Labor Reforms in Bahrain Tackle Local Unemployment Crisis

According to the Arabian Business News Source, recent reforms to Bahrain's labor market have begun to drive up the cost of employing cheap and unskilled laborers, increasing competitiveness of Bahraini citizens in the job market. This topic has been a pressing issue for the Bahraini Government in its efforts to expand job opportunities for Bahrainis and drive down its foreign population.

In a recent interview with Reuters News Agency, the Chief Executive of Bahrain's Labor Market Regulatory Authority (LMRA) Ali Radhi revealed the cost of employing expatriate workers is rising, and although the cost increase is not significant, it presents an upward moving trend. Recent reforms have imposed monthly 26.5 USD training fees paid by the employer for each expatriate worker brought to the island Kingdom.

Another significant reform occurred last year when Bahrain became the first Arab Gulf state to eliminate the employment sponsorship system, which LMRA officials hoped would allow workers to change sponsors without consent and encourage them to freely negotiate higher salaries with employers, making them less attractive for hire in comparison to their Bahraini counter-parts.

LMRA data shows that there has been an increasing trend in workers who have decided to change their sponsors under this new system, and that the gap in wages between locals and foreigners has decreased by 15 percent in some sectors, like construction. Radh noted that the effects of these reforms will be more significant once the current contracts of outsourced laborers expire and employers can choose between hiring locals instead of foreigners for the first time.

The next phase of labor reforms will be the implementation of an adaptable cap on foreign employment in certain sectors that will be determined by economic growth and industrial output. The employment ceilings have not been released to the public yet, but are awaiting approval by the board of the LMRA and reflect recent data collected from various industrial sectors.

Many Arab Gulf states are looking to Bahrain's economic transformation policies with envy, as they also attempt to address similar struggles of incorporating young people into the job market. Countries like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have embraced bottom-down reforms that have forced companies to hire locals (and sack foreigners) in the recent economic downturn.

Bahrain is also working to tackle illegal employment of foreign workers, often perpetuated by local employers who recruit them to Bahrain but allow them to pursue other employment opportunities in exchange for a portion of their salaries, which throws them into financial and legal uncertainty, as well as, a higher likelihood of trafficking.

Migrant Workers Melt Like Candles in the Gulf to Give Light to Their Families Back Home

Recent shocking statements made by Chairman K V Shamsudeen of the Pravasi Bandhu Welfare Trust (PBWT) divulged that only five percent of Indian expatriates living in Bahrain would lead a comfortable lifestyle from their earnings if they were forced to return home today. These findings reflect the extravagant lifestyles their families are creating with the hard-earned remittances received from their migrant worker relatives and a disregard for responsible saving habits. The Sharjah-based representative said that this problem occurred amongst other national groups as well, including Filipinos, Bangladeshis, Sri Lankans and Pakistanis.

Consequently, the TradeArabia News Source reported that this startling percentage of low and middle income migrant workers from India who have worked in the Gulf States for decades are returning home with little or no resources to further support their families.

The survey from which this information was derived was conducted by the PBWT and included 10,100 migrant workers from India living in the Gulf Corporation Council (GCC) countries, including 1,500 from Bahrain who admitted that their sacrifices and self-deprivation in exchange for the well-being of their families back home yielded little long-term benefit.

Shamsudeen stated that only 2% of Indian families were responsibly saving portions of the remittances they receive, and encouraged migrant workers to discuss the harsh and often unforgiving conditions they face while living in the Gulf with their families, as a way to encourage more conservative spending habits, explore wiser investment opportunities, and inspire greater appreciation for the money they receive, especially given the precarious nature of their jobs vis a vis the recent global economic downturn. Shamsudeen eloquently explained that saving in small drops will eventually make an ocean.

80% of workers surveyed were married, but only 10% had their families living with them in the Gulf.

To add insult to injury, migrant workers are often ignored by their families if they do not receive remittances. Families in India were said to not appreciate the sacrifices that their spouses/relatives make while trying to support them; many often enjoy only one meal a day and live in deplorable conditions.

5 Million "Non-Resident Indians" as they are called live and work in the GCC countries, 60% of whom come from the Kerala region in southern India.

