VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

“Most serious problem you may not have heard of.” Millions worldwide suffering in tragic conditions - 

Human Trafficking is the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of people through force, fraud or deception, with the aim of exploiting them for profit. In short, victims have their freedom, rights and dignity stolen from them, and suffer terribly. Men, women and children of all ages and from all backgrounds can become victims of this crime, which sadly occurs in every region and country of the world.

Indonesia has taken serious steps to tackle the problem and help victims. Indonesian Fisherman have been found in forced labour on Chinese flagged fishing vessels and rescued; trafficking victims have been repartriated to Indonesia from Saudi Arabia; and the Indonesian government has Memorandums of Understanding covering the recruitment, placement and protection of migrant workers with major destination countries, such as Saudi Arabia and Malaysia. Indonesia estimates that more than 2 million of the 6-8 million Indonesians working abroad - many of whom are women working in the domestic sector - are undocumented or have overstayed their visas, increasing their vulnerability to trafficking.

Altogether, millions of people globally are suffering because of the serious crime of modern slavery and human trafficking, and it is those most marginalized who are most affected. The traffickers often use violence or 

fraudulent employment agencies and fake promises of education and job opportunities to trick and coerce their victims.

According to the global estimates from the International Labour Organisation, 152 million children are in child labour (any work that deprives children of their childhood, their potential and dignity, and that is harmful to physical and mental development) and 25 million adults and children are in forced labour (all work or service that is exacted from any person under the menace of penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself voluntarilily, including in global supply chains). But consumers are often left in the dark about what conditions the workers who make their goods, or produce their food, are facing.

The theme of this year’s World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, “the use and abuse of technology”, highlights that technology has significantly exacerbated exploitation and trafficking.  The misuse of technology is central to the business model of exploitation, from traffickers using technology to advertise women and girls on adult services platforms, to people smugglers who may use technology to recruit victims and organise illegal migration.

Our challenge is to make technology part of the solution. Technology provides an opportunity to respond to the needs of victims and survivors, to enhance prosecutions and to aid investigations, to raise awareness and lower the risks of trafficking. Governments and civil society must partner with tech companies to counter recruitment and exploitation facilitated by the internet and technology. An example of the great value of such partnerships is the joint awareness-raising campaign ‘Help for Ukrainians’ by the Office of the Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings and Thomson Reuters Special Services, that will increase awareness around risks of trafficking and improve the visibility of human trafficking hotlines.

According to a release received by Voice of Indonesia on Friday, Many countries are working together with the UK to prevent the crisis caused by Russia’s war of aggressionfrom putting people at risk of being trafficked. Our anti-trafficking efforts must be based on a victim-centred, trauma-informed, gender-sensitive, human rights-based approach, in partnership with civil society, businesses and tech companies. It is also essential to end impunity for cybercrime, and enhance internet safety for at-risk users, 

including children and young people, who are among those most engaged and connected online in today’s world.

The World Day Against Trafficking in Persons this year is a call to action for all of us to enhance efforts to prevent and combat modern slavery and human trafficking in all its forms, online and offline, and to protect those especially at-high risk, support victims and survivors, end impunity and ensure justice. The UK Government remains committed to eradicating all forms of modern slavery, forced labour and human trafficking in line with achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goal 8.7 by 2030.

“This important international day sheds light on the most serious problem you may not have heard of. Victims of this trafficking effectively become modern slaves: workingexcessive hours, lacking formal contracts and employment protections, and vulnerable to violence and having their wages unpaid. People have died in misery, while others make profit.

This is a global problem, which we must work together to crush; by bringing it out in the open. I am proud that many of our embassy programmes try to address this issue. Our Digital Access Programme tries to connect rural communities to the internet; educates them on their digital rights and how to be safe online; and grants access to free templates for those experiencing legal issues. Our Tech Hub programmes help women in rural areas create successful businesses in their communities. We must continue to work together to prevent trafficking, once and for all.” Deputy British Ambassador to Indonesia and Timor-Leste, Rob Fenn, said//VOI