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It’s hard to acknowledge the fact that slavery was officially abolished in the 19th century when in 2016 thousands are still forced into servitude. Today, organizations like Human Trafficking Foundation, The A1 Campaign and Anti-Slavery International, just to name a few, play an imperative role in eradicating all forms of slavery. So what distinguishes modern slavery from its historic counterpart? Modern slavery itself takes a number of different forms, and because of this it constitutes a very complex crime. The term encompasses slavery, servitude, forced and compulsory labour and human trafficking. Where trafficking is involved, traffickers use deception in order to force individuals into work, which lead them into a life of abuse, servitude and inhumane treatment. Victims may be sexually exploited, forced to work for little or no pay or forced to commit criminal activities against their will. Some are even pressured into debt-bondage and are likely to be fearful of those who exploit them, who will often threaten and abuse their victims and their families. It is disheartening to note that British nationals are among the most common victims of slavery in the UK, specifically those who are poor , vulnerable, lacking education and often without family or friends to protect them.
Slavery in the UK
Cases of modern slavery are on the rise in Britain, and unfortunately it is happening behind closed doors, which means that these modern day slaves remain invisible. Major Anne Read, The Salvation Army’s anti-trafficking response co-ordinator, states that a young woman working at a nail bar could be exploited into the sex trade, or men picking potatoes could be told that their families will be harmed if they try to escape. The list of jobs tainted by slavery is only as limited as your imagination. As noted at the outset, slavery can be divided into different categories; the most common form of which, in the UK, is sexual exploitation. Individuals are usually seeking to escape poverty in order to improve their lives, what usually occurs is that the work they are promised does not exist. Victims are often deceived by their boyfriends, spouses or family members and only realise that they are being exploited once they arrive. Sexual exploitation is highly publicized, with media outlets covering its issues as well as conveying the victims experiences, however this area keeps growing each year.
There is also labour exploitation, this can include criminal exploitation as well, individuals are often working long hours for little or no pay in dire conditions and under verbal or physical threats of violence. Perpetrators specifically target vulnerable men with drug and alcohol addictions, or learning and mental health difficulties. The most popular sector for labour exploitation to take place is block paving, agriculture, food and construction. Another form of contemporary slavery is domestic servitude which involves working in private households for little or no pay, often having no free time and minimal privacy. Workers are frequently forced to to sleep where they work. Victims of domestic servitude perform a range of tasks from cooking to taking care of children to running errands; they are on call 24 hours a day. Domestic work is poorly regulated and undervalued, they are often subject to serious abuses, depending on the country they are working in they may have more protection than others, but the enforcement is poor and the protections have yet to be translated into practice. Child exploitation is often the hardest to acknowledge. It is difficult to imagine that our designer brands or the ingredients in our favourite foods are obtained through such inhuman practices. They are likely to be poor, lacking education and isolated, they are vulnerable simply because they are children, and as a result children account for a large proportion of victims. Young girls are often reported to be subject to sexual exploitation, while boys often are labour exploited and are sometimes compelled by their abuser to commit crimes. Cases are be reporting constantly, just a few days ago it was reported that a man had been charged with holding a person in “slavery or servitude” in Chertsey. While in another case reported 2 people in Rotherham were held on suspicion of arranging the travel of another person for the purposes of exploiting them. Slavery is far from being eradicated in the UK.
What is being done?
Home Secretary Theresa May stated that, “the first step to eradicating modern slavery is acknowledging and confronting its existence”. This is what the Government aims to do through the Modern Slavery Act 2015. The Modern Slavery Act raised the maximum jail sentence for traffickers to life form 14 years, granted police greater powers to deal with criminal gangs and introduced measures to protect people at risk of being enslaved. They have also launched the modern slavery strategy, which aspires to identify priority countries to work with, also developing local initiatives abroad, to strengthen the response by local authorities to child abuse, as well as bring awareness among homeless shelter staff of signs of modern slavery. Signs of slavery of often hidden in the UK and elsewhere making it difficult to recognize those in need, The Modern Slavery website has provided some useful information for spotting signs of slavery that everyone should be aware of. Physical appearance may start to diminish, individuals might show signs of physical or psychological abuse look malnourished, unkempt or appear withdrawn from society. Signs that they are isolated from their community, victims may rarely be allowed to travel on their own, seem under the control or influence of others, rarely interact, or appear unfamiliar with their neighbourhood or where they work.
They may even be living in dirty, cramped or overcrowded accommodation, and/or living and working at the same address. Victims may have no identification documents, have few personal possessions and always wear the same clothes. They may also travel at unusual times; they may be regularly dropped off/collected for work very early in the morning or very late at night. The last sign Modern Slavery lists in the reluctance to seek help. Victims may avoid eye contact, appear frightened or hesitant to talk to strangers and fear law enforcers for many reasons, such as not knowing whom to trust or where to get help; fear of deportation; or fear of violence to them or their family.
If you think that someone you know is being subjected to contemporary slavery, please report it by calling the Modern Slavery helpline on 0800 0121 700 or going online at modernslavery.co.uk