This article is particularly au courant given recent initiatives taken by regional governments to forcibly deport migrant workers living in the GCC countries illegally, including Bahrain. Knowing that the hard work invested by these workers will yield nothing once they return home is heart-wrenching.

Nannygate in Brooklyn! The hand that rocks the cradle is underpaid and off-the-books

From the Brooklyn Paper:

By Claire Glass

Moms and Dads in famously liberal Park Slope are guilty of Nannygate.

The political scandal from a decade ago — which famously snared plenty of pols for paying their domestic help off the books — is rearing its obviously not-so-ugly head as a new survey revealed this week that close to 90 percent of all local nannies work in a black market.

Only 14 percent of local parents pay their nannies fully on the books, according to the survey of 806 families compiled by the Park Slope Parents Web site.

The hand that rocks this cradle is working illegally.

And it’s no surprise — or even a cause for concern — among the mostly women who are doing the dirty work.

“Out of the seven families I’ve worked for, only one ever discussed taxes with me,” said Deborah Manwaring, a nanny for 21 years. “Parents are so worried about the cost.”

And taxes aren’t the only disturbing element of Park Slope nanny culture, according to the survey. The International Nanny Association’s most recent study says that nannies in New York City make an average of $777 a week. In Park Slope, the average is $548 weekly — and 86 percent aren’t getting benefits, the survey showed.

The earth-shattering survey also revealed that:

• the bad economy has taken its toll on nannies. Salaries are down from last year and fewer nannies have gotten a raise. Last year 55 percent got a raise, this year just 33 percent did.
• only three percent on nannies receive even partial health-care coverage.
• only 33 percent of nannies have written contracts with their employers.
• the difference in salary between nannies who are on the books and those who are paid off the books ranges from 16 cents to $2.18.

But by far, the most-shocking finding is that so many Park Slope parents are pulling the Zoe Baird and choosing to keep their nannies as undocumented workers.

Read the full article

Sex Trafficking: Inside the Business of Modern Slavery

In his book Sex Trafficking: Inside the Business of Slavery, author Siddharth Kara presents a business and economic analysis of sex trafficking. Though such a study may seem heartless or dehumanizing, Kara argues that analyzing sexual slavery through the lens of economics can reveal short- and long-term solutions to end trafficking, and that, in fact, without this type of analysis intervention attempts may do more harm than good.

Kara, a former investment banker with an MBA from Columbia University, left his corporate career to pursue anti-slavery research and work. He is a board member of Free the Slaves. In his book, he argues that ending sex slavery will necessitate ending the demand for sex slavery, and that the most effective way to decrease demand is to increase risk. He presents suggested ways to increase the risk/cost of slavery to traffickers, and uses basic economic concepts, such as elasticity of demand, to evaluate the effectiveness of anti-trafficking efforts.

Many of Kara's findings are more suggestive than conclusive, which he readily acknowledges. For example, he argues that increasing the costs of using sex slaves will dramatically decrease the demand for these slaves due to the elasticity of demand for commercial sex. Though his conclusion aligns with my own beliefs and the beliefs of many NGOs, the analysis is based on an extremely small sample size that may not be representative. While this example points to some of the challenges in conducting research on human trafficking and its causes, it also points to the need for more research and data.

Kara extensively researched sex trafficking around the world, and he contextualizes his economic analysis within his firsthand interviews with sex trafficking victims and survivors, and his experiences with the market for sex slaves. While many of the most compelling parts of his books spring from these experiences, his analysis of slavery in the United States is somewhat anemic and does not discuss the sex trafficking of US citizens.

Throughout the book, Kara discusses the role that globalization has played in creating situations rife for exploitation and slavery. He demonstrates the ways that governmental policies and corrupt greed help perpetuate human rights abuses and poverty. He argues that vulnerability to trafficking can often be traced to unequal distributions of power and wealth that are only increasing as a result of globalization.

Though his book focuses mainly on sex trafficking, Kara does touch on labor trafficking issues and acknowledges the need for a similar analysis of the business of labor trafficking. Many of his insights about the economic factors that contribute to the demand for slavery and the need to increase the economic costs of slavery for producers and consumers will prove useful in such an analysis. At the same time, the causes of labor trafficking and the factors that fuel its demand are different from sex trafficking, and more research on this form of trafficking is vitally needed.

