Category: Blog

Read latest analysis, blogs and updates on modern slavery and solutions to tackle it from Anti-Slavery International experts, partners & guests.

Zimbabwe Army using forced labour in diamond fields

26 June 2009 A new report by Human Right Watch has accused the Zimbabwean military of using forced labour in the Marange diamond fields in the east of the country. The report accuses Zanu-PF controlled soldiers of forcing hundreds of children and adults to mine for diamonds, as well as… Keep reading »

Backdated compensation ignores forgotten child camel jockeys

12 May 2009 In the wake of the decision by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to backdate compensation for former Bangladeshi child camel jockeys, Anti-Slavery International calls for the UAE to explain the whereabouts of the nearly 2,000 unaccounted for child camel jockeys who have not yet returned to their… Keep reading »

Time Magazine ‘Top 100’ award for Hadijatou

30 April 2009 Hadijatou Mani, the former slave who successfully sued Niger for failing to protect her from slavery, has been named by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world. The 25-year-old was recognised in the 2009 list alongside the likes of Barack Obama… Keep reading »

Clinton and Obama honour Hadijatou

12 March 2009 Hilary Clinton and Michelle Obama have honoured a former slave in recognition of her courage in combating slavery in her home country of Niger. The US Secretary of State and First Lady presented 24-year-old Hadijatou Mani with the International Women of Courage Award in Washington DC, yesterday… Keep reading »

UN says governments fail to protect victims of trafficking

18 February 2009 Nearly 99 per cent of trafficking victims are not identified, the first United Nations global report on human trafficking has found. The report also criticises governments for failing to prosecute traffickers and exposes the role women play in the trafficking of other women into the sex industry. Keep reading »

Congolese warlord on trial for recruiting child soldiers

30 January 2009 A Congolese militia leader accused of recruiting child soldiers is being tried at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague this week. The case is the first to come before the ICC. Thomas Lubanga, the former leader of the Union of Congolese Patriots (UPC) militia, is… Keep reading »

Sudan accused of making thousands slaves in Darfur

6 January 2009 Thousands of civilians in Darfur are being abducted for forced labour and sexual slavery by the Sudanese Army and government backed militia, according to a report published in December. Many of the abductions take place during armed raids by Janjaweed militia on the villages of Fur, Massaliet,… Keep reading »

End criminalising victims of trafficking

18 December 2008 Call to end culture of criminalising trafficking victims Anti-Slavery International welcomes the Government’s ratification of the Trafficking Convention yesterday evening (17 December 2008) but warns that there must now be an end to the culture of treating trafficked people as criminals rather than the victims of serious… Keep reading »

Niger condemned for slavery

27 October 2008 Niger has been found responsible of failing to protect 24-year-old Hadijatou Mani from slavery. The judgement was delivered in Niamey, the capital of Niger today (Monday 27 October) by the Community Court of Justice of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). The Court, which has… Keep reading »

Freedom for 20,000 people as Nepal abolishes bonded labour practice

9 September 2008 Anti-Slavery International, the world’s oldest human rights organisation, welcomes the decision by the government of Nepal to free 20,000 people in slavery by abolishing the local bonded labour practice of ‘haliya‘. The organisation also calls for official support to help the freed labourers find alternative livelihoods and… Keep reading »