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Goddess Amani

I first came across the term “contemporary slaves” at the Tribunal on Violence Against Women during the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing. In this tribunal, which lasted a full day, several women shared their stories of sexual slavery at the hands of international traffickers in countries in Latin America and Southeast Asia, and ultimately described how they were able to break free from the grip of international criminal networks for the participants.

In 1860, on the brink of the Civil War in America, a national census was conducted which included the precise count of 3,953,761 slaves in America. This number made up 6.12% of the total population. This was the last recorded census in the world regarding the number of slaves.

Since the abolishment of slavery, it has taken various forms in different countries and accurately counting it is a challenging task due to numerous obstacles.

In the early 20th century, a campaign was launched against “white slavery”. This term was used to refer to forced prostitution in America, and as a result, the “Mann Act” was passed in 1910 in America to prohibit the trafficking of white slaves. This law, also known as the White Slave Traffic Act, was the first law against human trafficking, considering the transportation of women and girls for the purpose of prostitution as a crime. Therefore, the term “modern slavery” or “modern-day slavery” primarily brings to mind images of women and girls who are deprived of their basic rights and freedoms at the hands of criminals. However, the current discourse on modern slavery is not limited to the sexual enslavement of women and girls, but encompasses a wide range of individuals who have been deprived of their freedom and right to choose.

It is clear that in the 21st century, the discourse and debate on modern slavery is intertwined with labor laws, working conditions, migration, and the judicial systems of different countries, as well as human rights and labor standards. This spectrum of forces, which come together in the face of modern slavery and its various forms, includes organizations such as the Walk Free Foundation, Anti Slavery International, the Catholic Church, and the US government, which produces an annual report on human trafficking on a global scale. It also includes progressive forces, human rights activists, civil rights advocates, feminists, and non-profit organizations defending women’s rights. It can be said that modern slavery has no open or recognized supporters.

Definition of Modern Slavery.

Although there are different definitions of modern slavery, the 2016 Global Slavery Index simply defines it as “taking away freedom and violating the rights of others.” When a person loses control and ownership of their own body, they have no choice or right to refuse forced labor, they are deprived of their freedom, and are subjected to violence, threats, and exploitation. They also lose the ability to change their unjust and undesirable circumstances. In reality, we are faced with victims of modern slavery and bondage.

Some examples of modern slavery include slavery for national, familial, racial, class reasons, sexual slavery, slavery of migrants, early child marriages, child labor, human trafficking, child soldiers, and other cases.

The United Nations also describes modern slavery as follows: “While the forms and manifestations of traditional and modern slavery are very different, the violation of human rights and human dignity is the central point and heart of both systems and practices.”

The Global Image of Modern Slavery.

Human trafficking is one of the most profitable businesses of modern times. It is estimated that 21 million people are victims of trafficking around the world. This activity generates profits of around 32 billion dollars.

In the world of the 21st century, 29 countries still have not joined the global protocol to prevent human trafficking.

In the 2016 report by the International Labor Organization, 21 million people are victims of forced labor, of which 4.11 million are women and girls and 5.9 million are men and boys. Additionally, it is estimated that 19 million people are subjected to exploitation and investment by individuals and commercial enterprises, while 2 million are harassed and abused by governments or armed groups. Out of the 19 million victims of exploitation and enslavement by individuals and commercial enterprises, 5.4 million are victims of sexual slavery.

Forced labor, which is one of the forms of modern slavery, generates an equivalent profit of 150 billion dollars. Forced labor is mainly concentrated in domestic work, agriculture, construction, manufacturing, and prostitution. Migrant workers and indigenous people, especially in the field of forced labor, are among the most vulnerable parts of society.

Modern Slavery of Workers – A Perspective‌

Special for migrant workers.

The International Labor Organization and other international organizations distinguish “modern slavery” from other forms of human rights violations due to the unique characteristics of the victims of this phenomenon.

A human is considered a victim of modern slavery and servitude, if:

1- Forced to do work under physical and psychological threats.

