{"id":126761,"date":"2016-06-16T15:00:23","date_gmt":"2016-06-16T13:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=126761"},"modified":"2016-06-15T17:44:17","modified_gmt":"2016-06-15T15:44:17","slug":"south-africas-slavery-shame-250000-people-who-are-slaves-in-our-society","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/trending\/126761\/south-africas-slavery-shame-250000-people-who-are-slaves-in-our-society\/","title":{"rendered":"South Africa’s slavery shame: 250,000 people who are slaves in our society"},"content":{"rendered":"

The latest Global Slavery Index for 2016 shows that there are 250,000 people in South Africa who are living in conditions of modern slavery – the 27th highest rate in the world.<\/p>\n

Different countries use different terminology to describe “modern slavery”, including the term\u00a0slavery itself, but the term includes\u00a0other concepts such as human trafficking, forced labour, debt bondage, forced\u00a0or servile marriage, and the sale and exploitation of children.<\/p>\n

It is estimated that there are 45.8 million people in the world who are living in conditions of slavery across the globe – almost 60% of which are in only 5 countries\u00a0(India, China, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Uzbekistan).<\/p>\n

“Measuring the number of people in modern slavery is a difficult undertaking due to the hidden nature of this crime and low levels of victim identification,” the\u00a0Walk Free Foundation said.<\/p>\n

To better gauge the prevalence of slavery in the world today, the index covers 24 variables which assess a population’s\u00a0vulnerability to enslavement, and covers their political rights and safety; financial and health protections; protection for the most vulnerable; and levels of conflict.<\/p>\n

Since 2014, the foundation included 25 surveys from\u00a0Gallup Inc, interviewing more than 28,000 respondents in 52 languages. In 2016, state-level surveys were also included, which took the total figure up to 48,000 people surveyed.<\/p>\n

The prevalence estimates in the Index are based on data from these surveys, the results of which have been extrapolated to countries with an equivalent risk profile.<\/p>\n

The worst 10 countries for modern day slavery<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n
\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
#<\/th>\nCountry<\/th>\nEst. no. of modern slaves<\/th>\n% of population<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n
1<\/td>\nNorth Korea<\/td>\n1 100 000<\/td>\n4.37%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
2<\/td>\nUzbekistan<\/td>\n1 236 600<\/td>\n3.97%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
3<\/td>\nCambodia<\/td>\n256 800<\/td>\n1.65%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
4<\/td>\nIndia<\/td>\n18 354 700<\/td>\n1.40%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
5<\/td>\nQatar<\/td>\n30 300<\/td>\n1.36%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
6<\/td>\nPakistan<\/td>\n2 134 900<\/td>\n1.13%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
6<\/td>\nDRC<\/td>\n873 100<\/td>\n1.13%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
6<\/td>\nSudan<\/td>\n454 700<\/td>\n1.13%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
6<\/td>\nIraq<\/td>\n403 800<\/td>\n1.13%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
6<\/td>\nAfghanistan<\/td>\n367 600<\/td>\n1.13%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
6<\/td>\nYemen<\/td>\n303 200<\/td>\n1.13%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
6<\/td>\nSyria<\/td>\n257 300<\/td>\n1.13%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
6<\/td>\nSouth Sudan<\/td>\n139 400<\/td>\n1.13%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
6<\/td>\nSomalia<\/td>\n121 900<\/td>\n1.13%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
6<\/td>\nLibya<\/td>\n70 900<\/td>\n1.13%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
6<\/td>\nCentral African Republic<\/td>\n55 400<\/td>\n1.13%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
7<\/td>\nMauritania<\/td>\n43 000<\/td>\n1.06%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
8<\/td>\nHaiti<\/td>\n106 600<\/td>\n1.00%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
8<\/td>\nDominican Republic<\/td>\n104 800<\/td>\n1.00%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
9<\/td>\nMyanmar<\/td>\n515 100<\/td>\n0.96%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
10<\/td>\nBangladesh<\/td>\n1 531 300<\/td>\n0.95%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
27<\/td>\nSouth Africa<\/td>\n248 700<\/td>\n0.45%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Slavery in South Africa<\/strong><\/p>\n

According to the report, New survey data from South Africa has confirmed the existence of forced labour in the commercial sex industry, construction, manufacturing and factory work, as well as in drug trafficking in the country.<\/p>\n

Slavery in South Africa takes the form of forced marriage, the report said, with an estimated 10,600 girls and women being victims of the act.<\/p>\n

While South Africa is ranked 27th overall, looking at the absolute numbers of modern slaves, the country ranks 28th.<\/p>\n

According to Richard Ots, Chief of Mission for IOM South Africa, there is no sector or region in the country that is not affected by modern slavery.<\/p>\n

“We have seen fishermen from the Far East arrive in Cape Town after years at sea without breaks or remuneration. We have seen girls come in to work as waitresses but end up in prostitution, and little boys as young as seven years being trafficked from West Africa to South Africa, having been told that they will become famous soccer players here,” he said.<\/p>\n

The bulk of South Africa’s modern slaves are involved in sex work, which remains illegal in the country. Child labour puts more victims at risk for exploitation, while endemic sexual assault and rape increase the risk among the most vulnerable sectors of society, the report said.<\/p>\n

These are the sectors where forced labour and slavery is most common in South Africa:<\/p>\n