Modern Slavery News Round-up

Kristof: Poverty a driving force in human trafficking One way to fight human trafficking in Haiti would be to provide free and accessible birth control, so that women don't end up with children that they struggle to feed. Another would be to provide free public education, so that parents don't feel that the only way to get schooling for their children is to send them off as unpaid maids. That's why what's at stake in fighting global poverty isn't just poor people's incomes. It's also dignity and freedom - and the right of a girl to grow up in something better than quasi-slavery.
Proos talks human trafficking protection bills
Michigan lawmakers will be working this year to approve more protections for victims of human trafficking. State Senator John Proos says that human trafficking in the United States usually involves forcing someone into prostitution, and he thinks it's a bigger problem in Michigan than many people might realize.
Punjab to create awareness to prevent human trafficking
Punjab government would soon launch a campaign to create awareness about the law dealing with human trafficking and exploitation of people by fraudulent travel agents.
Pair faces human trafficking charges involving teen girl
Police said a man from Arkansas and woman from Oklahoma were arrested in Baton Rouge on human trafficking of a child and other charges Sunday. Detectives reported their investigation revealed one of the suspects purchased a bus ticket for the girl to get her from Arkansas to Baton Rouge. They also reported an ad was placed on the website Backpage.com promoting sex acts she offered.
Spain grapples with human trafficking
The first European Commission report on human trafficking in Europe, published by Eurostat in April 2013, put the number of victims between 2008 and 2010 at 23,632, with the number growing by 18 percent over the three-year period. Of that total, 15 percent were children and adolescents. In 62 percent of the cases, the victims – mainly women – were trafficked for sexual exploitation, while 25 percent were trafficked for forced labour, and 14 percent were victims of other kinds of trafficking, such as organ removal. In 2010, Spain had the second-highest number of victims of human trafficking in the European Union, after Italy, according to the study.

Modern Slavery News Round-Up

Cyber-Sex Trafficking: A 21st Century Scourge

Andrea was 14 years old the first time a voice over the Internet told her to take off her clothes.

"I was so embarrassed because I don't want others to see my private parts," she said. "The customer told me to remove my blouse and to show him my breasts."  Andrea, which is not her real name, said she had been lured away from her rural, mountain village in the Philippines by a cousin who said he would give her a well-paid job as a babysitter in the city. She thought she was leaving her impoverished life for an opportunity to earn money to finish high school. Instead, she became another victim caught up in the newest but no less sinister world of sexual exploitation; cyber-sex trafficking. Read More

Fighting Forced Labor Helps Women Beat Poverty.
Across the planet, about one in every seven of us lives in extreme poverty, having to survive on less than $1.25 a day. Every day, they and the millions more living just above the poverty line struggle to have enough to eat, and dream of a better life and of earning enough to provide for their families.  Geeta Devi was one of these people. The 32 year-old mother of two from Nepal had been struggling to support her children and, like millions before her, made the difficult decision to leave her family behind in search of better work. Geeta, whose real name is being withheld to protect her safety, left her home believing she had secured a job through a local recruitment agency to work in a hospital in Lebanon. Read More

 Forced Labor Accounts for Thousands Missing in Mexico’s Drug War 
A recent report indicates that civilians caught in the crossfire between drug cartels and the Mexican government may be also serving as human chattel, forced to perform labor in gang-run camps. The Spanish-language magazine Proceso features interviews with victims’ relatives and members of civil society, all of whom tell of a vast system of forced labor throughout Mexico. These laborers are counted among the 26,000 “disappeared” in Mexico. Civil society groups tell of some of these captives being alive but forced to perform “jobs” on behalf of the cartels. These can include “forced killings, preparing marijuana, constructing tunnels, cleaning safe houses, preparing food, installing communications equipment, and acting as lookouts or sex slaves.” The idea of cartels kidnapping individuals to perform specialized tasks is also well-documented, lending credibility to Procesco’s report. InSight Crime notes, however, that some of the claims Proceso make could still be inflated. Read more here.

FACT: More than 140 Million Girls will marry between 2011 and 2020

Between 2011 and 2020, more than 140 million girls will become child brides, according to United Nations Population Fund. Of the 140 million girls who will marry before the age of 18, 50 million will be under the age of 15. Despite the fact that 158 countries have set the legal age for marriage at 18 years, laws are rarely enforced since the practice of marrying young children is upheld by tradition and social norms. Child marriage, which has existed for centuries, is a complex issue, rooted deeply in gender inequality, tradition and poverty. The practice is most common in rural and impoverished areas, where prospects for girls can be limited. In many cases, parents arrange these marriages and young girls have no choice.