Forced Labour and access to Education of Rohingya Refugee Children in Bangladesh: Beyond a Humanitarian Crisis

Rohingya refugee children in Bangladesh are forced into labour inside and outside the camps for a range of reasons. The article explores the child labour situations inside and outside the camps and relates the issue with access to education for Rohingya children. Being informed by various perspectives concerning child labour and education in developing country context, this research work takes a qualitative approach to study the issue. After collecting data through a few qualitative methods including observations and semi-structured interviews, the researcher explores the issue with those informed perspectives. The study finds that lack of formal identity, lack access in the formal market, absence of social sanctions against child employment, lack of aspirations, household composition and poor living conditions are some of the key factors that force children to various forms of labour. The host community members employ Rohingya children as cheap labourers and domestic workers while undocumented children often become victims of bonded labour, sex trade and trafficking. Forced labour and lack of access to formal education have formed a humanitarian crisis in the largest refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar which demands support and actions from local and international agencies.

Providing Protection or Enabling Exploitation? Orphanages and Modern Slavery in Post-Disaster Contexts

Orphanages are a common child protection response to humanitarian crises spurred on by media and NGO depictions of the disaster orphan. Yet, decades of research attests to the harm that orphanage care can cause. Driven by aid funding, orphanages are often sustained long after the recovery phase. In recent years, research has highlighted the links between orphanages, exploitation and modern slavery, particularly orphanage trafficking. This paper examines how the perpetuation of the disaster narrative sustains orphanage care post-disaster which heightens the risk, and exposure, of children to modern slavery, and makes suggestions for strengthening humanitarian crises responses to protect children.

What is the link between natural disaster and human trafficking and slavery?

A popular supposition is that natural disasters generate immediate criminal activity by human traffickers. There is little evidence to support this idea. It is clear that natural disasters can dramatically increase vulnerability, which then increases the probability that a person may be lured or forced into slavery. This research looks closely at individual disasters, as well as global statistical data, to explore the link between natural disasters and human trafficking and slavery. There is a clear sequence of changes that occurs when slavery crime alters in the wake of a disaster, which has not previously been clearly described.

Exploring the relationship between Humanitarian Emergencies and Human Trafficking

This article aims to explore the connection between humanitarian emergencies and human trafficking by conducting a narrative review of secondary sources. The search strategy for this narrative review included a number of relevant key terms. As humanitarian emergencies are likely to occur in the future, this paper investigates studies about conflict, disease outbreak, and natural disasters to provide further insight on the relationship between humanitarian emergencies and human trafficking.

Without data we are fighting blind: the need for human security data in defence sector responses to human trafficking

The increasing recognition of human trafficking’s connection to conflict and instability have led to a concerted drive to bring it further into the remit of defence actors. This article provides a discussion on how defence actors can use open data from the humanitarian sector to develop a holistic understanding of human security that can bolster their efforts to counter human trafficking and move from reactive to preventative responses. The article also discusses the recently developed ‘Fusion Doctrine’ within the UK and its implications for the meaningful inclusion of humanitarian perspectives in defence planning and analysis.

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on survivors of human trafficking in the Philippines

Pandemics disproportionately devastate those who are most vulnerable, including people who have experienced human trafficking. While numerous stakeholders have raised concerns regarding the potential effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on trafficked persons, very limited research exists documenting the effects of Covid-19 upon survivors. To understand the cross- cutting impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic upon human trafficking survivors, we must first listen to survivors themselves about how their basic safety, security, and health have been affected. We present findings from a rapid assessment conducted with human trafficking survivors in the Philippines regarding their experiences, needs, and priorities during the Covid-19 pandemic (n=233). Results of the rapid assessment revealed four primary concerns and priorities from the perspectives of survivors: food insecurity, loss of employment, mental health concerns, and an escalation in crisis incidents, with greater impact reported among those trafficked for sexual exploitation. Findings reinforce the need to broaden definitions of safety and facilitate emergency interventions that prioritize the most urgent needs articulated by survivors themselves.

Australia’s Modern Slavery Act and COVID-19: a get out of jail free card?

The COVID-19 pandemic increased modern slavery risk around the world, including in the operations and supply chains of Australian businesses. This article thematically analyses a sample of available business statements under Australia’s Modern Slavery Act to assess how they engaged with modern slavery risks due to COVID-19. Overall, the statements acknowledged that COVID-19 had increased risks through rapidly altered supply chain profiles, urgent demand for items such as PPE, and yet there were widespread reports of reduced capacity to fully execute planned modern slavery risk assessment, training, and audit activities.

The Impact of Covid-19 on the Identification of Victims of Modern Slavery and their Access to Support Services in Australia

This article examines how COVID-19 impacted the identification and access to support of modern slavery victims in Australia during 2020. It is the first comprehensive analysis of the pandemic’s impact on modern slavery victimisation in Australia. The key finding of the research is that COVID-19 exacerbated existing barriers to identifying victims of modern slavery in Australia and referring them to government funded support, related to the linkage of the provision of support with criminal justice processes. The reliance on policing capacity to identify and refer victims meant that when police and other government resources were diverted into the large-scale COVID-19 emergency response, there was less capacity for police to undertake this vital function, resulting in the under-identification and referral to support of victims of modern slavery.