THIS MONTHLY NEWSLETTER IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY STOP TRAFFICKING OF PEOPLE (STOP), PROVIDING YOU WITH THE MOST UP-TO-DATE NEWS, EVENTS AND RESOURCES RELATED TO HUMAN TRAFFICKING. FOR DAILY UPDATES, VISIT OUR FACEBOOK PAGE.
HONG KONG
Hungry and indebted: Kenyan domestic worker falls victim to forced labour in Hong Kong
Date: 6 April 2020
Source: Hong Kong Free Press
When Mary saw a job advertisement recruiting foreign domestic workers in Hong Kong on Facebook three years ago, her face lit up. The 29-year-old Kenyan thought the monthly wage of HK$4,410, way higher than her income at home in Nairobi, would contribute towards paying for the education of her six siblings whilst supporting her retired parents. She never foresaw that her “dream job” would turn into one of her worst nightmares.
Serial sex offender jailed for seven years in Hong Kong over rape of 15-year-old girl
Date: 22 April 2020
Source: South China Morning Post
A Hong Kong serial sex offender with 38 prior convictions was jailed for seven years and three months for raping an underage girl and threatening to take recordings of their sexual encounter to her school. Justice Joseph Yau said the court did not lose sight of the fact that Chan Wing-jim’s victim was a part-time girlfriend engaging in compensated dating. “This, however, does not give the defendant the licence to do what he had done,” the judge said.
Access the article here.
Read more: Bought and sold – helping young people escape from commercial sexual exploitation
ASIA
Singapore’s cramped migrant worker dorms a ‘perfect storm’ for rising coronavirus infections
Date: 6 April 2020
Source: South China Morning Post
As Singapore sees a rise in coronavirus infections among its migrant worker population, rights groups are calling on the authorities to improve the living conditions of these workers, pointing to how they are housed in dormitories that are too cramped for them to practise physical distancing. “I hope the Covid-19 episode demonstrates to the employers and wider public that raising standards at worker dormitories is not only the right thing to do, but also in our own interests.” Manpower Minister Josephine Teo said in a late-night Facebook post.
China cracks down on illegal online adoptions
Date: 17 April 2020
Source: China News
Chinese internet giants, including Tencent and Q&A platform Zhihu vowed to investigate and shut down chatrooms and messages on baby trafficking through illegal adoptions. The move comes after a foster father was accused of raping his adopted daughter. Global Times learned that some online baby trafficking chatrooms were disguised as charitable organizations, for example, those that helped lost children find their homes or agencies providing nurses or babysitters.
Access the article here.
Read more: Anger erupts in China after teen says guardian repeatedly raped her
Japan is offering sex workers financial aid. But they say it’s not enough to survive the coronavirus pandemic
Date: 20 April 2020
Source: CNN
Sex workers across Japan have been hit hard by closures and restrictions due to the pandemic. The entire country is under a state of emergency, with many businesses ordered to shutter and people advised not to go out. To soften the economic blow, the central government has launched a massive stimulus package worth 108 trillion Japanese yen. After some controversy, sex workers are eligible to apply for aid, but for many, the package offers little reassurance – and its rules for eligibility seem opaque and restrictive.
Access the article here.
Read more: ‘I don’t want to infect my children,’ says Hong Kong sex worker
South Korean authorities encourage men to marry foreign women. But their brides often become victims of abuse
Date: 5 August 2020
Source: CNN
Trinh was 29 years old and her future husband was in his 50s. She only spoke Vietnamese, he spoke Korean. Despite the communication barrier, the union went ahead and she moved to South Korea to be with her husband. Three months after that, she was dead. Trinh is one of the thousands of Vietnamese women to marry South Korean men through matchmakers who set up brides with grooms. Some couples have happy marriages. But many foreign brides who meet men this way have become victims of discrimination, domestic violence and even murder at the hands of their husbands.
GLOBAL
Revealed: Vietnamese children vanish from Dutch shelters to be trafficked into Britain
Date: 30 March 2020
Source: The Guardian
An investigation by the Observer and Argos Radio of the Netherlands has revealed that, in the past five years, at least 60 Vietnamese children have disappeared from protected shelters. The findings of the investigation raise serious questions about the efforts of EU states to prevent the trafficking of vulnerable children, and highlight the failings of the British and Dutch authorities to care for unaccompanied minors properly.
AI is helping us combat the economic problem of human trafficking
Date: 14 April 2020
Source: Forbes
In 2012, a student, Emily Kennedy from Carnegie Mellon University found that AI technology can be used to leverage the retail component of the Human Trafficking business to uncover human trafficking operations. She started Marinus Analytics, a company that uses artificial intelligence and machine learning in their software Traffic Jam to comb through publicly available data all over the internet to help to identify patterns of human trafficking. Law enforcement agencies in several countries use Traffic Jam to follow up on leads generated and conduct rescue operations.
Fruit labourers: ‘If you don’t want to work like a slave, you’re out’
Date: 20 April 2020
Source: BBC News
Spain is one of the largest producers of fruits and vegetables in the world. The southern region of Almeria is known for what the Spanish call the sea of plastic. Cheap plastic greenhouses cover tens of thousands of hectares and migrant workers pick the fruits and vegetables that are sold in European supermarkets. The BBC has spent several months investigating allegations of exploitation there.