Kara's research and analysis provide a useful foundation for further efforts to effectively end slavery that is grounded in an understanding of the economic and business realities that fuel this crime.

Hans Rosling's insights on poverty

*Fast forward to 10:00 minutes into the presentation.

Researcher Hans Rosling uses his innovative data tools to show how countries are pulling themselves out of poverty. His presentation revolves around globalization, health and economic prosperity.

About Hans Rosling:
Even the most worldly and well-traveled among us will have their perspectives shifted by Hans Rosling. A professor of global health at Sweden's Karolinska Institute, his current work focuses on dispelling common myths about the so-called developing world, which, he points out, is no longer worlds away from the west. In fact, most of the third world is on the same trajectory toward health and prosperity, and many countries are moving twice as fast as the west did.

Trade as One: Fair Trade to Prevent Human Trafficking

From Trade as One:

Our Goals
There are two crises that keep us awake at night. First, the crisis of extreme poverty that defines much of the developing world. Second, the empty consumerism that has left much of the developed world bereft of meaning and purpose. We believe Fair Trade is a way to alleviate both.

Our Story
Our story is of people from all over the world deciding that they want to make the world more fair. It’s not rocket science, it’s just some men and women working together with the audacity to think they can actually change something.

Our Team
We’re diverse, we’re dedicated, we’re experienced, we’re in love (with the idea of a business that brings people together and makes the world better). Some of us are from the United States. Some of us are from the United Kingdom. All of us believe the way to enjoy our own prosperity and freedom is to offer a hand up to others.

Learn more about Trade as One

CNN: Sex Trafficking in Indonesia

CNN Headline News anchor Richard Lui reports on the disturbing realities of Asian sex trade. Posing as a sex tourist, Lui looks into the realities of sex worker trafficking.

Learn more about sex trafficking in Indonesia

Determinants of Trafficking: Understanding the problem and the actors

The starting point for understanding the problem of trafficking and finding a solution is to figure out what we think and know about the problem. So this is where I started.

Recently, I read a report which said, half the districts in India are affected by human trafficking. I have read similar reports on different countries across the globe, and each report claims the problem exists because people know either nothing or very little about trafficking. While this may be true, what confused me is the fact that even though there are people or groups who know more than others, it is not always easy to figure out what those people or groups precisely think about the problem.

As I read more, I want to know what everyone thinks of the problem. To keep this exercise structured, I have broken down the study into multiple parts. Today's post is an attempt to understand the factors that influence activities of victims, exploiters, and buyers.

PART I: Determinants of Trafficking: Understanding the problem and the actors

It is crucial to understand all the actors involved in human trafficking as well as the dynamics between the actors and between the actors and the environment.

There have been many articles written on human trafficking, but there is no consensus on what the necessary conditions are to create and maintain human trafficking, i.e. what causes human trafficking and what keeps it going? The answers of course range from political factors such as war and conflict to social factors such as gender discrimination. Perhaps we can never have a uniform answer to these questions. It seems that only now we're beginning to agree on a definition of trafficking so it is hard to believe we will be able to find a set of common determinants of trafficking so soon. Hence, I am very interested in learning what everyone thinks about the questions below and where we differ in our ideas - I hope this exercise will help us see the problem from different perspectives. The goal of this post is to start a discussion on determinants of trafficking and to learn from others' views.

1. What conditions are necessary for trafficking to occur? What (plausible) assumptions can we make about the type of factors that influence trafficking and what makes these assumptions plausible?
• For example, in terms of economic drivers, we know poverty and high level of unemployment are some of the (essential) conditions traffickers look for in recruitment areas , but they may not be causes of trafficking, but rather conditions for it. There may be poor communities which may not be be suitable for 'recruitment' because those communities, for example, may not have well connected criminal networks.
  Categories:
1. Personal: literacy, communication channels, home environment, etc.
   
2. Economic: debt, high levels of unemployment, etc. :
   
• For example, we've read globalization may have created conditions that make it easy for criminal networks to flourish and hence for trafficking to occur. In this case, we would attempt to understand precisely how globalization creates these conditions.
  