2- The ownership and control should be in the hands of the employer, and this control should be exercised through harassment, threats, physical or psychological intimidation.

3- The transformation of humans into commodities and objects that are bought and sold, and Mymlk becomes a person who is placed for sale.

4- Physically, he has been confined and restricted, and his freedom of movement and transportation has been taken away from him.

Migrant workers make up 3 out of 150 million of the 232 million migrants in the world. This accounts for 7.72% of the total number of migrants who are of working age (15 years and above). Out of the 206 million migrants who are 15 years and above, 83 million are men and 66 million are women.

Out of 1.67 million domestic workers in the world, 5.8 million or 4.73% of all domestic workers are women. This report by the International Labor Organization, published on December 15, 2015, also shows that domestic workers women have the highest concentration in the Southeast Asia and Pacific region at 24%. After that, Northern, Southern, and Western Europe or 1.22% of domestic workers are women, and Arab countries with 19% of domestic workers being women, are three regions of the world with the highest concentration of domestic workers women.

Modern Education and Children.

In the Convention on the Rights of the Child, adopted in 1989, every person under the age of 18 is defined as a child. Children who are victims of slavery and modern-day servitude are primarily classified into the following groups:

1- Children who are subjected to harassment and abuse in industries such as pornography, obscenity, illegal activities in the field of drug trafficking, and other illegal activities, are exploited for begging, petty theft, and so on.

2- Mandatory child labor in agricultural industries, factories, construction, brick kilns, mines, restaurants, and tourist areas.

3- Children who are taken hostage by armed forces in war zones and are essentially child soldiers. However, children who are exploited in jungle areas are not limited to child soldiers, but many children in these areas are used for carrying and transportation and girls are forced into marriage and are actually under the banner of “spouse”, subjected to sexual slavery by warmongers and bandits.

According to UNICEF’s report, 300,000 child soldiers are currently being held captive and enslaved in 30 regions around the world, with some as young as 10 years old. These children are particularly vulnerable to long-term psychological damage that will continue to haunt them even if they are able to escape.

4- Children who do household work and are employed for long hours are in unsanitary conditions, subjected to physical and psychological abuse, working for little or even no pay, away from their homes and families.

According to the International Labour Organization’s report in 2012, there are 168 million child laborers between the ages of 5 and 17. 5% of child laborers are in unbearable and deadly conditions.

Modern slavery in Iran.

According to the Walk Free report, Iran ranks 20th in the world for modern slavery, with 495,300 victims. This number also makes up about six-tenths of a percent of Iran’s total population. Additionally, Iran is recognized as one of the most lenient countries in terms of taking action against modern slavery.

In the 2015 report by the US Department of State, which is published annually on global human trafficking, it is mentioned that considering the lack of accurate statistics and information on human trafficking and modern slavery in Iran, the following cases are highlighted…

This report states that during the years 2009-2015, women and girls have increasingly been taken from Iran to countries in the Persian Gulf region to be handed over to groups that subject them to sexual slavery or forced marriage. Additionally, cases of forced child labor, particularly among Afghan children, involve physical and psychological abuse and addiction as methods of keeping individuals in modern slavery. The use of Afghan men and boys for forced labor in agriculture and construction is also mentioned in this report; it is also noted that Afghan boys are at risk of sexual exploitation by their employers.

Modern slavery index in 2016.

The “Walk Free” Foundation, founded by Australian billionaire Andrew Forrest in 2013, has been working to combat modern slavery. Each year, the foundation publishes a report on the scale of modern slavery in all countries and the efforts of governments to address it. According to the foundation’s reports, in the past 2 years, there has been a 28% increase in the number of people in modern slavery, and in 2016, an estimated 8.45 million people were enslaved. However, according to Walk Free officials, this increase in numbers is likely due to the foundation’s increased ability to identify more individuals as slaves.

