WORKING GROUP 6

Trafficking for Forced Labour

BACKGROUND NOTE

Forced labour is a global problem, affecting almost all countries of the world. There are at least 12.3 million persons in forced labour today. Most victims are poverty-stricken people in Asia, Latin America and Africa, whose vulnerability is exploited by others for a profit. Yet over 350,000 women and men are also in forced labour in industrialized countries (ILO 2005). There has been greater realization that forced labour in its different forms can pervade all societies. In its Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29), the ILO defines forced labour as "all work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself voluntarily".

Most instances of forced labour occur as unscrupulous employers and intermediaries take advantage of gaps in law enforcement to coerce workers into highly exploitative situations, whether for forced sexual or forced labour exploitation. Unemployment, poverty, discrimination, corruption, conflict, and some cultural practices all exacerbate the vulnerability of women, men and children to forced labour. Migrant workers, especially irregular ones, are particularly vulnerable, but individuals are also often forced into labour in their own countries or areas of origin. The forms of coercion used to keep them in a job against their will are many, and include physical violence and threats, retention of identity papers, threats of denunciation to the authorities, and withholding or non-payment of salary. Debt bondage is the most widely used means of denying a worker's basic freedom to leave a job or change employer when he or she wants.

The consequences for the victims of forced labour are devastating; they can experience permanent physical and psychological harm, isolation from families and communities and reduced opportunities for personal development. Victims are often wary of law enforcement and psychologically dependent on their traffickers and employers. Children are denied educational access, which reinforces the cycle of poverty and illiteracy. Communities and countries suffer the loss of their human capital. Corporations run the risk of having their reputations tainted if they are not vigilant against forced labour permeating their supply chains. It is therefore imperative that effective action is taken to finally put an end to this inhumane practice, and there is an increasing global commitment to do so.

Trafficking for forced labour exploitation

Trafficking in persons is one of the routes into forced labour, but not the only one. The ILO estimates that of the 12.3 million victims of forced labour worldwide, around 20% (2.45 million) are in forced labour as a result of trafficking. Within the Asia-Pacific region, where there are an estimated 9.5 million forced labour victims, some 1.36 million have been trafficked. Forced sexual exploitation is the most widely acknowledged outcome of human trafficking, but it is increasingly recognized that a significant proportion of victims globally are trafficked into labour exploitation in various economic sectors, including agriculture, construction, sweat-shop production and domestic service.

In line with the definition of trafficking contained in the United Nations Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, the ILO considers the offence of trafficking to comprise deceptive or coercive recruitment and forced labour at the place of destination. The ILO also considers that movement is an element of trafficking. And where children are concerned, their movement for the purpose of exploitation alone qualifies as a trafficking offence, without the need to prove the use of coercion or deception.

Trafficking in persons for forced labour has not been viewed as a significant issue in many countries, and the identification of trafficking victims who are exploited through forced labour has been even less successful than in the case of sexual exploitation. In some countries, trafficking for forced labour is not seen as a crime but rather an issue to be dealt with in the area of labour regulations and trade unions. In many countries, human trafficking for forced labour has only been included in legislation in recent years in order to comply with the definition of the Trafficking Protocol. In addition, there is the opinion that public media finds sexual exploitation a more appealing topic compared to forced labour and thereby is naturally biased in favour of reporting instances of sexual exploitation.

While the ILO has tended, in the South Asian context, to treat bonded labour and trafficking as distinct though related phenomena, others have tended to conflate the two problems. There is therefore a need for greater conceptual clarity, so as to better understand the nature of the problems and, consequently, the appropriate legal and practical remedies. A better understanding of the intersections between trafficking and bonded labour in South Asia could help in reinforcing the existing legal, institutional and policy frameworks for addressing the two issues in a fully coherent and consistent way.

Another issue of concern in south Asian countries is the coercive conditions to which migrant workers may be subjected overseas, particularly in the Gulf destination countries. Very large numbers of migrants, both women and men, from Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka undertake contract labour in Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Cooperation Council countries, some recruited through unlicensed agencies. There is a need for improved understanding of the way these recruitment systems operate so as to strengthen their regulation and monitoring, weeding out any rogue contractors and ensuring that all south Asian migrant workers can enjoy decent work in their countries of destination.

Explanation of terms:

Bonded Labour

One form of force or coercion is the use of a bond, or debt, to keep a person in subjugation. This is referred to in law and policy as "bonded labor" or "debt bondage." Many workers around the world fall victim to debt bondage when they assume an initial debt or wage advance as part of the terms of employment which they are then unable to repay. In South Asia, this phenomenon is widespread, in extreme cases leading to the intergenerational transmission of debt from parents to children, and lifelong bondage. Much contemporary bonded labour is, however, of shorter duration, sometimes linked to production cycles in seasonal economic activities or to the need of a household to acquire a specific amount of money, for example, to meet the cost of a dowry, house construction or medical expenses.

Involuntary Servitude

People become trapped in involuntary servitude when they believe an attempted escape from their conditions would result in serious physical harm or the use of coercion, such as the threat of deportation. Victims are often economic migrants and low-skilled laborers who are trafficked from less developed communities to more prosperous and developed places. Many victims experience physical and verbal abuse, breach of an employment contract, and may perceive themselves to be in captivity-and too often they are.

