Committee on Foreign Relations United St

Ending Modern Slavery Committee on Foreign Relations United St

The International Labor Organization estimates that there are at least 21 million victims of human trafficking in the world. Over 5 million of them are children. Women, children, and men alike are subjected to involuntary labor or sexual exploitation. It is estimated that forced labor alone generates $150-plus billion in profits annually, making it the second-largest income source for international criminals next to the drug trade, making it obscenely lucrative for unscrupulous labor brokers to induce people to cross borders, thinking that they are going for legal work, only to trap them in labor or sexual exploitation. Modern forms of slavery thrive where the rule of law is weakest. Corruption, crime, and cultural attitudes contribute to a climate of low risk and impunity for those who profit from modern slavery. In many instances, modern slavery is a crime of opportunity for perpetrators. It is often practiced quite openly, for example, in brick or rug manufacturing or in bars or brothels. Under U. S. law, such conditions are defined as the most severe forms of trafficking in persons, including forced sexual servitude of minors and adults and persons in bonded and other forced labor conditions.