United Nations, December 2 (Prensa Latina) Today’s World Day for the Abolition of Slavery reminds us of the need to educate public opinion about the scourge of modern slavery.
To mark the date, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres recalled the victims of the past, particularly the millions of Africans who were driven from their homes, exploited, abused or murdered during the transatlantic slave trade.
The date was chosen to commemorate the anniversary of the Convention for the Suppression of Trafficking in Persons and the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others, adopted on this day in 1949.
The day focuses on calling for the abolition of modern forms of slavery, such as human trafficking, sexual exploitation, the worst forms of child labor, forced marriage and the forced recruitment of children for use in armed conflict.
According to the United Nations, nearly 50 million people are subjected to modern slavery; around 28 million were forced to do forced labor and 22 million were forced to marry.
Now almost one in eight people affected by forced labor are boys and girls, and more than half of them are in a situation of commercial sexual exploitation.
The majority of forced labor cases – 86 percent – occur in the private sector, while almost four out of five people subjected to forced commercial sexual exploitation are women or girls.
The organization counts forced labor, child labor and human trafficking as the main forms of modern slavery.
Reports prepared by United Nations agencies and NGOs also show the persistence of ancient forms of slavery that exist under the protection of traditional beliefs and customs.
These are the result of deep-rooted discrimination against the most vulnerable groups in society, such as low-caste people, tribal minorities and indigenous peoples.
ro/ebr