Slavery

What is slavery?

A slave is:

• forced to work• owned or controlled

by an ‘employer’• dehumanised, bought and sold• physically constrained

Slavery then and now

1807: Slave trade abolition bill passed in the British Parliament

1833: Slavery abolished in the British Empire

1838: Apprenticeship system abolished

Slavery then and now

Slavery still exists today:

• 12.3 million people in forced labour

• 126 million children caught in illegal labour

Child labour

Child labour exists worldwide:

• 1 in 7 children are involved in illegal work

• 50 million children are engaged in economic activity in Sub-Saharan Africa alone

Child labour

The International Labour Organisation aims to eliminate child labour in mining.

An estimated one million children work in small-scale mining and quarrying worldwide.

Human trafficking

• 600,000 – 800,000 people are estimated to be trafficked across international borders each year

• 80 per cent are women and girls

• 50 per cent are children

Human trafficking

“For one girl to be trafficked about 13 different people will be involved – it’s very big business… Many are trafficked by someone they know.”

(Hannah Wilson, former BMS mission worker in Albania)

Human trafficking

Why are people trafficked?

• poor family relationships• violence in the home • lack of economic opportunity• poverty

Virtual slavery

Factory work in Bangladesh:

• Workers often have long hours and low wages.

• To earn 2,200 taka (£17) a month a textile worker might work 60-90 hours per week.

Virtual slavery

• In 2006 workers in Bangladesh protested against their working conditions.

• They were supported by Labour Behind the Label and negotiated an increase in the national minimum wage.

Bible reflectionGod rescues and redeems from slavery:

“I am the LORD… I will free you from being slaves… and I will redeem you.” (Exod 6: 6)

Jesus brings good news to the poor,freedom for the prisoners and release forthe oppressed. (Luke 4: 14-30)

Pray for…

• Children forced to work in harsh conditions

• Victims of human trafficking

• Factory workers in virtual slavery

• Those working to free the enslaved