Coders who survived human trafficking rewrite their identities
Date: 21 April 2020
Source: Wired
At a family centre in downtown Oakland, 11 students are training with two lecturers and two teaching assistants. Toys are strewn on the floor; the school, called AnnieCannons, offers childcare onsite. Coding is about identifying problems and finding solutions, says Jessica Hubley, one of the founders of AnnieCannons, a nonprofit that teaches coding to survivors of human trafficking and gender-based violence, and that is something these students have had a lot of experience doing. A photographer and an artist weave together their stories…
RESOURCES
A guide for survivors of sex trafficking during COVID-19
Date: 27 March 2020
Source: Sanctuary for Families
The purpose of this is to empower survivors and service providers with psychoeducation on how COVID-19 might be particularly triggering for survivors of human trafficking. It is written for survivors of sex trafficking who are no longer being trafficked. This guide was written by a survivor of sex and labour trafficking and a licensed mental health clinician.
COVID-19: Guidance for employers and business to enhance migrant worker protection during the current health crisis
Date: 7 April 2020
Source: IRIS
Employers and business play a vital role in protecting migrant workers and their communities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many provide essential care, services and goods and, in doing so, rely heavily on their migrant workforce. This resource is designed to help employers more effectively respond to the impact of COVID-19 and to enhance protections for migrant workers in their operations and supply chains.
Access the article here.
Access the employers guidance here.
Opinion: The sham of ‘rehabilitation’ – many child sex trafficking victims are pushed back into abuse
Date: 10 April 2020
Source: The News Minute
Priya was just a child when she was trafficked for sex from her home in West Bengal. After years of abuse, Priya thought her woes would end when she was rescued. But as the assault of the pimps and customers ended, the assault of the system began. All Priya wanted was some support from the government to find herself a home, and start afresh. But that didn’t happen. Soon, the organisation that was helping her found out that she had gone back into sex work.
Report: Top fashion brands found making little progress in transparency index
Date: 21 April 2020
Source: Reuters
The annual index by advocacy group Fashion Revolution – now in its fifth year – ranked 250 of the world’s biggest brands according to how much information they disclose about their social and environmental policies, practices and outcomes. H&M, C&A, Adidas, Reebok and Esprit topped the index, which was published ahead of the seventh anniversary of the Rana Plaza factory collapse in Bangladesh’s capital, Dhaka, which killed about 1,135 garment workers and injured more than 2,000.
Access the article here.
Read the full report here.
Review our #GoBeyondTheLabel series here.
STOP ENEWS, PUBLISHED EVERY MONTH, AIMS TO PROVIDE CURRENT NEWS, EVENTS, AND RESOURCES TO THE ANTI-HUMAN TRAFFICKING COMMUNITY IN HONG KONG. IF YOU HAVE ANTI-TRAFFICKING RELATED ACTIVITIES OR RESOURCES YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE THROUGH OUR ENEWS NETWORK, SEND YOUR SUGGESTIONS TO NEWS@STOPHK.ORG. INCLUSION OF CONTENT IN NO WAY REFLECTS THE VIEWS OF OUR ORGANISATION. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT.STOP IS AN INITIATIVE OF BRANCHES OF HOPE BASED IN HONG KONG. IT IS NOT ASSOCIATED WITH ANY OTHER ANTI-TRAFFICKING ORGANISATION OF THE SAME OR SIMILAR NAME.