This report on the modern slavery index in 2016, with 42,000 interviews in 53 different languages, concludes that a form of modern slavery exists in 167 countries. More than half of the 8.45 million people affected are in 5 countries: India, China, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Uzbekistan. India alone accounts for nearly 35.18 million of this number. According to the Walk Free report in 2016, North Korea, Iran, Eritrea, Hong Kong, and South Sudan are among the most lenient countries when it comes to taking action and policies to end modern slavery and servitude. The governments that have taken the most comprehensive actions to combat modern slavery include the Netherlands, the United States, Britain, Sweden, Australia, and Portugal.

According to statistics from the Walk Free Foundation, out of 8.45 million modern slaves, 68% are in forced labor (International Labour Organization – 2012) and one out of every three victims of modern slavery is a child. Additionally, perpetrators exploit half of modern slaves who are women and girls (International Labour Organization – 2012). Therefore, the face of modern slavery is predominantly female, like the face of poverty in the world. Modern slaves are producers of 136 goods from 74 countries around the world.

Criticism of the method.‌

Collecting statistics on modern slavery.

Some researchers have criticized the reports presented by the Wake Free Foundation since 2013; because they argue that these reports present a picture of the current world that places the burden of responsibility and the root of modern slavery in the Global South, meaning the countries of Asia, Africa, and Latin America. The majority of slaves in these regions and the majority of governments that deny or turn a blind eye to efforts to end modern slavery are also from the Global South. This image ignores the interconnectedness of the current world and disregards the dominant discourse of the West that maintains exploitation and exploitation of the Global South and backward countries.

The Wake Free Foundation includes modern slavery, which includes human trafficking, forced labor, and forced marriage. In the global map and image of modern slavery, Asia and the Middle East have the highest number of slaves, followed by Africa and then Latin America. Western Europe, North America, and Australia are in contrast to these countries, as they have taken the most action and are in a much better position in this indicator of modern slavery. This image evokes the colors of colonialism in the mind. An image that the Western world, or the “North world,” should rise to save the “South world.”

The reality is that the forces advocating for justice for victims of modern slavery have also had remarkable successes in recent decades, in which, to a limited extent, as a resident of Southern California, I have participated or witnessed. The noteworthy point is that while some defenders of the fight against modern slavery have been working towards creating laws and policies to combat forced labor, human trafficking, and slavery in recent years – which in itself can be considered positive and successful steps in the fight against modern slavery – we are also witnessing violations of laws and anti-worker, anti-immigration policies during the same period, which only contribute to the vulnerability of victims of modern slavery.

Bridget Anderson, a professor of migration and citizenship and the project director of the Center on Migration, Policy and Society, believes that actions and policies against human trafficking by governments in the Global North (including Europe and North America) have been used to further anti-immigrant policies in these countries.

The Global Slavery Index is a foundation that ranks countries in terms of modern slavery, vulnerability of citizens in these countries to slavery, and government responses and actions to combat it.

It should be noted that the classification of government actions and policies in dealing with modern slavery has existed in situations where this foundation has taken action. The US Department of State presents an annual report entitled “Trafficking in Persons” and categorizes countries around the world in three groups in terms of combating human trafficking. The question arises as to why the Walk Free Foundation has created another index in this area, while using the reports of the US Department of State as a statistical source for its own reports. The Walk Free Foundation, as a non-profit organization, seems to pose a challenge to America’s pioneering role in foreign policy in this area.

At the end, the gap between countries that are rejected in the WAC report on modern slavery or actions against it, and those who are encouraged, is the same gap between “developed countries” in Europe and North America and “developing countries” in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. This image neglects the economic, historical, and political relationships on both sides of this gap, and ignores the history of colonization in Western European and American countries in the three continents.

For defenders of human rights and global social justice, it is not only possible but also necessary to work towards a world free from policies that deepen these divides.

Sources.

1- The Mann Act, English Wikipedia’s law on prohibiting white slavery.

2- The website of the Walk Free Foundation.

3- A Look at Human Trafficking Around the World (Infographic: A Global Look at Human Trafficking), UNICEF website.

4- ILO Global Estimates on Migrant Workers – 2015 Report, International Labour Organization website.