Tough on Trafficking

In recent years, modern slavery and human trafficking have become increasingly hot topics across global media and rightly so. The stats are astonishing. Around 45.8 million people are enslaved in the world today, according to recent finding by the Global Slavery Index.

Though horrifying cases are frequently being exposed at home and abroad, it is heartening to see that more influential figures on the global stage are focussing efforts to stamp out this inhumane industry.

Recently, UK Prime Minister Theresa May pledged a £33 million boost to funding for the fight against modern slavery in Britain, following the launch of the Modern Slavery Act which came into force a year ago, during Mrs May’s tenure as Home Secretary.

The plans also see a taskforce set up to co-ordinate responses to modern slavery by raising awareness, improving training within the criminal justice system and strengthening support for survivors.

Mrs May said: “Modern slavery is international and requires an international response. So rather than chasing individual criminals in Britain as they are reported, we need a radically new, comprehensive approach to defeating this vile and systematic international business model at its source and in transit, and we need to flex the muscle of all parts of the UK government and collaborate with international partners.”

A move we can all get behind.

The British Asian Trust has been closely collaborating with our international partners to back the best and most impactful interventions in South Asia, following the launch of our anti-trafficking fund in 2014. We are now really scaling up our work in the region and have recently entered into a new partnership with Aangan in India.

Through a research-led approach, our work is supporting a holistic model to help recognise the signs of trafficking and emphasise prevention techniques, as well as rescue and rehabilitation work for the survivors of trafficking. We are also working tirelessly to humanise the survivors, telling their stories and thereby lifting the silence around the taboo subject of trafficking.

In fact, we recently joined the world in observing the World Day against Trafficking in Persons on 30th July, a date adopted by the UN to raise awareness and promote the protection of human rights.