香港
反勒索達人青躍創辦人林寶儀 網絡催化性暴力 難有終結
日期：2020年3月29日
來源：明報
南韓Ｎ號房事件曝光不久後，有人迅速將事情來由翻譯成中文，林寶儀埋頭看，單看文字敘述已覺心寒。她想到了幾年前香港其實也發生過類似的事，有幾個成員達數千人的Telegram群組，成員間互相分享在不同場所偷拍女生走光照片，討論偷拍技巧。性暴力行為在香港時有發生，在當今網絡的催化下，傷害的力度加大。受傷的女孩子，在水深火熱裏的她們，其實需要什麼？為什麼會被勒索？
+ 全文
+ 延伸閱讀：方念萱／網路性霸凌──那些受害於數位性別暴力裡的人們，尤其是女人
積犯強姦恐嚇15歲「兼職女友」 判囚7年3月
日期：2020年4月22日
來源：明報
過去曾干犯多項性罪行的男倉務員，兩年前在網上邀約15歲「兼職女友」到元朗一間酒店開房，趁機強姦少女，事後要脅跟他再性交，否則將其私密照傳到網上。男倉務員早前在高院經審訊後被裁定各一項強姦和刑事恐嚇罪成。法官指斥，被告雖沒有射精，也沒有令女事主懷孕或染病，但被告無疑是機會主義者，精心策劃事件，事後又以影片恐嚇，並考慮被告過去持續干犯性罪行，決定判處被告共入獄7年3個月。
亞洲
防疫不分本外，新加坡總理李顯龍：我們會盡全力照顧外籍移工
日期：2020年4月10日
來源：關鍵評論
人力有限的新加坡相當仰賴外來勞動力的輸入，以支撐國內的建築、清潔等行業，因此在新加坡有許多外籍移工宿舍。《中央社》報導，新加坡官方公布的外勞宿舍感染群，共有近2萬名的移工要執行14天隔離令。為減緩外籍移工族群發生武漢肺炎群聚感染的機會，在新加坡國家發展部的要求下，新加坡國防部已將鮮少使用的勿洛第二營區、裕廊第二營區，改作為暫時安置外籍移工的緊急住房設施。
+ 全文
+ 延伸閱讀：新冠肺炎病例暴增，凸顯新加坡「階級制度」 外籍移工處境艱難、宿舍淪病毒溫床
性侵幼妻養女的「鮑毓明事件」？中國販售兒童的送養黑色產業鍊
日期：2020年4月15日
來源：轉角國際
近期中國引發社會輿論的「鮑毓明事件」，不僅讓鮑毓明幾乎身敗名裂，也迫使曾被撤銷的養女性侵案重啟調查。然而鮑的「幼妻養成計畫」，背後牽連著長期隱藏在中國社會的「兒童送養網路黑產業」。這套送出養流程，是由出養人將孩子透過中介方，在網路上私自尋找有意收養的「客戶」，媒合成功後會收取一定的費用。根據部分已知的送養網路群組討論，有些還是在孕婦懷胎時就可以「下訂」，價格從4萬到10萬人民幣以上都有。
+ 全文
+ 延伸閱讀：高管涉嫌性侵「養女」，鮑毓明案在中國引發憤怒
CNN專訪日本風俗孃：當政府將性工作者納入紓困對象，她們真能得到幫助嗎？
日期：2020年4月20日
來源：風傳媒
日本的新冠肺炎疫情讓全國進入「緊急事態」，疫情下的經濟衰退，風俗業自然也是受害者之一。在幾經爭論後，日本的性工作者確定也能申請安倍晉三於7日宣布的108兆日元緊急紓困補助。不過CNN近日實地走訪日本的風俗孃，發現政府畫的大餅對她們來說有些不切實際，而不透明及不清晰的申請資格與補助項目更令許多風俗從業人員不知該如何辦領申請。
《封鎖悲歌》就快到家了……印度12歲失業童工返鄉，徒步跋涉70公里、脫水而死
日期：2020年4月22日
來源：風傳媒
印度為應對新冠肺炎危機，自3月24日起全國封城，使各地支撐起城市經濟基礎的數百萬民工被迫丟掉工作、失去在城內的棲身之處，一夕之間淪為難民。但全國交通停擺，使他們還必須徒步跋涉數百公里回家。21日，南部一家農場的12歲童工瑪德坎姆，在徒步約70公里後累到脫水而死。印度人權運動家林加指出：「小女孩命不該絕的，她只是個孩子，不該是民工。」
國際
消失的孩子！大批越南兒童被指從荷蘭賣到英國制毒，荷政府稱胡扯
日期：2020年3月31日
來源：壹讀
《觀察家報》和荷蘭Argos電台的一項調查顯示，過去五年里，至少有60名越南兒童從荷蘭的庇護所里失蹤。荷蘭警方和移民官員懷疑，這些孩子是被人口販子拐到英國的大麻製造廠和美甲沙龍工作了。這次的調查結果不但令外界對歐盟國家防止拐賣弱勢兒童的工作提出了嚴重質疑，更反映出英國和荷蘭當局並未有妥善照顧這些在異地舉目無親的未成年人。
歐洲移民勞工討薪難：「如果你不願意像奴隸一樣工作，你就出局了。」
日期：2020年4月22日
來源：BBC News 中文
西班牙是世界上最大的水果和蔬菜生產國之一，而當地阿爾梅裏亞省南部地區更有數萬公頃的蔬果溫室大棚，甚至被西班牙人稱為「塑料海洋」。廉價的塑料溫室內，移民勞工正在採摘將運往歐洲，在超市出售的水果和蔬菜。BBC歷時幾個月，調查那裏移民勞工遭到剝削的指控。
評論及資源
評論：想飛卻不能飛，從短片Sitara看14歲女孩的悲歌
日期：2020年4月10日
來源：Hokk Fabrica
與相愛的人攜手步入婚姻，或許是不少人再普通不過的人生選擇之一；然而在某些國家裡，自由戀愛卻像是遙不可及的夢想。童婚直到今日仍持續發生中，而為了早日終結童婚，有許多單位高聲呼籲社會停止這項惡習。曾獲兩次奧斯卡金像獎最佳紀錄短片獎的巴基斯坦籍導演Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy，便以1970年代的巴基斯坦為背景，製作出短片《Sitara: Let Girls Dream》，希望能藉此引起大眾多關注她的家鄉，以及其他仍有童婚現象的國家，並正視此項議題。
+ 全文
+ 延伸閱讀：「我八歲，有一個小孩」童婚小新娘的悲歌
報告：Fashion Revolution 2020《時尚透明度指數》排名最高是 H&M 集團和 Gucci、最低是 Tom Ford
日期：2020年4月23日
來源：Vogue Hong Kong
公司向消費者提供公司透明度是實現可持續性發展時裝的重要一步，如此他們才能知道 #WhoMadeMyClothes ，產品的誕生又是否來血汗工廠、或是在甚麼情況下搜羅材料。Fashion Revolution 組織發表2020 《The Fashion Transparency Index 2020》報告，對全球最大的250個時裝品牌和零售商做出調查，根據品牌們所分享有關其供應鏈、環境實踐和社會承諾的信息作出排名。報告中，透明度最高的排名，由 H&M 集團位居榜首擁有 73% 的透明度。
評論：性剝削之下的責任歸屬 –– N號房事件中「只觀看沒施暴」的人有罪嗎？
日期：2020年4月23日
來源：關鍵評論
N號房殘酷的犯罪手法不僅震驚各界，也引發如何究責的論戰。部分會員主張他們並未參與施暴、不必為影片中的性暴力負責，但韓國社會顯然不認為會員們毫無責任、怒指他們也是共犯，更有逾200萬人在青瓦臺網站上連署要求政府公布會員身分。輿論也指出，如此大規模的性犯罪反映的不僅是少數人的惡行、更是結構性的性別壓迫，而支持或默許這種文化的社會大眾是否也應對N號房事件負部分責任？
+ 全文
+ 延伸閱讀：網路兒童性誘騙 –– 隱藏在數位空間的犯罪行為
STOP. 中文電子報每月出版，旨在向本港打擊販運人口的社區提供最新的新聞和資源。如你有反人口販運的資訊想透過本報發放，請聯絡 NEWS@STOPHK.ORG。本電子報內容並不反映 STOP. 的立場，謝謝您對本組織的支持。STOP. 是 希望枝子有限公司 (BRANCHES OF HOPE) 其中一個項目，旨在對抗人口販運。本組織與其他名稱類同的反人口販運組織並無關連。THIS MONTHLY NEWSLETTER IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY STOP TRAFFICKING OF PEOPLE (STOP), PROVIDING YOU WITH THE MOST UP-TO-DATE NEWS, EVENTS AND RESOURCES RELATED TO HUMAN TRAFFICKING. FOR DAILY UPDATES, VISIT OUR FACEBOOK PAGE.
