Child slavery is the use of children in forced labor, which is outlawed by many nations and the international community. It is prevalent in developing countries and can involve trafficking, domestic and agricultural servitude, and the sex trade. Law enforcement agencies monitor cross-border trafficking, but domestic child slavery is harder to trace. Multinational companies are concerned about the use of child slavery in their subcontractors and some have campaigns to address this issue, such as requiring slave-free certification in the chocolate industry.
Child slavery is the treatment of children as property and the use of those children in forced labor. Many nations, as well as the international community, have laws specifically outlawing the enslavement of people of all ages and crack down on human trafficking, forced labor, and child labor, even if the people involved are not specifically slaves. The number of children in slavery around the world is difficult to estimate.
True chattel slavery, in which people buy and sell humans directly and treat them as their property, is relatively unusual. There are, however, a number of activities that closely approximate chattel slavery, including bonded labor, servitude, and slavery. Child slavery is of particular concern, as it can sometimes be difficult to identify and children often lack access to methods of reporting slavery or abusive working conditions.
This problem is particularly common in developing countries, where parents may sell children into slavery to provide for the rest of the family or because they cannot afford to support their children. In some regions, the parents themselves are forced laborers or slaves, and the people who control their labor may take and sell their children. Child slavery can involve the trafficking of children for domestic and agricultural servitude as well as the production of garments and other manufacturing activities. Some child slaves work in the sex trade.
In situations where child slaves are taken across borders, law enforcement agencies sometimes have the opportunity to intervene. A number of nations have anti-trafficking task forces that monitor the movement of people across the border and intervene if they suspect a group of people may be involved in trafficking. Domestic child slavery is harder to trace. While labor inspectors may visit workplaces and identify child workers or conditions of concern, companies may use bribes to encourage people to look the other way or to receive notices when an inspection is scheduled so that can hide their illegal workforce.
The use of child slavery in the manufacturing industry is a concern for some multinational companies, as they may outsource services and rely on their subcontractors for fair and legal working conditions. Exhibits of the use of child slavery tend to draw copious negative attention for companies responsible for selling products made from slave labor. Some companies and industries have campaigns to address this issue; in the chocolate industry, for example, where the use of child slaves has been a historical topic of concern, some companies require slave-free certification so they can inform consumers that their products were made humanely .
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