3. Political: war, conflicts, exclusion by caste or some other group, etc.
   
4. Social: gender discrimination, marital status, etc.
   
5. Geographic: forced migration due to scarcity of water, etc.
2. How are the necessary conditions for trafficking (from question 1) created and maintained?
3. Who can we classify as exploiters (trafficker, pimps, etc) ? What assumptions can we make about the exploiters?
   
4. What assumptions can we make about the buyers? Who (and what process) creates the demand?
• We've read that trafficking enables "commodification" of humans. We also know that the demand for any commodity is much more complex than just the need of the buyer. Hence, what are these other variables that make understanding this demand and the buyers so difficult and complex?
5. Are we missing something? Who else plays a role and how important is it?

Input from everyone would be extremely helpful and I look forward to a discussion about the questions in this post.

OSCE Conference in Vienna

Link Between Economic Crisis and Escalation in Human Trafficking Highlighted

The global economic downturn may fuel human trafficking because it exacerbates many of the root causes, including poverty, gender inequality, and the demand for cheap labor. As unemployment rates climb, many people are driven into increasingly vulnerable positions. There is already evidence that traffickers are exploiting this as vital remittances and legitimate labor opportunities shrink.













To explore this link, the OSCE organized a high-level conference that opened in Vienna on September 14th. The conference focuses on prevention and examines the ways in which a declining global economy is likely to exacerbate human trafficking.

According to US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who opened the conference with a video address, "new economic pressures are likely to aggravate the problem further, so this conference comes at a time of renewed urgency. It is an opportunity to place a renewed focus on prevention and the root causes of trafficking. Together we must implement a comprehensive approach that both confronts criminals and cares for survivors."

Read the full article

Announcing the Fair Trade Winner

Congratulations to Avra Cohen of Fight Slavery Now!

Late last month, Amanda with End Human Trafficking and I challenged our readers to find slavery-free options for two lists of products. Avra Cohen supplied the most comprehensive response for both lists. According to Cohen, FightSlaveryNow.Org investigates products and awards a "Freedom Seal" to items that have not been made utilizing modern-day slavery.

In response to our challenge, Cohen wrote, "Since we had a head start on many of these product categories, I thought this would be a challenge easily met. It was not. But it has been fun and enlightening. . . For some products it was easy to find a large selection of Fair Trade alternatives, while for other products there were few or none." I think it is worth considering why some products have many fair-trade options, whereas other items that we use daily seem to only offer questionable options at best.

Cohen went above and beyond the directions of our challenge, including a variety of sources that in addition to being fair-trade and slavery free, also met eco-sustainability standards and are free from animal cruelty. Many products also directly support the original maker of the product, and many support social justice issues.

As Cohen noted, "there is nothing better than supporting your local craftspersons, farmers, and merchants. Ask about the materials involved and if applicable, about the labor practices that attend production. This has the double benefit of raising awareness about these issues, and expanding the market for slave-free sustainable goods."

Enjoy the list!

Couch: close...
closer...
bingo!

Stereo.

TV: Well, almost...

Flowers.
According to Cohen, this product provoked some controversy.

Rug.

Lamp.

Rice.

Curtains.

Coffee Table

Coffee. Several options, including Veronica's Cup.

Football

Chocolate Bar: The world's first slave-free chocolate bar and another delicious option.

Underwear and a bonus video "Eco-Boudoir, More Than Pretty Knickers."

MP3 Player (one option).

Pencil with bonus pencil box and sharpener.

Strawberries: As Cohen points out, this raises questions about fair trade vs. food miles; Cohen advocates supporting your local greenmarket and joing the Community Supported Agriculture Movement. Or plant your own!

Lipstick/Lip Gloss

Pillow: Many options.

Water Bottle (too many good choices, according to Cohen, though this one won for product, value, and overall philosophy).

Wallet: Again, many options.

Extra Credit:
Sneakers and USB drive.

Also, check out the Ethical Superstore for a wide variety of Fair Trade Products if you are looking for something not on our lists!

Finally, Cohen leaves us with another challenge: Who will make the first slave-free mobile phone? Read "Blood Tantalum' in your mobile phone" and "Murder, Rape, All for Your Cell Phone."

Again, congratulations to Avra Cohen for this incredible list. Please consider supporting socially conscious options whenever possible, and let the companies you patronize know that you want them to be slavery-free.