HIGHLIGHT OF THE MONTH
Spread the Word
STOP is partnering with Rights Exposure to conduct a research study on the exploitation and trafficking of youth sex workers in Hong Kong. If you know someone who may be interested to participate in the study, feel free to share this message with them. Thank you!
International Visitor Leadership Program
In February, our staff Kara joined the International Visitors Leadership Program hosted by the US Department of State. It was a valuable opportunity to exchange views and share knowledge with various anti-trafficking agencies and organizations in the USA, as well as with other participants of the program from all over the world. Kara looks forward to applying the inspiration and experience she gained to the ongoing fight against human trafficking in Hong Kong.
HONG KONG
Hong Kong students take a stand against modern-day slavery on CNN’s #MyFreedomDay
Date: 11 March 2020
Source: CNN
During the coronavirus outbreak, students in Hong Kong take a break from home learning to discuss the value of freedom and raise awareness to end slavery with CNN news anchor Kristie Lu Stout.
Watch the interview here.
View more: My Freedom Day 2020 submissions
Hong Kong’s ‘live-in’ rule for domestic workers leads to working on rest day, appeal of government policy argues
Date: 17 March 2020
Source: South China Morning Post
Hong Kong’s domestic helpers are routinely subject to exploitation on their legally mandated rest day because of a policy that requires them to live with their employers, an appeal against the government policy argued. Barrister Paul Shieh SC told the Court of Appeal the so-called live-in rule, “unacceptably heightened the risk of domestic workers being forced to work while they were supposed to be having their rest day”.
Access the article here.
Read more: Hong Kong employers called ‘irresponsible’ as survey reveals 50,000 domestic helpers not given masks, sanitiser
Two held over jobs scam targeting migrant workers
Date: 17 March 2020
Source: RTHK
Customs officers have cracked down on a purported employment agency, which allegedly preyed on foreign domestic helpers by falsely claiming they could help their friends and family find work in Hong Kong as construction workers, cleaners, and waiters, with salaries supposedly ranging from HK$7,000 to HK$13,000. Officers have identified eight victims so far, and are calling on others to come forward.
ASIA
‘It’s not that I want to sell my kid. I just need money’: The Philippine mothers who sell their babies
Date: 8 March 2020
Source: CNA
Commercial adoption of children is qualified as child trafficking under Philippine law. But despite the severe penalties, law-enforcement officers continue to receive reports on the illicit trade. For Jasmine, paid adoption is a guarantee for her child’s well-being. She believes whoever could pay US$200 to adopt him would be able to give him a better life. “We stood outside the gate and I looked at them. They were dancing around with the baby. We were both crying,” she said.
Trafficked ‘brides’ stuck in China due to coronavirus after fleeing abuse
Date: 12 March 2020
Source: Reuters
Coronavirus travel restrictions have forced anti-trafficking groups to suspend rescue operations of Vietnamese and Cambodian “brides” from China, with some now in hiding having escaped the homes of men holding them against their will. Chab Dai program manager Chan Saron said in early January, one women reported being transferred to “government-controlled detention” and held “under very strict conditions” before contact was lost.
GLOBAL
Niger police rescue 232 victims of sex trafficking, forced labour
Date: 27 February 2020
Source: Reuters
Police in Niger have rescued 232 victims of sex trafficking and forced labor, including girls as young as 10, in a major operation in the capital Niamey, Interpol said. “It’s bad enough when you have transportation of illicit goods, but these are real people with real ambitions,” said Stephen Kavanagh, Interpol’s executive director of police services.
Access the article here.
Read more: The Nigerian human trafficking mafia in Europe
In her own words: An inside look into sex trafficking from Canadian survivors
Date: 9 March 2020
Source: Global News
Wearing cozy clothing, they quietly walk through the door and squeeze onto a floral couch. They wipe their palms on their thighs — you can feel their nerves — you can also feel their bravery. They are survivors of the unimaginable. From different cities and backgrounds, there is a common thread in each woman’s narrative. They were all vulnerable in some way and ended up in the arms of someone they thought they could trust before things started to spiral.
