I have been wanting to write about modern slaves for a long time but I sometimes break down and have mood swings midway into writing. I live in a part of the world where kids hawk on the streets, weaving between traffic with their wares on their heads trying to make a living while their mates are in school. I have seen children in their teens forced into prostitution. I have seen kids being abused and tortured. Seen kids below ten married off to men old enough to be their fathers. I see a lot more and think that this is the right time to say something...
Contemporary slavery refers to the institutions of slavery that continue to exist in the present day. Estimates of the number of slaves today range from 12 million to 29 million.
Slavery is a multi-billion dollar industry with estimates of up to $35 billion generated annually. The
United Nations estimates that roughly 27 to 30 million individuals are currently caught in the slave trade industry.The Global Slavery Index 2013 states that 10 nations account for 76 per
cent of the world’s enslaved. India has the most slaves of any country
at 14 million; over 1% of the population. China has the second-largest
number with 2.9 million slaves, followed by Pakistan with 2.1 million,
Nigeria with 701,000, Ethiopia with 651,000, Russia with 516,000,
Thailand with 473,000, Congo with 462,000, Myanmar with 384,000, and
Bangladesh with 343,000.
Mauritania was the last nation to officially abolish slavery, doing so in 2007; yet 4.3% of the population still remains enslaved. Despite being illegal in every nation; slavery is still prevalent in many forms today.
Professor Deirdre Coleman, of the
University of Melbourne said,
Slavery is something that’s with us always. We need to keep it in
view and think about it when we buy our clothes, to question where they
are sourced. Governments and CEOs need to think more carefully about
what they are doing and what they are inadvertently supporting.
Here a few forms of modern slavery in pictures...
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| In many places, children are sold even before they are born. In places like Nigeria, baby factories are bug business |
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| Forced labour is a form of modern slavery where children are forced to work as much as adults do without regards to their health, size or future. Many are worked till the point of death and no health care would be provided |
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| Children comprise the majority of slaves today. Most are domestic workers or work in cocoa, cotton or fishing industries |
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| Millions of people today work as bonded laborers. The cycle begins when
people take extreme loans under the condition that they work off the
debt. The "loan" is designed so that it can never be paid off, and is
often passed down for generations. This form of slavery is prevalent in
South Asia. |
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| Mainly driven by the culture in certain regions, early or forced marriage
is a form of slavery that affects millions of women and girls all over
the world. When families cannot support their children, the daughters
are often married off to the males of wealthier, more powerful families.
These men are often significantly older than the girls. The females are
forced into lives whose main purpose is to serve their husbands. This
oftentimes fosters an environment for physical, verbal and sexual abuse |
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| Child soldiering can be a manifestation of human trafficking where it
involves the unlawful recruitment or use of children—through force,
fraud, or coercion—as combatants, or for labor or sexual exploitation by
armed forces. Perpetrators may be government forces, paramilitary
organizations, or rebel groups. Many children are forcibly abducted to
be used as combatants. Others are made unlawfully to work as porters,
cooks, guards, servants, messengers, or spies. Young girls can be forced
to marry or have sex with male combatants. Both male and female child
soldiers are often sexually abused and are at high risk of contracting
sexually transmitted diseases. |
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| Young girls aren't spared of this madness |
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| she's just a girl |
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| most times, children as young as this girl are forced into prostitution |
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| reality |
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| A victim of abuse |
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| Children are the largest victims of abuse and modern slavery |
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| None is too young to work |
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| He should be in school but no one cares about him |
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| Nothing is too heavy for a child labourer in the eyes of his tormentor |
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| Nothing |
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| Don't ignore the call |
Modern slavery is encouraged by everyone of us in some way. We all wear clothes manufactured from sweat shops and buy products developed through forced and child labour. It is time we stopped patronising companies known to employ these cost cutting measures that causes hardship to millions of other people the world over. THIS IS THE TIME TO SPEAK OUT!
Slavery in any form is bad. Not only does slavery cause physical pain, it also destroys humanity and portrays us as savages. Share this topic with your family and friends for them to also be aware of what goes on in the world that we are part of but know few things about.
By clicking the share button, you are taking a stance against slavery and speaking up for the millions who have no voice. 
