Modern-day slavery, human rights and the sex industry

This article explores the sex industry in Canada as modern-day slavery and an ongoing violation of basic human rights. Some argue that the sex industry is something that women or children choose to do as a legitimate profession, and others argue that they are exploited and manipulated by other people for indebtedness, for clothing, food, shelter or to support substance or alcohol addictions. How should the laws around sex trafficking and sexual exploitation be designed? The government could be in a position to legally ensure dignity and human rights protection for those engaged in selling sex. This paper highlights the perspectives of survivors of the sex industry as they describe heart-wrenching experiences that include torture, physical threats, psychological fear, and manipulation. As the public discourse grows around this ongoing scourge, momentum for change is also growing. There have been numerous efforts to address, disrupt, and end this social scourge. Our awareness of modern-day sex slavery atrocities seems to coincide with a greater sense of respect for fundamental human rights and a desire to protect them.

Kidnapped and Made Brides: Advancing Quantum Reparation for Sexual and Gender-based Victims in Conflict Zones

Conflict is the friction resulting from incompatibilities among people. Conflict has become a common experience in many African countries today which has led to bloodshed, death, starvation, famine, and ravaged communities. In this scenario, women and children have always been the worst hit. The girl child, particularly, and women are sexually abused, raped, kidnapped, and sometimes converted to sex slaves or forced into marriages. Since 2009, Boko Haram, a group of notorious terrorists, has been operating in the Northern part of Nigeria. One major feature of the signage of the group is the abduction of girls and women whom they forced into sexual slavery and marriage. In the years following the onslaughts, many of these girls were returned based on negotiations with the Federal Government of Nigeria. Some of the girls were returned defiled, some with children, and some with pregnancies as evidences of their sex slavery experience in the hands of the insurgents and abductors. While the Boko Haram troop’s attack is still an ongoing experience in Nigeria, little or nothing, however, is relayed about the issue of reparation for the girls and women returnees. Access to justice is one major factor that has not been provided for the victims. Using a desktop research, existing literature is reviewed in an analytical and comparative methodology, as available legal provisions are examined. It is suggested to the Nigerian government to involve the victims in the discourse of reparation and ensure their access to justice. This will ensure that quantum reparation is provided. The paper will be of immense importance to the Nigerian government, policymakers, civil organizations, human rights practitioners, the victims, as well as the citizenry. It will contribute in the way of education and policy making to the mentioned people.

SLAVERY IN CHARLES DICKENS’ NOVEL OLIVER TWIST

This research discusses the slavery experienced by the characters in the Oliver Twist novel. Those who have no family and no place to stay eventually become slaves who are forced to work for the benefit of the owner. They are treated as property and often get physical violence. This research aims to analyze the types of slavery that are reflected in Oliver Twist novel. This research using descriptive qualitative methods. Researchers used the Marxist approach and slavery theory to find the types of slavery contained in Oliver Twist novel. From the results of the analysis, it was found that there are 4 types of slavery in Oliver Twist novel, namely forced labor, sex slavery, child slavery and domestic servitude.

Slaves for Pleasure in Arabic Sex and Slave Purchase Manuals from the Tenth to the Twelfth Centuries

Women probably made up the majority of the slave population in the medieval Islamic world, most of them used for domestic service. As men were legally permitted to have sexual relations with their female slaves, enslaved women could be used for sexual service. Erotic compendia and sex manuals were popular literature in the premodern Islamic world, and are potentially rich sources for the history of sex slavery, especially when juxtaposed with legal writings. This article uses Arabic sex manuals and slave purchase manuals from the tenth to the twelfth century to investigate the attitudes toward sexual slavery during this period, as well as the changing ethnicities and origins of slaves, and the use of legal manipulations.

Health inequalities and health equity challenges for victims of modern slavery

BackgroundModern slavery is a serious organized crime, with severe consequences for the physical and mental health of victims, and so has public health implications. Anecdotally many victims of sex slavery experience difficulties accessing healthcare. Public Health England recently articulated the importance of health engagement to address modern slavery but little is known about the experiences of the survivors.MethodsWe conducted in depth interviews with Albanian female survivors of sex slavery who all displayed significant and complex health needs. Interviews were conducted between July 2017 and January 2018. Thematic analysis identified four primary themes: (i) barriers to access, (ii) negotiating access, (iii) health needs and care received and (iv) overall experience of primary care.ResultsSurvivors experienced repeated challenges accessing healthcare, for themselves and their children, and initially could not access GP services. When accompanied by an advocate they reported qualitatively and quantitatively improved experiences resulting in improved permeability. Confusion surrounding eligibility criteria and a lack of understanding of modern slavery emerged as the primary barriers, fueling biased adjudications.ConclusionsThe importance of advocates, enabling rights-based approaches, improving understanding about access to health services for vulnerable groups, and a need for education across health service settings are discussed.

Exit! A Prostitution Survivor Voice from South Africa

The author shares her first-hand experience of sexual abuse and slavery on the streets of South Africa during and after apartheid. Reflecting on her days in prostitution, the author also provides an insight into how the prostituted woman is robbed off her dignity and how difficult it is to exit from the physical and mental trauma. She explains the meaning of freedom after apartheid for the street children of South Africa. They celebrated the end of the systemic marginalization of black people but continued to face rampant substance abuse, sexual violence and ‘gangsterism’. This article is a testimony of her from sex slavery to a survivor leader and activist against the backfrop of the apathy of the South African state towards its vulnerable children.