Samoan chief guilty of enslaving countrymen in New Zealand for 25 years
Date: 17 March 2020
Source: The Telegraph
Joseph Auga Matamata, a New Zealand-based Samoan chief was found guilty of human trafficking and using 13 Samoans as slaves in New Zealand over a quarter of a century. He promised paid work or schooling in New Zealand and paid for flights, visas and passports, but upon arrival his victims worked long hours for no pay. It is the first time anyone in New Zealand had been charged with both human trafficking and slavery simultaneously.
RESOURCES
Opinion: Child sex trafficking survivors deserve to be protected, not criminalized
Date: 28 February 2020
Source: Crosscut
Sexual abuse during childhood is frequently one of the key indicators that girls will enter the juvenile and criminal justice systems. Often, they are condemned for crimes related to their own sexual abuse and reactions to traumatic events. This includes substance abuse, truancy, running away and retaliating against their abusers. These crimes are loud cries for help and therapeutic intervention, and should not be met with traditional detention and punishment.
Report: China transferred detained Uighurs to factories used by global brands
Date: 1 March 2020
Source: The Guardian
At least 80,000 Uighurs have been transferred from Xinjiang province, some of them directly from detention centres, to factories across China that make goods for dozens of global brands, according to a report from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI). The report from the ASPI adds to growing evidence that even after being released from the camps, former detainees are still subject to severe controls and in some cases forced labour.
Access the article here.
Read the summary report here.
Documentary Photography: ‘Spirit me away’ – The women and girls lost to trafficking in Nepal
Date: 8 March 2020
Source: Aljazeera
A human trafficking crisis in Nepal is leaving a trail of trauma and lost youth in its wake. ‘Spirit me away’ shines a light on the origins and the toll of the thriving human trafficking business, worth $150 billion a year worldwide, where women and girls comprise 71% of all modern slavery victims, Nepal being one of its most lucrative motherlodes. From Nepal alone, at least 54 girls and women are trafficked every day to India.
Access the article here.
View the full album here.
Report: Taiwan’s major global tuna supplier shows “blind spots” to illegal fishing practices and modern slavery
Date: 19 March 2020
Source: Greenpeace East Asia
This report is based on a 2019 investigation conducted by Greenpeace East Asia, involving interviews with migrant fishers from three fishing vessels that were either flagged or linked to Taiwan. It was found that IUU fishing and forced labour, allegedly, still continue to happen aboard Taiwanese fishing vessels operating in the Atlantic Ocean, where over 20,000 migrant workers are employed.
Access the article here.
Read the full report here.
STOP ENEWS, PUBLISHED EVERY MONTH, AIMS TO PROVIDE CURRENT NEWS, EVENTS, AND RESOURCES TO THE ANTI-HUMAN TRAFFICKING COMMUNITY IN HONG KONG. IF YOU HAVE ANTI-TRAFFICKING RELATED ACTIVITIES OR RESOURCES YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE THROUGH OUR ENEWS NETWORK, SEND YOUR SUGGESTIONS TO NEWS@STOPHK.ORG. INCLUSION OF CONTENT IN NO WAY REFLECTS THE VIEWS OF OUR ORGANISATION. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT.STOP IS AN INITIATIVE OF BRANCHES OF HOPE BASED IN HONG KONG. IT IS NOT ASSOCIATED WITH ANY OTHER ANTI-TRAFFICKING ORGANISATION OF THE SAME OR SIMILAR NAME.STOP 電子報：2020年03月
