{UAH} Haiti, Pakistan among countries with highest amount of modern slavery

Haiti, Pakistan among countries with highest amount of modern slavery, global index finds

Associated Press | 17/10/13 | Last Updated: 17/10/13 8:54 AM ET
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STR/AFP/Getty Images)A group of rescued workers stand outside a police station after they were saved from a brick kiln in Linfen, northern China's Shanxi province 27 May 2007. Police said 14 June that they had rescued more than 200 people, including 29 children, who were working as "slaves" in brick kilns, in a shocking revelation of labour practices in booming China.

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LONDON — An estimated 30-million people are enslaved worldwide, trafficked into brothels, forced into manual labour, victims of debt bondage or even born into servitude, a global index on modern slavery showed on Thursday.

Almost half are in India, where slavery ranges from bonded labour in quarries and kilns to commercial sex exploitation, although the scourge exists in all 162 countries surveyed by Walk Free, an Australian-based rights group.

Its estimate of 29.8-million slaves worldwide is higher than other attempts to quantify modern slavery. The International Labour Organization estimates that almost 21-million people are victims of forced labour.

"Today some people are still being born into hereditary slavery, a staggering but harsh reality, particularly in parts of West Africa and South Asia," the report said.

"Other victims are captured or kidnapped before being sold or kept for exploitation, whether through 'marriage', unpaid labour on fishing boats, or as domestic workers. Others are tricked and lured into situations they cannot escape, with false promises of a good job or an education."

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The Global Slavery Index 2013 defines slavery as the possession or control of people to deny freedom and exploit them for profit or sex, usually through violence, coercion or deception. The definition includes indentured servitude, forced marriage and the abduction of children to serve in wars.

Mauritania, Haiti and Pakistan rank among the countries with the highest prevalence of modern slavery, the report said.

Walk Free Foundation was founded last year by Australian mining magnate Andrew Forrest. Its index was endorsed by leaders including former U.S. Secretary Hillary Clinton, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Microsoft Corp. co-founder Bill Gates.

I urge leaders around the world to view this index as a call to action

Clinton said in a statement that although the index wasn't perfect, it provided a starting point.

"I urge leaders around the world to view this index as a call to action, and to stay focused on the work of responding to this crime," she said.

Using reports from governments and non-profit organizations as well as statistical estimates, the charity said that Mauritania has the highest proportion of people in slavery, with many people inheriting slave status from their ancestors. About 140,000 to 160,000 people are enslaved in the west African nation, which has a population of just 3.8 million, the report said.

Haiti came second in the index, with about one in 10 children trapped in an exploitative system of child labor, the report said. Pakistan ranked third with more than 1.8 million in bonded labor, followed by India, where child labor and forced marriages are common.

In absolute terms, India, China, Pakistan and Nigeria have the highest numbers of people enslaved, the charity said. Together with five other countries, they account for three quarters of the total estimated number of people in modern slavery.

With files from Reuters

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Gwokto La'Kitgum

"Even a small dog can piss on a tall Building", Jim Hightower