Domestic Servitude

Domestic workers may be trapped in servitude through the use of force or coercion, such as physical (including sexual) or emotional abuse. Children are particularly vulnerable to domestic servitude which occurs in private homes, unregulated by public authorities. For example, there is great demand in some wealthier countries of Asia and the Persian Gulf for domestic servants who sometimes fall victim to conditions of involuntary servitude.

Child Labour

Most international organizations and national laws indicate that children may legally engage in light work. The ILO Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No.138) sets out the basic requirement that children should only enter into employment once they have attained the age of completion of compulsory schooling. By contrast, illegal child labour and in particular its worst forms is being targeted for eradication by nations across the globe. The sale and trafficking of children and their entrapment in bonded and forced labour are among these worst forms, as specified in the ILO Convention on the subject (Convention No. 182).

WORKING GROUP

Objectives

  • To clarify the concept of trafficking for forced labour
  • To promote and reinforce good practices, success stories, case studies, achievements and gaps in the elimination of trafficking for forced labour
  • To understand the role of key partners and stakeholders in combating trafficking for forced labour
  • Contribution to Delhi Declaration

Methodology

  • Presentations by Speakers
  • Case studies
  • Moderated deliberations

Discussion Points

  • Direct Action - Victims' Assistance, Legal Intervention and Enforcement: Withdrawal/ rescue of victims of trafficking for forced labour - the various legal provisions (or the lack of these) in rescuing victims of forced labour.
  • Rehabilitation, Repatriation and Education: Addressing the immediate needs of the rescued victims, provision for victim sensitive care and protection, rehabilitation as a process of repatriation of the victim and restoration in their own communities. Education as a preventive and rehabilitative mechanism in combating trafficking for forced labour
  • Community and Child Participation: Preventive mechanism - generating widespread awareness, community based vigilance mechanisms (PVCs), survivors as empowered leaders.
  • Policy and policy implementation
  • Mass Mobilisation and Advocacy: Prevention strategies aimed at specific or multiple audiences. Demystify the complex phenomena of trafficking and forced labour, target source areas to prevent trafficking for forced labour
  • Ethical Trade Practices - Corporate Social Responsibility: Moving beyond philanthropy or charity-giving, to socially responsible trading practices, establishment of codes of conducts for all level of supply chains

Chair: Justice V. S. Malimath, Former Chief Justice, Karnataka and Kerala High Courts, India

Moderator: Mr. Patrick Belser, SAP-FL, ILO Geneva

Facilitator: Mr. Bhuwan Ribhu, Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA)

Rapporteur(s):

  • Ms. Priyanka, Global March Against Child Labour
  • Ms. Maria Sathya, National Programme Coordinator, ILO, Chennai

AGENDA

DAY 1 : 10 October 2007

Session 1: 2.00 - 4.00pm (2 hrs)

Setting the pace: Sharing by Master Amar Lal (former trafficked bonded labour survivor)

Introduction: Trafficking for Forced Labour - Mr. Patrick Belser, SAP-FL, ILO Geneva

Chair introduces the working group and methodology
Introduction of Moderator and speakers (5-7 mins) by Chair

Trafficking for Forced Labour: Role of stakeholders

Key Speakers (10 min each)

  • Mr. Kailash Satyarthi, Chairperson, Global March Against Child Labour
  • Mr. Nitte Adyanthaya, Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC)
  • Mr. Govinda Adhikari, Rugmark, Nepal
  • Sister Mary Christin, Coordinator, National Domestic Workers Movement, Maharashtra, India
  • Moderated Discussion/ Questions-Answers

Tea/ Networking Break: 4:00 - 4:30pm (30 min.)

DAY 1

Session 2: 4.30 - 6.30pm (2 hrs)

Experiences in the Elimination of Trafficking for Forced Labour and the Way Forward

Key Speakers (10 min each)

  • Ms. Panudda Boonpala, Dy. Director (a.i.), Sub-regional Office for South Asia, ILO
  • Mr. Amod Kanth, I.P.S, General Secretary, PRAYAS
  • Mr. Gauri Pradhan, Commissioner, National Human Rights Commission, Nepal
  • Ms. Sandhya Bajaj, Member, National Commission for Protection of Child Rights
  • Ms. Malsiri Dias, Board Member of CENWOR (Centre for Women's Research), Sri Lanka
  • Moderated Discussion/ Questions-Answers: Open house

DAY 2

Session 3: 11:30 am - 1:00 pm (1 hr 30 min.)

Experiences in the Elimination of Trafficking for Forced Labour and the Way Forward

Key Speakers (10 min each)

  • Mr. Dilli Choudhary, BASE Nepal
  • Dr. Lakshmidhar Mishra, Special Rapporteur, National Human Rights Commission and former Labour Secretary, Government of India
  • Ms. Wahida Banu Shapna, Chairperson, Bangladesh Shishu Adhikar Forum, Bangladesh
  • Moderated Discussion/ Questions-Answers: Open house

Recap and drafting of Delhi Declaration