本月焦點
招募研究受訪者
STOP和Rights Exposure 現正進行一項有關香港年青女性性工作者被剝削的研究，旨在了解性工作者的經歷和需要，並就有關法例、支援服務以及社會政策提出改善建議。如果你有認識嘅朋友符合以上條件，請將這個post PM與他們分享。
美國交流計劃
今年二月，STOP的同工Kara參加了由美國國務院舉辦的交流計劃，有幸能與美國不同的政府部門和志願組織交流反人口販運的心得，以及認識來自世界各地的參加者。很多有心人多年來在美國建立起對抗人口販運的完善制度。他們的經驗分享，讓Kara深受啟發，希望能有助於香港的反人口販運工作。
香港
外傭團體調查 1 成僱主無為外傭提供口罩 有外傭被禁外出連續工作 9 星期
日期：2020年3月16日
來源：立場新聞
武漢肺炎疫情持續，外傭組織問卷調查顯示，本港僱主向外傭提供的防疫保護並不足夠，有逾一成人的僱主根本沒有提供口罩或搓手液，更有近半人在過去一個月無休假，被迫持續留家工作。外傭團體呼籲，外傭是照顧港人家庭重要部份，特區政府應該將他們納入抗疫計劃當中，提供足夠防疫物資和保護措施，向外傭及僱主提供防疫教育資訊，以及廢除帶歧視性的「強制同住規定」等。
+ 全文
+ 延伸閱讀：日洗廁所 15 次 留家「放假」變相返工 印傭：希望港人待我哋公平啲
菲傭上訴挑戰禁外宿規定 稱增休息日工作風險
日期：2020年3月18日
來源：明報
代表上訴人的資深大律師石永泰表示，外傭受《僱傭條例》保障，享有休息日的權利，惟須與僱主同住的規定，增加外傭受剝削的風險，例如要求外傭周日完成部分家務才可外出休假，形容情况導致外傭受《基本法》第39條保障的權利受損。石形容外傭議價能力低，只能接受僱主的不當要求，建議如僱傭雙方已達成批准外傭外出居住的協議，便毋須受法例規管。
無牌中介騙八外傭18萬血汗錢
日期：2020年3月18日
來源：星島日報
海關首破無牌僱傭中介公司以不良營商手法經營，調查發現有無良中介向在港工作的菲傭，訛稱可安排她們在家鄉的親友到港澳工作，甚至可獲高薪及居留權，介紹費由一萬二千至二萬四千元不等，有菲傭付出五倍月薪「血汗錢」，惟一直未獲相關服務，至少八人中招，涉款十八萬元。海關指不排除有更多受害人，呼籲她們向海關提供資料。
釋囚指控監獄廚房強逼每天工作 偽造休假記錄 申司法覆核追究
日期：2020年3月20日
來源：立場新聞
陳先生在 2017 年於白沙灣懲教所服刑期間，被分派至廚房工作，期間完全無休假，假日工作亦沒有獲發額外薪金，有違《監獄條例》規定。不過，在「所員休息簿」上，他卻「被放假」，他質疑有懲教職員偽造文件。事隔近兩年，懲教署在去年中裁定其投訴「沒有充足證據證明或否定相關指稱」。陳不滿結果，繼續要求署方出示「所員休息簿」，但署方聲稱院所並無持有相關資料。陳在17 日入稟申請司法覆核，要求推翻懲教署與事實不符的說法。
亞洲
梅姨拐童案 尋子15年的悲與喜
日期：2020年3月11日
來源：世界日報
2005年1月4日，申軍良將滿周歲的兒子申聰在出租屋裡被人搶走。妻子于曉莉永遠記得，那天申軍良像往常一樣出去上班，自己正在做飯，家裡突然闖入兩個男人，摀住了她的眼睛和嘴巴。一股類似藥酒的味道頓時在鼻尖瀰散開來，她睜不開眼，也說不出話。等到掙脫時，孩子不見了。過去15年，申軍良來回奔波在全程1800餘公里的尋子路上。在警方通知他找到兒子的那一刻，除了說不出的喜悅，還有那麼一點點擔憂：「孩子會不會嫌棄我？」
N號房：韓國Telegram群組性虐案 涉74人受害 26萬會員付費收看
日期：2020年3月22日
來源：香港01
首爾警方透露，綽號「博士」的團伙主腦趙某會在社交平台以「兼職」利誘，哄騙受害者拍攝露臉的裸照，藉此要脅對方拍攝淫穢影片或照片。綜合韓媒報道，案件前後牽涉最少74名受害人，包括最年幼的11歲小學生，疑犯更會以「奴隸」稱呼她們。
+ 全文
+ 延伸閱讀：台灣教育部「兒少性剝削及校園復仇式色情事件防治工作宣導方案」
國際
【科技．未來】擺脫電池界「血鑽」 可靠無鈷電池？
日期：2020年2月27日
來源：香港01
近年，各車廠和電池生產商已不斷降低電池的鈷含量。除了降低電池成本和改善電池效能，還有沒有甚麼更重要的原因？剛果的鈷開採長年涉及剝削和童工問題，被視為電池界的「血鑽」。有行業研究公司指出，鈷主要由大型工業採挖而得，但估算仍有大約17％的鈷由剛果東南部地區的數千名礦工以手工挖出，賣給中介。哈佛大學甘迺迪政府學院公共政策講師Siddharth Kara表示，剛果每年有高達2,000名非法或手工礦工死亡，但很多時都沒被記錄為因挖礦致死。
尼日利亞警破「嬰兒工廠」 女子慘遭綁架充生仔機器
日期：2020年3月12日
來源：星島日報
尼日利亞人口販賣猖獗，西南部奧貢州警方發言人宣佈，近日成功破獲一個位於南部石油城市哈科特港的「嬰兒工廠」，並拯救當中被困的24名1至2歲嬰幼兒，還有4名孕婦。有不法份子涉嫌綁架並威逼多名年齡介乎20至25歲的女子進行性行為，因姦成孕產子後，犯罪集團會將嬰兒出售。被禁錮的受害人當中，有女孩年僅10多歲。
東非故事：好不容易從皮條客手上逃離的女孩，為何又再甘願「送羊入虎口」？
日期：2020年3月18日
來源：換日線
故事通常都有相似的開頭：陌生人來到偏遠的村莊，向未見過世面的女孩描繪城鎮的繁華，並承諾在那裡她將可以獲得一份優渥的工作。如果表現良好，工作幾年後也許雇主還會資助女孩回學校受教。這樣的大好機會，如何不讓困於貧窮的女孩和她的家人心動？她們懷抱著夢想前往城市，卻不曉得陌生人所說的好工作，原來是在酒吧當侍應，美其名擔任「服務生」，實際上卻是被迫賣身給尋芳客，而賺的錢都落入酒吧老闆口袋裡。
評論及資源
報告：8萬新疆維吾爾人遭「移轉」到Nike、蘋果等代工廠工作
日期：2020年3月2日
來源：關鍵評論
澳洲戰略政策研究所發表報告指出，在2017年至2019年間，有超過8萬名維吾爾族人被調離新疆，到中國各地的工廠工作，當中有部分人，是直接從新疆的拘留營中被送走。研究所指出，他們發現的證據顯示，中國的維吾爾人遭到剝削，且中國和外國企業可能無意間涉及侵犯人權，當中包括生產蘋果、BMW、華為、三星、Sony、Nike等知名企業的產品。
報告：綠色和平「公諸漁事」遠洋漁業報告，血汗海鮮可能透過豐群水產行銷國際
日期：2020年3月19日
來源：綠色和平
綠色和平早在2016年《臺灣製造》與2018年《浩劫漁生》報告就曾反映臺灣漁業署對於非法漁業與侵犯人權行為大多抱以放任態度與消極處理，以及豐群水產具有改正漁業產業陋習的高度影響力。2019年，綠色和平再度訪查在大西洋作業的遠洋漁船，以及在這些遠洋漁船上工作的十多位印尼籍漁工，並深入調查其中四位，發現漁獲供應鏈中仍有血汗漁工遭受強迫勞動。而這些血汗海鮮很有可能已經透過豐群水產廣大的全球供應鏈，行銷到全世界。
評論：武漢肺炎下的「血汗工廠」— 港、美動員囚犯趕製口罩、乾洗手 擁擠監獄恐成防疫破口
日期：2020年3月13日
來源：風傳媒
新冠肺炎（武漢肺炎、COVID-19）疫情肆虐全球，口罩、乾洗手等物資也成為人人瘋搶的「奢侈品」。香港及美國紐約州等地，動員監所內的囚犯趕工填補缺口，但人權工作者警告，獄中衛生條件惡劣且人滿為患，這群在擁擠環境為大眾生產防疫物資的受刑人，反而暴露於傳染的高度風險之中。
評論：葉靜倫／南韓「N號房事件」－ 如何防範網路未成年性剝削？
日期：2020年3月24日
來源：Right Plus 多多益善
線上未成年／孩童性影像犯罪已是全球關注的網路世代新興議題。2019年，英國網路觀察基金會IWF報告指出，光是在2018年，他們就刪除了超過10.5萬個未成年性虐網站，平均每5分鐘會發現一張有害照片或影片，創下史上最高紀錄。值得注意的是，犯罪年齡正逐漸下滑。此次南韓N號房事件中，建立並經營聊天室、目前已知的嫌犯皆為20多歲的青年。