HTP and Change.org Team Up: Slavery-Free Product Challenge

The Reality: Slaves are making the goods we as consumers buy. Human Trafficking Project blogger Jenn Kimball and I addressed the issue of slavery being used to make the products we buy this month. And now, we’re challenging you to do something about it.

Increasingly, there are a number of tools we as consumers can use to find the most slave-free items on the market. As of yet, there is no 100% guaranteed slave-labor-free label, but there are some guidelines you can use.

• Fair Trade: A Fair Trade label indicates that the item was produced sustainably and that workers were paid a living wage to produce it. It doesn’t necessarily guarantee slave-free supply chains, however.


• Made in the USA: We all know people are trafficked in the U.S., but better labor regulations and higher wages mean that fewer factories full of trafficked workers are operating in the U.S. than in some developing nations.


• Ethically Produced/Sustainable: Unlike “Fair Trade” and “Made in the USA,” phrases like ethically produced, ethically sourced, and sustainable don’t have certified criteria associated with them. They can sometimes be an indicator, however, of a company that’s paying attention to its supply chain.


• Country of Production: Some countries have had a longer history of slavery in certain industries, so knowing common forms of labor trafficking in different countries may help you avoid buying products from that industry made in that country.

The Challenge: Find the 10 most slave-free ways to acquire the items below (you don’t actually need to buy them). Where would you buy them? What brands would you choose? What labels or guidelines would you use to make better consumer choices? Here’s my list, and you can read Jenn’s list over on my blog:

1. Football

2. Chocolate bar

3. Underwear

4. MP3 Player

5. Pencil

6. Strawberries

7. Lipstick/Lip gloss

8. Pillow

9. Water bottle

10. Wallet

Post your finds to the comments section of this blog.

The Reward: The person who comes up with the best, most creative list of the most slave-free sources will be published and credited on both blogs. Plus, you’ll help inspire other consumers to make better choices about the items they buy.

While we may not have a 100% slave-free guarantee as consumers, we can make a lot of choices that go a long way to ending human trafficking just by buying the right items.

-Post written by Change.org's Amanda Kloer

Slavery and the Products We Buy

Many of the products we buy and use daily were made with slave labor or involved slave labor during some part of their manufacturing. The chocolate industry has received considerable attention lately for its use of slave labor . A 2000 US State Department report concluded that in recent years approximately 15,000 children aged 9 to 12 have been sold into forced labor on cotton, coffee and cocoa plantations annually in the Ivory Coast alone.

The RugMark Foundation started in 1994 to address the use of forced child labor in the rug industry. According to RugMark, Child labor is a crime committed against nearly 220 million children, or one in every seven, ages 5 to 17, around the world. The RugMark Foundation works to end child labor and provide educational alternatives for children, and the Foundation also acknowledges that many of the children are in situations of forced labor, via debt bondage, abuse, or some other method used to enslave. According to UNICEF, 200,000 children are trafficked yearly in West and Central Africa. Cocoa, coffee, clothing, electronics, jewelry, and many other products are tainted by slavery.

These facts make me feel a combination of guilty and helpless at times. Even when I give Human Trafficking 101 presentations to college classes, I know that the computer I am using for the PowerPoint presentation might have been made with slave labor. When preparing for an anti-trafficking conference, the student group I was involved with struggled to find conference materials and food that we knew hadn't been made with slave labor. Even when I am consciously thinking about and working to combat human trafficking, I still struggle with not supporting slavery.

At other times, though, I find this information to be extremely motivating. I may not be able to fight human trafficking alone, but I can make changes in my consumption habits that can make important change. Of course, one person alone changing her/his habits wont make a lot of difference, but collectively we can have a huge impact.

Media, Pennsylvania became a Fair Trade town, starting this process in 2005. According to their site, "In its two years as a Fair Trade town, Media has already inspired nine other towns in the US to follow suit. Together we are raising awareness of how the simple purchase of Fair Trade products can address poverty in the developing world." While fighting human trafficking is not mentioned, purchasing goods that were not made with slave labor and supporting other economic opportunities for people is a step towards ending slavery.

