Slavery and the slave trade now seem as distant from reality as gas lamps or smallpox epidemics. But while some peoples are going to apologize for life for the colonial times, others believe that they still have the rights of a "white man." How does the modern slave trade work and what role do global IT giants play in it?
Indian women are the most unscrupulous, and Nepalese are workaholics
When people talk about human trafficking in the modern world, the first association that emerges is prostitution. But in fact, the market is not only interested in sexual slavery, people buy other people to do the most common work.
The BBC Arab Service has exposed a huge underground market of people in Kuwait. In the application, one could see hundreds of resumes of builders, housekeepers, dishwashers and other representatives of unskilled labor.
The data obtained by colleagues is shocking - in Kuwait, there are domestic slaves in nine out of ten houses. No one is afraid of the responsibility for buying and exploiting people who are in a difficult situation and are afraid to ask for help.
Who is enslaved? Usually these are residents of very poor regions who dream of breaking out of poverty. They leave their families at home and go to work, hoping to provide for the family at least in this way.
Future feudal lords meticulously study the reviews of previous owners, the characteristics may be the most unexpected. “Indian women are the most unscrupulous,” some write. "Nepalese can work seven days a week," others report.
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In addition to the obvious benefits, free labor, the owners also earn on their employees. One of them, a police officer, told reporters masquerading as interested buyers how this happens.
“It's simple - first a person buys an employee for $ 2,000, then he sells for $ 3,300,” he wrote.
By the way, this same man, a servant of the law, decided to give the newcomers good advice from an experienced slave owner.
“Just don't give them a passport. Why is this, because you provide them, she does not need documents,”advised the guardian of order.
Urmila Bhula, UN Special Representative on Contemporary Forms of Slavery, has confirmed that this is the case.
“Sadly, this is a vivid example of typical modern slavery. Men, women and children are sold here as movable property,”she stated.
What has Google to do with it?
All this, of course, is very scary, but it is not yet clear what relation the global IT giants have to selling people. It turned out to be the most direct thing.
We got into a monstrous time loop - people buy other people, staying in the Middle Ages, but use the most modern achievements and technologies for this.
The modern slave trade takes place through social media and mobile apps. Someone advertises their product on Instagram, owned by the corporation Facebook, someone has the entire "lineup" presented in applications approved by Google and Apple.
“People buy and sell people over the Internet. If Google, Apple, Facebook or any other companies host such applications, they should be held accountable,”said Ms Bhula.
instagram.com/p/B4awJZnhUjc
After a massive publicity investigation by the BBC's Arab service, the Kuwaiti authorities launched their own official investigation. It turned out that the online slave market was indeed openly functioning on the Internet. Social networks used hashtags like "maid for sale" for ease of search.
The authorities say all those involved were prosecuted and ordered to remove the prohibited content. Instagram's management has promised to take action and not only clean the pages of inappropriate entries, but also try to prevent the emergence of new accounts and ads.
But is that enough? Kimberly Motley, an American international lawyer, voluntarily began to investigate the sale of Fatu, a 16-year-old girl from New Guinea, who was going to be sold to BBC journalists.
“I believe that app developers should definitely compensate Fatou. And also possibly Apple and Google. The Apple Store claims to be responsible for everything in their store. And we naturally wonder where the boundaries of this responsibility are,”the lawyer asks.
Google and Apple were quick to announce that they are working with app developers to prevent illegal activity on their platforms. The details of this work, of course, have not been disclosed. There is no question of any compensation.
World statistics
According to the Australian Walk Free Foundation, today there are about 40 million people in slavery around the world. And if you think that we are only talking about third world countries, you will be interested to know that in Russia there are about 800 thousand people. Children and women are considered the most vulnerable group, but men do not avoid this fate either.
In addition to prostitution and low-skilled labor, modern slaves beg for alms for their owners, forcibly marry to prepare bogus documents for surrogacy, and even "voluntarily" donate their organs for transplantation.
“Human resource trade brings in about $ 150 billion each year,” says Veronica Antimonik, program coordinator for the Safe House Foundation and JewelGirls program, “but profit is not the only thing that interests buyers and sellers.”
Women are forced to work as dancers in clubs "18", waitresses. Men go to construction sites or repair work, children are also used.
For example, in India they pack packs of cigarettes.
Finally, the slave can be charged with debts and made to bear responsibility. After all, they are so scared and disoriented that they are unlikely to resist.
Most often they fall into slavery through deception. People are promised earnings, often easy ones, and when everything becomes clear, the job is already done.
Often times the owners even give their slaves the illusion of freedom. They declare that you can leave at any time, the main thing is to pay off the debt, because funds have already been spent on maintenance. The trouble is that no one can afford to pay this debt, because only the owner knows all the amounts.
How can you help?
Human trafficking is illegal all over the world, but future owners are rarely stopped by this. In addition, despite the current legislation, the police do not always respond to such statements.
And do not forget that the victims of the slave trade feel powerless, useless and may simply not dare to ask the law for help.
Ms Antimonik advises to have a memo with the addresses and phone numbers of organizations where a person can escape, spend the night and feel safe.
Often people are afraid to enter into an open dialogue, so it is better to slip a list of addresses on paper into their pocket or bag. In Russia, this is done by the Mercy Relief Service in Moscow, the Nochlezhka charity organization in St. Petersburg, and the Safe House Foundation.
The main page of the foundation's website says: “We consider safety a basic right and need of every person.
We are convinced that all relationships should be based on the principles of equality and voluntariness. We regard the violation of these principles as exploitation and violence."
Perhaps one day they and similar organizations will be able to convey this to the whole world, and the slave trade will really only remain on the pages of history textbooks.
Author: Lyudmila Kuzmina
