread severe problem which moves within and across regions nationally and internationally:

The crime of trafficking in persons affects virtually every country in every region of the world. Between 2010 and 2012, victims with 152 different citizenships were identified in 124 countries across the globe (UNODC, 2014).

So, who are these people? How old are they? What work are they forced into and by whom? Well here’s the lowdown on the issue of modern slavery with some key facts from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime’s (UNODC) latest report (2014). Of course though, due to its nature we can’t know the real number and nature for sure of people living in this hell…

1. 49% of human trafficking victims are women (21% are girls, 18% are men and 12% are boys) (2011) but the number of women being trafficked is decreasing. 
2. The number of detected child victims is increasing. 1 in 3 victims of human trafficking is a child. If you break that down by gender – 2 out of 3 child victims are girls.
3. A greater number of male victims are being detected.
4. Forms of exploitation include: sexual exploitation, forced labour, servitude and “slavery like” work and organ removal.
5. Most victims are victims of sexual exploitation (mostly women) but other forms are increasing.
6. Forced labour accounted for 40% of trafficking victims between 2010-2012 and is increasing. Forced labour includes: domestic work, textile production, cleaning and domestic work, catering and working in restaurants, construction, manufacturing and textile production.
7. “Mixed exploitation” other than just sexual exploitation or forced labour includes for the purpose of: committing crime, begging, making pornography (including online pornography), benefit fraud, baby selling, illegal adoption, forced marriage, armed combat and for rituals.
8. Females are mostly exploited for sexual purposes (79%), whilst for males it’s forced labour (83%) (2010-12).
9. Children for example are used as child soldiers and beggars. Child trafficking is common in Sub-Saharan Africa. Children are being used as soldiers in Central and West Africa.
10. In the Middle East and North Africa nearly all victims detected are adults.
11. 1/3 victims is exploited in their own country of citizenship.
12. In the Americas, South Asia, East Asia and the Pacific forced labour is the most common reason behind human trafficking.
13. In Central Asia, Eastern Europe, Western and Central Europe most victims are exploited for sexual purposes.
14. Transnational trafficking makes up almost 25% of all trafficking flows and isn’t as common as domestic or intraregional trafficking.
15. When traffickers traffic people abroad – they are usually their own fellow citizens.
16. 72% of convicted traffickers are men. 
17. Proportionally, women are convicted for trafficking more than most other crimes.

You hear about it in the news: prostitution in Europe, domestic servants in the Middle East, forced labour in Asia but there are many complex patterns and changes in trends. We need to raise awareness and get our voices heard to say “no” to human trafficking and “yes” to change.

Campaigning and awareness raising

So what can we do to get involved with the fight against human trafficking? Here’s a few tips:

• Raise awareness online – blog, tweet and use hashtags. Free the Slaves have produced Facebook and Twitter cover photos you can download and upload on your social media profiles and are promoting the following hashtags: #freetheslaves #endslavery #humantrafficking
• Donate to and/or volunteer with relevant NGOs such as Free the Slaves, Stop The Traffik and Polaris Project. You can find a list of other relevant NGOs here
• Sign the 50 For Freedom Campaign petition
• Take part in Stop the Traffick’s campaigns and check out their tips
• Those of you in the USA can email members of Congress.
• If you’re in the UK write to your local MP and check out APPG
• If you’re elsewhere – write to local authorities/organisations/MPs
• Sign one of many petitions available online on Change.org
• Donate your old phones to Phones4Freedom to help anti-trafficking activists and survivors
• Check out the other tips available online here
• Get creative and come up with fundraising and awareness raising events

As always – get noticed, get heard and fight to #endslavery and #freetheslaves! No to #humantrafficking

Salam!

Information Source:

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) (2014) Global Report on Trafficking in Persons 

Free the Slaves also have a free factsheet which you can download from their website.

*Images are re-published under a Creative Commons licence