I was recently involved in the start of a similar project in Columbia, MO. The Central Missouri Stop Human Trafficking Coalitions Policy and Prevention Committee teamed up with a local fair trade store to start a Slave-Free Stores campaign, to raise awareness about slavery and how it impacts our lives, and to encourage more stores to work to become slave free. The campaign is in its early stages, but I am excited to see how it progresses. We created two different levels, one for stores that sell only slave-free products, and one for stores that sell some products that were not made with slave labor, since few stores will be eligible for the first group at the beginning (though the Coalition is encouraging stores to go slave free by 2020).

The first level: We Sell Some Slave-Free Products For businesses that are committed to offering slave-free goods. Businesses at this level sell some products that they know were produced without slave labor or exploitation, and plan to continue to work towards becoming entirely slave-free. Second level: We Sell Only Slave-Free Products For businesses that are completely committed to being slave-free. Businesses at this level only sell products that they know were produced without slave labor or exploitation. Participating stores will display the decal shown at the top of this post.

I have heard arguments that if we simply stop purchasing goods that were made in sweatshops or other exploited conditions, we will actual worsen the situation of workers who will now be without any source of income. While I do not completely buy this argument, it is important to be aware that Fair Trade is not a panacea, and efforts to buy slave-free products and buy local can have unintended consequences.

At the same time, using our money to support humane, livable-wage, sustainable, and non-exploitative labor is a vital step in fighting slavery. As long as we keep the demand for slavery up, human trafficking will continue.

Human Trafficking and the Financial Crisis

The State Department released the ninth Trafficking in Persons Report on 16th. In addition to the country reports, the TIP report also highlighted the impact of the economic crisis on the global trade in persons for forced labor and commercial sexual exploitation. As Secretary Clinton said in her opening letter to the report, “This year, there is new urgency in this call. As the ongoing financial crisis takes an increasing toll on many of the world’s migrants – who often risk everything for the slim hope of a better future for their families – too often they are ensnared by traffickers who exploit their desperation” (1).

According to the report, the economic crisis has lead to a decrease in legitimate economic opportunities for the world’s most vulnerable people, an increased demand for extremely cheap labor, and a decrease in the resource available to anti-trafficking NGOs (7,9). Combined, they form a lethal combination for trafficked victims and potential victims.

As the report states, “workers are made more vulnerable to forced labor practices because of high rates of unemployment, poverty, crime, discrimination, corruption, political conflict, and cultural acceptance of the practice” (17). The TIP report cites the International Labor Organization’s January 2009 report that found that the global financial situation is “causing dramatic increases in the numbers of unemployed, working poor, and those in vulnerable employment “(32-3).

The situation is likely to only grow worse, particularly in areas that already have extreme trafficking problems. The TIP report notes that Southeast Asia – Already home to 77% of the world’s forced labor – could face unemployment as high as 113 million people in 2009 (33). In Eastern Europe “international organizations and local authorities have already reported a rise in victims of labor exploitation” (34). The situation is not likely to improve in the near future, according to a recent World Bank report that suggests that economic recovery will be slow, particularly in impoverished nations.

In addition to the cost to trafficked victims directly, the “cost of coercion” or the loss of wages people would earn were they not enslaved, also harms the families of trafficked victims, further exacerbating global poverty and making people more vulnerable to being trafficked themselves (34).

Even as increased vulnerability is leading to growth in the supply of trafficked victims, the financial crisis is also leading to growth in the demand for trafficked victims. The TIP report cites UN officials as stating that “(t)hey expect the impact of the crisis to push more business underground to avoid taxes and unionized labor” (37). The demand for cheap products and services, coupled with the pressure of the economic crisis is thus fueling the demand for modern-day slavery.

The TIP report also points out that this crisis affects different populations differently. The report notes that “Research links the disproportionate demand for female trafficking victims to the growth of certain “feminized” economic sectors (commercial sex, the “bride trade,” domestic service) and other sectors characterized by low wages, hazardous conditions, and an absence of collective bargaining mechanisms” (36). According to FAIR Fund, 80% of trafficked victims are women and girls, and the current economic situation is likely to only increase this disparity. Plans to address the economic crisis need to consider the gendered manifestations of the crisis, and ensure that stimulus efforts do not simply create economic opportunities for men only.

Finally, along with increased supply and demand, anti-trafficking efforts are also facing a decline in resources to work to prevent trafficking, assist survivors, and punish perpetrators. The TIP report points out that “The tough times are also affecting the work of anti-trafficking NGOs, which often provide crucial services in the absence of adequate government or private-sector programs. Donors are tightening their belts, and organizations are finding it difficult to continue their operations” (40).