STOP. 中文電子報每月出版，旨在向本港打擊販運人口的社區提供最新的新聞和資源。如你有反人口販運的資訊想透過本報發放，請聯絡 NEWS@STOPHK.ORG。本電子報內容並不反映 STOP. 的立場，謝謝您對本組織的支持。STOP. 是 希望枝子有限公司 (BRANCHES OF HOPE) 其中一個項目，旨在對抗人口販運。本組織與其他名稱類同的反人口販運組織並無關連。
THIS MONTHLY NEWSLETTER IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY STOP TRAFFICKING OF PEOPLE (STOP), PROVIDING YOU WITH THE MOST UP-TO-DATE NEWS, EVENTS AND RESOURCES RELATED TO HUMAN TRAFFICKING. FOR DAILY UPDATES, VISIT OUR FACEBOOK PAGE.
HIGHLIGHT OF THE MONTH
It’s the end of our #GoBeyondTheLabel series!
We hope you’ve gained a better understanding of the whys, whats and hows of ethical fashion and sustainable consumerism.
Did we miss anything? Tell us on Facebook!
Read the myths and tips for sustainable shopping here.
Watch our video here.
Thank you to our donors and volunteers!
Thanks to private donations from churches and individuals, 1,200 face masks and 70 sanitizers were packed and distributed last week to trafficking survivors and refugee families in Hong Kong. A big thank you also to our volunteers, we could not have done it without your support!
Virus prevention advice in various languages:
* Video (Indonesian) – Dr Ho PL Youtube Channel
* Video (Tagalog) – Dr Ho PL Youtube Channel
* Leaflet (Sinhala) – Sri Lankan Buddhist Cultural Centre (HK) Facebook
* Web Info (Other Languages) – Centre for Health Protection, DH
HONG KONG
‘It’s crazy now’: Discrimination over coronavirus is worse than during SARS, says Hong Kong domestic worker activist
Date: 6 February 2020
Source: Hong Kong Free Press
The Labour Department caused a major backlash among the migrant worker community, as advocacy group slammed the department’s call for domestic workers to spend their rest day at home as “unfair and discriminatory. Eman Villanueva, Vice-Chairperson of the Filipino Migrant Workers’ Union says, “the government should have made a general call for all citizens to minimise social contact, rather than singling out domestic workers.”
Three reports from female inmates at Hong Kong’s prison mask factory
Date: 7 February 2020
Source: Lausan
Shiu Ka-chun, a member of the Hong Kong Legislative Council in the Social Welfare functional constituency, publicized overlooked accounts of labor exploitation, wage theft and human rights violation in the midst of emergency facemask production by female inmates in Hong Kong’s carceral system. Here are translations of three short updates from late January to early February from the office of Shiu.
ASIA
Dozens of Rohingya refugees missing, 15 confirmed dead after boat capsizes
Date: 11 February 2020
Source: Reuters
The vessel had set sail packed with refugees trying to make their way to Malaysia from camps in Bangladesh. “It was inhumane,” said the official, Hamidul Islam. “The boat was carrying roughly 130 people, while it had a capacity of 50.” Malaysia is home to more than 100,000 Rohingya refugees. Lured by traffickers, hundreds attempt the perilous voyage to Malaysia on overcrowded, rickety vessels during the November-to-March window.
How Nepal’s migration ban traps female ‘modern day slaves’ in the Gulf
Date: 14 February 2020
Source: The Guardian
Amita knew she had to escape. After five months of being assaulted, starved and being forced to work for 20 hours a day as a domestic maid in a suburban house in Kuwait, the 45-year old from Nepal seized her chance. While the household slept, she climbed out of a downstairs bathroom window and fled. Amita managed to find the Nepali embassy, hoping that staff there would help send her home. They refused. “Instead, they told me to go to jail,” she says.
