Slavery

2023

UN: Southeast Asia has 200,000 cyber slaves

More than 200 thousand people in Southeast Asia are forced to engage in cyber fraud against their will. This is stated in a UN report published on August 29, 2023.

According to a study by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, cyber slavery has been actively developing in this region since the introduction of restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic. In Cambodia, it is estimated that at least 100 thousand people are involved in criminal activities on the Internet against their will. In Myanmar, attackers exploit an estimated 120,000 people as cyber slaves. These, in particular, come from East Africa, Egypt, Turkey and Brazil.

More than 200 thousand people in Southeast Asia are forced to engage in cyber fraud

As a rule, people come across job ads posted on social networks. Slaves are lured with promises of decent earnings for work related to information technology. Usually such offers involve moving from the country of residence of the applicant. But the reality turns out to be completely different: workers are often imprisoned in captivity and their passports are taken away from them, forcing them to engage in online fraud. One of the activities of such groups is fraud with cryptocurrency assets. The UN estimates that scams in Southeast Asia generate billions of dollars in revenue for attackers.

Faced with new realities, criminal gangs are increasingly targeting migrant workers who are stuck in other countries and left without work due to border closures and business closures, the study notes.

For people who manage to break free from cyber slavery (often thanks to law enforcement raids or a ransom paid by their families), the problems don't end there. They can be prosecuted for committing crimes in the IT sphere.^[1]

Thousands of cyber slaves found in Philippines

On June 27, 2023, Philippine police, with the support of special forces, conducted a large-scale raid, during which thousands of cyber slaves were released.

The Philippines has reportedly become a key base for cybercriminal syndicate operations. People are lured to work, offering good conditions. However, in fact, they find themselves trapped in slavery and are forced to participate in various fraudulent schemes on the Internet, including cryptocurrencies.

Thousands of cyber slaves found in Philippines

The raid was the largest in 2023. Overnight, the National Philippine Cybercrime Police Unit raided seven buildings in Las Piñas, a city in the Philippine National Capital Region. Approximately 2,700 cyber slaves were discovered during the event. These include 1,534 Filipinos and 1,190 foreigners from at least 17 countries, including 604 Chinese, 183 Vietnamese, 137 Indonesians, 134 Malaysian and 81 Thai. In addition, there were several people from Myanmar,, Pakistan,, Yemen, and Somalia. Sudan Nigeria Taiwan How many criminals were arrested as part of the operation was not reported.

In May 2023, police carried out another major raid: then law enforcement officers freed approximately 1,400 Filipino and foreign slaves at a cybercriminal base in the city of Mabalakate in Pampanga province north of Manila. These people were forced to implement cryptocurrency fraudulent schemes. Future cyber slaves were lured in with offers of high salaries through social media, authorities said, but in reality those promises were a ploy. When trying to dismiss people, they demanded huge amounts or threatened to resell them to other criminal syndicates. In addition, during work, fines were constantly imposed on people.^[2]

2021: 49.6 million people live in slavery in the world. List of countries

On any given day during 2021, approximately 49.6 million people were in modern slavery on a global scale. This is 10 million more compared to 2016. Such data are given in the report of the international human rights organization Walk Free, published on May 23, 2023.

The document, prepared with the participation of the International Labor Organization and the International Organization for Migration, reflects data for 160 countries around the world. By the term "modern slavery," the authors of the study mean not only forced labor, but also forced marriages, sexual exploitation, trafficking in minors, etc. The countries in which modern slavery is estimated to be most widespread tend to be affected by conflict and have insufficiently effective public administration.

Walk Free's ranking is topped by North Korea, with 104.6 people for every 1,000 people in slavery here. The total number of slaves in this country reaches 2.7 million. Eritrea is in second place - 90.3 people per 1000 inhabitants, and Mauritania closes the top three - 32 slaves per 1000 people. This is followed by Saudi Arabia (21.3 slaves per 1000 inhabitants), Turkey (15.6 per 1000), Tajikistan (14 per 1000) and the UAE (13.4 per 1000). The top ten also includes Russia (we are talking about the problems of labor migrants and prisoners), Afghanistan and Kuwait: each of these countries has 13 slaves per 1000 people.