While this news might seem dire, the TIP report also pointed to and encouraged efforts to continue to fight trafficking, suggesting that anti-trafficking work is more important now than ever before in light of these recent developments. For example, the report pointed out that, “the enactment of the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 (TVPRA of 2008) strengthened the U.S. Government’s criminal statute on forced labor” (25), a fortuitous develop in light of recent indications that labor trafficking is increasing.

The TIP report suggested that everyone has a role to play in decreasing demand for labor trafficking, from individuals to governments (31), suggesting that “One key to addressing such demand is raising awareness about the existence of forced labor in the production of goods. Many consumers and businesses would be troubled to know that their purchases— clothes, jewelry, and even food—are produced by individuals, including children, who are forced into slave-like conditions” (32).

The ninth Trafficking in Persons Report paints a grim picture: the global financial crisis is leading to increased supply of vulnerable people, increased demand for cheap labor and economic exploitation, and a decrease in services for trafficked survivors and efforts to fight trafficking. Rather than being paralyzing, this picture should be motivating. The call to fight modern-day slavery is more pressing now than ever before, and as Secretary Clinton concluded her opening remarks on the report “I am confident that together we can make a difference, all over the world, in the lives of people deprived of their freedom” (1).

South Asians Left Jobless, Homeless In Iraq

From NPR:

By Lourdes Garcia-Navarro

Morning Edition, December 15, 2008 · Tens of thousands of poor South Asians have made their way to Iraq since the U.S. invasion, in the hopes of making money to send home to support their families.

Dishwashers, cleaners, drivers and cooks from countries like Bangladesh, India and Nepal form part of an army of contractors that service America's expensive war.

But the system that gets them to Baghdad is riddled with corruption and exploitation, leaving some South Asians living in hovels, jobless and afraid.

Four months ago, Sushil Khadka, 26, left his wife, his two children and his home country of Nepal for Iraq.

"I'd dreamt of a good job, sending home my salary every month to feed my family, to send my children to school. That's why I came here. But that never happened. The opposite happened. It's terrible," he says.

Now Khadka sits in a hut made out of salvaged cardboard, huddled next to a chain-link fence in a dusty corner near Baghdad's international airport. Flies swarm around splattered bits of old food and dirty blankets.

"They made fools of us," he says. "Had we gotten work, it would've been alright but they took our money and ran away."

He sold the family jewelry — all they had in the world — to pay a recruiter in Nepal $5,000. He says the recruiter promised him a job working for American contractor KBR that would earn him $800 a month — a fortune in Nepal. The average income there is $340 a year.

But when he arrived in Iraq he was told there was no work, he says. The agent who was supposed to help him was arrested and the visa in Khadka's passport was ripped out. He was left to his own devices, scrounging around the airport to find shelter and food.

Khadka is not alone. The 40-or-so men who live with him in this makeshift camp tell similar tales.

Upendra Das, 17, sits on the floor chopping vegetables on a dirty plank of painted wood.

"We eat once a day. Sometimes we can't even do that," he says. "I've been here three months so far. To get here I borrowed from the village moneylender. They charge a lot of interest. I can't leave so I'm still waiting, hoping that I will get some work."

Another group of 1,000 South Asians have been held in a nearby warehouse for several months by KBR subcontractor Najlaa Catering Services, a company based in Kuwait. The men say they had their passports taken away and were confined in substandard conditions.

The U.S. military and KBR say they are investigating.

The U.S. State and Defense departments have issued contracting guidelines that are supposed to protect workers in Iraq.

"As in all things, in Iraq there is a policy in place but there is no one really there to enforce it," says investigative journalist T. Christian Miller, who works for Pro Publica and has written a book called Blood Money about the mismanagement of Iraq's reconstruction.

He says that the abuse of South Asian workers in Iraq is common.

"It's definitely a situation of exploitation. You are talking about the most vulnerable people in the world," Miller says. "The U.S. has contracted some of the most dangerous and dirties jobs to some of the poorest people in the world. At this point, five years into the war, there are no excuses for U.S. companies not to be aware of the issue of human trafficking or labor trafficking."

