The legacy of slavery still leaves a scar on society, hindering the progress of the head of the United Nations
in a message on the eve of the celebration International Day for the Abolition of Slaveryon December 2, Mr. Guterres said that societies are still scarred by the historical pain of enslaved Africans and cannot give everyone the same opportunities to thrive.
Abolish slavery now
The United Nations chief also called for action to identify and commit to eliminating all forms of modern slavery, from human trafficking to sexual exploitation, child labor, forced marriage and child use. children in armed conflict.
Citing the latest Global Estimates of Modern Slavery for Forced Labor and forced marriage, Mr. Guterres said that 50 million people were enslaved during the last year.
He explained that disadvantaged groups are most at risk, such as ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities, along with migrants, children and LGBTI individuals; and most of these vulnerable people are women.
“There is a need to intensify action with the full participation of all stakeholders, including the private sector, trade unions, civil society and human rights organisations,” he said.
“I also call on all nations to protect and uphold the rights of victims and survivors of slavery.“
Slavery on the rise
The latest estimate of International Labor Organization (ILO) shows that forced labor and forced marriage have increased significantly in the past 5 years.
An estimated 10 million more people will be enslaved in 2021, compared with 2016 global estimates, according to the United Nations, bringing the total to 50 million worldwide, according to the United Nations.
Although modern slavery is not defined in law, it is used as a general term to include activities such as forced labor, debt, forced marriage, and human trafficking.
Still popular
It includes all exploitative situations where a person cannot refuse or walk away because of intimidation, violence, coercion, deception, or apparent abuse of power.
Modern slavery occurs in almost every country in the world and cuts across ethnic, cultural and religious boundaries.
Contrary to the usual assumption, approximately 52% of all forced labor, and a quarter of all forced marriages, can be found in high-middle- or high-income countries.
Nearly 4 out of 5 people who are sexually exploited for commercial purposes are women or girls.
New ‘global database’ on forced labor
On the occasion of International Day ILO is implementing a new Forced Labor Observatory (FLO), developed by the ILO bridge project in response to a request from the governors of the United Nations labor agency to develop a “global database of forced labor and human trafficking.”
The FLO database will be a national and global repository of forced labor information – a “one-stop shop” for disaster information.
Country profiles have been developed for all 187 ILO Member States using publicly available information from reputable sources, to provide an overview of national responses to addressing this crime.