In contrast, the lowest penetration rate of modern slavery is noted Switzerland in and - Norway 0.5 people per 1000 inhabitants. In,, and Germany Netherlands Sweden Denmark the indicator is 0.6 per 1000 people of the population. Then he goes Belgium with one slave per 1000 inhabitants. They close the top ten, and - Ireland 1.1 Japan Finland people per 1000 inhabitants.

The report states that in the total mass of slaves, almost 28 million people were subjected to forced labor, and 22 million - forced marriage.^[3]

2020: Bank of England apologises for involvement of its former managers in slave trade

The Bank of England has apologised for links by some former managers to the slave trade, which the regulator described as an "unacceptable" part of England's history^[4] apologised^[5].

"As an organization, the Bank of England has never been directly involved in the slave trade, but (the Bank of England - ed.) Is aware of the inexcusable connections of former managers and directors and apologizes for them," the regulator said in a statement in June 2020.

The Central Bank of the country promised not to exhibit images of leaders who participated in the slave trade.

The statement of the Bank of England was made against the background of growth in the UK and a number of other countries of actions against racism after the death of African American George Floyd in Minneapolis.

Lloyd's of London insurance market and pub chain Greene King have in turn promised to invest in ethnic minority support projects as compensation for historic links to slave owners.

Greene King was founded by Benjamin Green, who received compensation from the state for the abolition of slavery in 1833.

"It is inexcusable that one of our founders benefited from slavery and opposed its abolition in the 19th century," company chief Nick McKinzie told The Telegraph.

One of the founders of Lloyd's of London - Simon Fraser - was also a slave owner and received compensation of 400 thousand pounds sterling in transfer to the current money for abandoning his plantations in Dominic.

"We regret the role played by Lloyd's market in the slave trade in the 18th and 19th centuries. It was a terrifying and shameful period in the history of England and our company. We condemn crimes committed during this period that cannot be justified, "a Lloyd's spokesman said.

Approximately 46 thousand slave owners abandoned their slaves in the British colonies and received compensation for their release, writes the Associated Press. The total amount of payments was £20m, which was equal to about 40% of annual government spending. To pay compensation, the government took out a loan, which was fully repaid only in 2015.

2019: The rise of the online slave trade

Human trafficking in the digital era is taking on new forms and proportions. Journalists beeping about the problem note that in the "risk zone" there are primarily women from Asia and Latin America who believed in a better life and went in search of a good job or groom to the rich countries of the Middle East or Europe.

Thus, the BBC writes that selling people under hashtags: "maids for transfer" or "maids for sale" Instagram in and applications Google Apple has become the norm. In Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, for example, through the popular 4Sale commodity application, you can purchase a handmaid from 600 dinars (about $2000). The price depends on race and age.

There are also such ads: "African worker, clean and smiling" or "Nepalese who dares to ask for a day off." Almost all sellers advise confiscating passports from "goods" and not giving them access to the phone.

Journalists also note that in a number of countries of the world, a tolerant attitude towards slavery is being formed through social networks, which has never been observed before. So, after the introduction of new laws requiring the issuance of passports to housekeepers and providing them with at least one weekend a week, many influencers in the Middle East openly expressed their dissatisfaction. Kuwaiti beauty blogger Sondos Alkattan even recorded a video with the text: "How to live in a house with a worker who has a passport in her arms?"

Instagram and Facebook have already banned incorrect hashtags and assured that such cases will not happen again, and popular brands refuse to cooperate with those bloggers who allow themselves incorrect statements about slavery.

Many journalists are of the opinion that a culture of zero tolerance for slavery is needed on the Internet, since even the hypothetical assumption of such relationships between people changes the social environment and leads to irreversible consequences. Apps that help people buy and sell, even in a playful way, should be removed from the AppStore and other stores.

The 1900th

Postcard from the French Congo. Late XIX - early XX centuries.

1897

A British sailor removes shackles from a slave. Great Britain. End of the XIX century.

1882

One of the rare photographs taken on a ship carrying slaves, 1882.

1868

Freeing East African slaves from Arab slave traders overloaded onto the deck of the British ship HMS Daphne in the Indian Ocean, 1868.

1866

Transatlantic slave trade from 1501 to 1866

1864

Office of a slave trader in Atlanta, United States, 1864

1863

Former Slave Shows His Scars, Louisiana, USA, 1863

Notes