Back at the Baghdad airport, a representative from the International Organization of Migration (IOM) has just showed up offering the homeless South Asians free repatriation. The IOM heard about the men only 10 days ago.

The men crowd around as Thair Issan hands out forms for them to fill out if they want to go home. Issan says the men's plight is desperate.

"Those are victims," he says. "You see the conditions they're living in. It's a very big humanitarian crisis."

Bangladeshi Mohammad Nazrul Islam says he wants to stay here but he's been told he'll be jailed if he does.

"The Iraqi authorities say ... they will jail us if we stay. If we leave right now, it's OK. But we don't want to leave because we've all paid a lot of money to get here," he says.

Where will we find the money to pay off that debt? he asks desperately, adding that he wants to stay but no one will give him a job.

Google Project 10^100

Project 10¹⁰⁰ is a call for ideas to change the world by helping as many people as possible.

Human Trafficking Creating Economic Change is one of the submitted ideas.



More about Project 10¹⁰⁰

Sex Trade of Minors in India

A Chance for a New Life

Filipinos Sell Kidneys to Survive

Donors are paid $2000-$3000...

Via Youtube

Increase of Filipinas Trafficked to Singapore

From the Inquirer:

By Maila Ager
August 25, 2008

MANILA, Philippines -- A congressional inquiry into the worsening cases of Filipino trafficking in Singapore has been sought by a lawmaker at the House of Representatives. ARC Partylist Representative Narciso Santiago III said Congress should look into reports that Filipino trafficking in Singapore has reached an all-time high last year because of budget air fares, which aggravated the situation.

From 125 cases of human trafficking in 2006, the number went up by 70 percent or 212 cases in 2007, Santiago said, citing an alleged report by Philippine Ambassador to Singapore Belen Fule Anota.

He said the Philippine embassy in Singapore blamed this to the network of illegal recruiters and "quite possibly, syndicates across borders, which manage to persuade their recruits through various modes of deception and intimidation."

"Filipino victims are pushed to try their luck in Singapore not only because of poverty but also because of the promise of a lucrative job overseas," he said.

"The report states that the existence of a large number of bars/pubs in Singapore's red light districts fuels the demand for Filipino women," he pointed out. Based on records, Santiago said, the modus operandi essentially has illegal recruiters promising young women non-existent jobs as waitresses or guest relations officers in restaurants and hotels in Singapore.

"They are each charged a minimum of $100 as recruitment fee in the Philippines and given roundtrip tickets where the return ticket is oftentimes fake, a fake invitation letter, and "show money" for presentation to Philippine immigration officials who scrutinize their financial capacity as tourists," he said.

Read the full article

Sex Trafficking from the Philippines to Malaysia

From the Inquirer:

MANILA, Philippines—A non-government organization advocating migrant workers' welfare urged the government on Thursday to forge an anti-human trafficking agreement with Malaysia following the rescue of Filipino women forced to become prostitutes in the Malaysian state of Sabah.

The Blas F. Ople Policy Center quoted recent media reports from Malaysia relating how the eight Filipino women, allegedly recruited from Zamboanga about three months ago to work as waitresses, were forced to work as prostitutes upon their arrival in arrival in Sabah.

Acting on an informant’s tip, the police raided an apartment in Penampang, a small town adjacent to the capital city of Kota Kinabalu, where the women, aged between 18 and 25, were kept.

“The illegal recruitment and trafficking of Filipino women to Malaysia is fast becoming a thriving enterprise and we call on the Malaysian and Philippine governments to forge a bilateral pact against human trafficking,” the center's president Susan Ople said in a statement.

Ople said that based on the information gathered by the Center, previous victims of human trafficking were promised decent jobs in either Kuala Lumpur or Sabah by their recruiters who turned out to be receiving P3,000 per head from a syndicate in Malaysia.

“With mere P3,000, the recruiter turns a blind eye on whatever fate awaits the recruit bound for Malaysia,” she said.

The former labor undersecretary said local governments must also work together with other NGOs and relevant government agencies in a grassroots public information drive against human trafficking.

“The recruitment is now done door-to-door in both urban and rural areas and the only way to stop this is through active public vigilance leading to higher arrest and conviction rates,” she added.

Read the full article