Modern Slavery News Round-Up

Loyola Professor studies Modern-Day Slavery in New Orleans.
New Orleanians have always had a relaxed attitude about many things other cities deem illegal. But what happens when such cultural acceptance is extended to really serious issues like prostitution like Storyville back in the day or what is now called human trafficking. On this week's Notes from New Orleans Sharon Litwin talks with Laura Murphy, Assistant Professor and Director of the Modern Slavery Research read Project at Loyola University about where New Orleans stands on the issue of human trafficking.

Thailand arrest suspect leader in Human Trafficking Case.
Ko Myo, a 42-year-old Myanmar national, was shot and captured at a rubber plantation in southern Surat Thani during a raid by the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) and local police. The raid follows mounting international concern over the trafficking of Myanmar migrants in Thailand's lucrative fishing industry, one of several sources of human slavery in the country that could trigger U.S. sanctions. It also follows a Reuters investigation published on July 17 that found human smugglers selling some Rohingya Muslims into slavery on Thai fishing boats. Thousands of Rohingya have fled Myanmar in recent months after violence with Buddhists, who follow the country's majority religion.

Child Labor around the Globe.
Under the Convention on the Rights of the Child ratified by 154 countries, child labor is prohibited. But despite this, child labor is not only massively used in the factories, but is also becoming more common. According to the International Labor Organization, in developing countries about 250 million children have to work. It is reported that there are 153 million working children in Asia, 80 million - in Africa, and 17 million - in Latin America. "Many of them work under the conditions that are dangerous to their physical, mental and emotional development," human rights activists report. For example, children are involved in activities such as slavery, prostitution and pornography, participation in armed conflicts, as well as working in mines, agriculture and construction.

Modern Slavery News Round-Up

Feds dismiss largest US human trafficking case
Last Friday a federal judge dismissed human trafficking charges against executives and associates of Global Horizons Manpower Inc., a labor recruiting company.  The firm was accused of exploiting 600 of workers from Thailand through debt, confiscating passports and threats of deportation.  The case was dropped after it was made clear to prosecutors that they could not prove the charges "beyond a reasonable doubt."  Even Global Horizons attorney, Michael Green, stated that it was "very unusual" to dismiss a case with no intention of bringing it back.

Spotlight on human trafficking in Pennsylvania
A recent study released last month by a research agency has prompted an effort to legally define human trafficking in a broader sense in Pennsylvania.  The state has been known as a "transportation hub", but the study shows that it is also a source and destination for victims of trafficking.  Human trafficking was made a felony in 2006, but there is no clear distinction between labor and sex trafficking and victims are still treated as criminals.  The study confess that "while the crime...is not in its infancy, combating [it] at the state level is new."

Teen's brothel escape triggers Mexico clampdown
Only 14 years old, two cousins were abducted while waiting for their evening bus home and then sold to a pimp who forced them into prostitution.  These girls were beaten, raped, forced alcohol and drugs.  They were witness to terrible crimes, including the induction of an eight year old into their world.  After finally escaping, these girls' stories have resulted in the State's Attorney Office closing down 600 establishments and making human trafficking a federal crime, punishable up to 40 years in prison.

The Cost of Demand

In 2005 Shared Hope International conducted a studied in four separate countries (United States, Netherlands, Jamaica and Japan) to investigate the impact of demand on woman and child who are victims of commercial sex trafficking.  It then turned their results into a 30 minute video titled DEMAND.  It's findings?  Without demand, the 2 million that are currently victims would no longer exist.    But while the solution is seemingly obvious, its implementation is difficult to  incomprehensible. How do we eradicate something that, according to the DEMAND, is affecting every major center, every major city in the United States?

In order to understand demand, one must look not only at the "consumer," but also the seller.  In his article "Understanding the Demand", Kevin Bales reveals that "slaves today are cheaper than at any other time in history."  Whether it's due to an increasingly desperation among third world populations, or high population counts, trafficking people is surpassing drugs and weapons in profits.  Not only is it profitable, but the risk is relatively low cost.  Bales discusses how difficult it is to penetrate what he calls the "wholesale chain."  The web of recruiters, transporters and traffickers is so complex and varying that it's difficult to disrupt them.  This provides a relative safety net for traffickers.  Low cost + low risk = high demand.

The high demand comes not just from the low risk for the seller, but from the low risk to the buyer as well.  There is a legal sex market in the United States with strip clubs, peep shoes and pornography, but Demand says that even legal businesses can become fronts for trafficking by turning a blind eye.  It's close to impossible to ensure that all girls in these venues are "free" and many times, they are underage.

On paper this all makes sense, but it's in reality that things get complicated.  How do we tell the difference? How do we separate the victims from those seeking this lifestyle?  The most basic answer? Education.  If the public chooses to become aware of the issue of modern slavery and learn how to identify victims, this will lead to an increase in reports and apprehensions by authorities."  As Bales puts it: "an increase in risk to the perpetrator will decrease the demand."  Education will also decrease the likelihood that society will be able to rationalize the activity of buying trafficked people.  A strongly negative public attitude toward trafficking would make it prohibitive to buying sex, just for the fact that the consequences for the "product" to be a trafficked woman or child would be so high.  The stronger the attitude, the higher the prosecutions, argues Bales.

Take the first step to saving trafficked women and children buy watching DEMAND and then sharing it with friends and family.  By creating awareness about the cost of buying sex, we can create a force that will lead to better victim identification and international cooperation.  Make the pledge to end demand.  

Modern Slavery News Round-Up

Ottawa plan to combat human trafficking in booming Alberta
Canada's federal government's new plan to combat human trafficking recognizes Alberta's particular vulnerability to forced labor.  A Calgary-based researcher said that cases in this province have frequently involved adults of both genders being coerced into types of work outside of the sex trade.  The plan, called The National Action Plan to Combat Human Trafficking, includes the formation of an investigative squad dedicated to fighting this issue.  "...the forced labor issue is alive in that area, mainly because of the demand of workers in Alberta," says Sgt. Marie-Claude Arsenault.  The unit will receive $2 million to combat this problem.

Wisconsin officials strengthen fight against human trafficking
This past week 300 officials received training on how to identify cases of human trafficking after law enforcement leaders acknowledged that they could do a better attacking these criminals.  "...it's an issue that we frequently categorize wrong," says Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen.  The officials included law enforcement officers, prosecutors and victim-assistant specialists.  Survivors also attended to share their stories.    Tritt-Feleshchuk testified that she was lured not by drugs, but the "promise of love' and called for a law that would allow victims to have their records expunged if they were forced to commit this crime.  "While most prostitution stories end in jail, that's where my journey began."

Forced marriage: an ancient practice in modern Britain
Already illegal in Scotland, the British government is expected to pass a law under which parents in England and Wales who force their children to marry could be jailed.  The courts have had the power to issue civil orders, but now those who violate the "Forced Marriage Act" could be sent to jail for up to two years.  Forced marriage, distinct from an arranged marriage, is a phenomenon in Britain's large Asian community, particularly among Pakistanis and Bangladeshis.  Theresa May, the Home Secretary, also revealed a three-year, $772,000 fund to assist schools in recognizing signs of forced marriage among their students.