50M people are trapped in slavery
MODERN-DAY slavery is an international crime affecting around 50 million individuals worldwide with over 8,000 people in Ireland being exploited.
This global issue transcends age, gender and ethnicities and shockingly, it is on the rise.
Yesterday, the United Nations’ International Labour Organisation (ILO) said the number of people worldwide forced to work or in a marriage against their will has surged in recent years.
Many assume that modern slavery — which refers to the offences of human trafficking, slavery, servitude and forced or compulsory labour — is not a problem in developed economies.
However, in Ireland the Global Slavery Index estimates that over 8,000 people here are held as modernday slaves — although this figure is likely to be far higher.
Crises such as the pandemic, conflicts and climate change have led to disruption to employment and education while exacerbating poverty and forced migration, the ILO said. Compared to the last count in 2016, the number of people in modern slavery has risen by around 9.3 million.
Forced labour accounted for 27.6 million of those in modern slavery in 2021, more than 3.3 million of whom are children, and forced marriage for 22 million.
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Labour
The ILO found that more than half of all forced labour occurred in either upper-middle income or high-income countries, with migrant workers more than three times as likely to be affected.
Meanwhile, huge progress has been made in identifying and convicting the perpetrators of modern slavery here in Ireland.
Last year, the country saw its first ever convictions for human trafficking being handed down against two women who ran a prostitution ring in Mullingar, who were found guilty of human trafficking offences.
1982: Australia’s “dingo baby” trial, in which Lindy Chamberlain was charged with the murder of her daughter, began 1997: The state funeral of Mother Teresa took place in Calcutta, India 2007: The McLaren F1 team was fined $100m and lost all its points in the Constructors’ Championship following the Spygate scandal
2007: The Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was adopted by the United Nations