Debt Bondage

Bonded labor, also known as debt bondage or debt slavery, is a form of labor in which a person is forced to work to pay off a debt. This practice is illegal in many countries, including the United States, as it is considered a form of modern-day slavery. Bonded labor often occurs in developing countries, where it is used as a means of securing cheap labor. In some cases, people may be tricked or coerced into accepting a loan, only to find out later that the terms of the loan are impossible to fulfill and that they are effectively trapped in a cycle of debt. This practice can have devastating effects on individuals and their families, as they are often forced to work long hours under dangerous or exploitative conditions in order to pay off their debt.

Blog: We need a new law to protect human rights and the environment – UNISON
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Blog: We need a new law to protect human rights and the environment – UNISON

We urgently need a new UK law to hold companies and the public sector to account when they fail to prevent human rights abuses and environmental harms in their global value chains. Nothing illustrates how broken the global procurement system is better than examining who gets what and how, at the top and the bottom…

A spotlight on Chinese debt bondage | The Japan Times
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A spotlight on Chinese debt bondage | The Japan Times

NEW DELHI – Recently released details of Kenya’s 2014 loan agreement with China to finance a controversial railway project have once again highlighted the predatory nature of Chinese lending in developing countries. The contract not only imposed virtually all risk on the borrower (including requiring binding arbitration in China to settle any dispute), but also…

Why one in every 150 people in the world is in slavery – The Goa Spotlight
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Why one in every 150 people in the world is in slavery – The Goa Spotlight

Worldwide, one person in every 150 lives in a situation of modern slavery, according to the International Labor Organization (ILO), a specialized agency of the UN. The total number of people affected is 50 million — up from 40 million just four years ago, according to the organization. What is “modern slavery”? Modern slavery is an…

UN says over 50 million people live in modern-slavery conditions – MercoPress
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UN says over 50 million people live in modern-slavery conditions – MercoPress

About 50 million people live in modern slavery worldwide, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said in his message marking International Day for the Abolition of Slavery on Dec. 2. The condition is to be found in almost every country. It also crosses ethnic, cultural, and religious barriers as newer forms of the transatlantic slave trade “reverberate…

Sex trafficking case resumes in Cape Town court – News24
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Sex trafficking case resumes in Cape Town court – News24

The trial of the two men and a woman allegedly involved in trafficking women for sex, resumed in the Western Cape High Court on Tuesday.  They are also charged with debt bondage and assault, relating to an alleged brothel off Koeberg Road in Cape Town. They have all pleaded not guilty. The trial of two…

Legacy of slavery still scars society, blocks progress says UN chief | Indiablooms
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Legacy of slavery still scars society, blocks progress says UN chief | Indiablooms

New York: The legacy of the transatlantic slave trade “reverberates to this day”, just as modern-day enslavement is growing, UN Secretary-General António Guterres has said. In a message ahead of commemorations for the International Day for the Abolition of Slavery, on 2 December, Mr. Guterres said that societies remain scarred by the historical suffering of…

The Global Estimates: a call to action this International Day for the Abolition of Slavery
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The Global Estimates: a call to action this International Day for the Abolition of Slavery

Today marks the International Day for the Abolition of Slavery. This day is focused on countering contemporary forms of slavery, such as forced labour, debt bondage, forced marriage, and human trafficking. In September this year, the new Global Estimates of Modern Slavery were released by Walk Free, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the International…

How ‘modern slavery’ thrives in the U.S. through visa programs
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How ‘modern slavery’ thrives in the U.S. through visa programs

HOUSTON – Sex trafficking and human smuggling make big headlines in Texas. They are both forms of human trafficking that victimizes many. Yet experts say another form of trafficking that is easier to accomplish is creating what many consider modern day slavery. [embedded content] It is called labor trafficking and the traffickers take advantage of…

Bangladeshi migrants still paying off debts from working in Qatar
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Bangladeshi migrants still paying off debts from working in Qatar

Bangladeshi migrant workers are reporting returning to their home countries saddled with debt after paying high recruitment fees to work in Qatar. These costs include paying for international travel, passports, visas, medical fees and other charges. Contracts cut short In order to break even, a Bangladeshi 2020 Cost of Migration Survey found that male workers…

Migrant workers on British farms trapped in 'debt bondage', MPs told | The Independent
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Migrant workers on British farms trapped in 'debt bondage', MPs told | The Independent

  Government inspectors have found cases of debt bondage among seasonal agricultural workers in the UK, MPs have heard. Margaret Beels, director of labour market enforcement at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Beis), told a committee of MPs she was “worried” that overseas recruitment had led to some seasonal workers being stuck…