Bride trafficking, a problem on China’s belt and road
Date: 15 February 2020
Source: South China Morning Post
As Beijing’s multibillion-dollar infrastructure drive expands across Asia, experts say greater regional connectivity may have an unwanted by-product. Girls and young women in the poorer countries it connects appear to be at greater risk of human trafficking and forced marriages. Louise is among thousands of young girls and women who have been trafficked into marriages with Chinese men…
GLOBAL
Sarah Lawrence parent accused of sex trafficking and abusing students
Date: 11 February 2020
Source: New York Times
Lawrence V. Ray showed up at his daughter’s elite college in late 2010, shortly after being released from prison, and moved into her dormitory. Soon, he started doing “therapy sessions” with her roommates, convincing them he could help with their problems. For eight years, the indictment said, Mr. Ray “subjected the victims to sexual and psychological manipulation and physical abuse.”
British woman repeatedly trafficked for sex after Home Office failures
Date: 16 February 2020
Source: The Guardian
A highly vulnerable sex trafficking victim was re-trafficked by county lines drug gangs on multiple occasions after the Home Office repeatedly refused to fulfil its legal obligation to provide her with safe accommodation. “It is wholly unacceptable to refuse to provide specialist support and accommodation to a victim of modern slavery because their needs are too complex,” said Rachael Davis, solicitor at Duncan Lewis.
‘You’re not screening for them’: Concern that trafficked Irish children are falling through the cracks
Date: 23 February 2020
Source: TheJournel.ie
The OSCE’s special representative for combating trafficking in human beings, said one of the main pieces lacking in Ireland’s response to human trafficking is proactive identification. When it comes to child victims, the data indicates that most of the identified victims are from other countries, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t Irish victims…
Disappearance of pregnant refugees raises trafficking fears in Netherlands
Date: 23 February 2020
Source: The Irish Times
At least 25 pregnant African women went missing from refugee centres in the Netherlands in November and December, in what is feared may be a new development in the trafficking of refugees from centres across Europe. Concerns hardened that the women were being trafficked and that their children could be illegally adopted – or even, in some cases, sold for use in voodoo rituals.
RESOURCES
Opinion: Cracking The $150 Billion Business Of Human Trafficking
Date: 2 February 2020
Source: Forbes
Human trafficking often involves the legitimate services of banks, transportation companies, the hospitality business, health care providers, and digital social media platforms. It is clear that governments cannot address this issue alone and rely on the private sector and civil society organization to join forces and scale-up solutions.
Report: Slavery is not a crime in almost half the countries of the world
Date: 13 February 2020
Source: The Conversation
Legal ownership of people was abolished in all countries over the course of the last two centuries. Yet the latest research by the University of Nottingham reveals that almost half of all countries in the world have yet to actually make it a crime to enslave another human being.
Access the article here.
Read the summary report here.
Report: Climate change leads to more violence against women, girls
Date: 24 February 2020
Source: Deutsche Welle
Rape, domestic violence, forced marriages: a recent study from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) shows the effects of climate change are leading to an increase in violence against girls and women in many corners of the world – “a link that has so far been largely overlooked,” said Grethel Aguilar, IUCN’s acting director general.
Access the article here.
Read the report here.
STOP ENEWS, PUBLISHED EVERY MONTH, AIMS TO PROVIDE CURRENT NEWS, EVENTS, AND RESOURCES TO THE ANTI-HUMAN TRAFFICKING COMMUNITY IN HONG KONG. IF YOU HAVE ANTI-TRAFFICKING RELATED ACTIVITIES OR RESOURCES YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE THROUGH OUR ENEWS NETWORK, SEND YOUR SUGGESTIONS TO NEWS@STOPHK.ORG. INCLUSION OF CONTENT IN NO WAY REFLECTS THE VIEWS OF OUR ORGANISATION. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT.STOP IS AN INITIATIVE OF BRANCHES OF HOPE BASED IN HONG KONG. IT IS NOT ASSOCIATED WITH ANY OTHER ANTI-TRAFFICKING ORGANISATION OF THE SAME OR SIMILAR NAME.First issue of Branches of Hope eNews 2020
本月焦點
#GoBeyondTheLabel 系列完滿結束啦！
希望大家對永續時尚嘅概念、衣物標籤背後嘅故事都有咗更深嘅認識。而咁好嘅消費習慣，我哋點可以俾佢停！作為消費者同埋產品嘅使用者，除咗衫褲鞋襪以外，其他各樣產品嘅供應鏈透明度我哋都應該多加留意。
唔知大家最近有冇多咗喺網上購物呢？付款前，記得「停一停，查一查」啦～
+ 重溫良心消費迷思及小貼士
+ 重溫《標籤背後的故事…》影片（英）
感謝各方捐贈口罩、消毒搓手液！
希望枝子已於上禮拜，將1,200個口罩以及70枝消毒搓手液，派發予在港嘅難民家庭以及人口販運倖存者。我哋亦多謝一眾義工嘅幫忙，令整個分發過程如此順利！
外語防疫資訊:
* 印尼話：疫境自強: 教手衛生、戴口罩 – 何柏良醫生 Youtube頻道
* 菲律賓語：疫境自強: 防疫通識、人人都要識 – 何柏良醫生 Youtube頻道
* 僧伽羅語：傳單 – 斯里蘭卡佛學文化中心 Facebook專頁
* 其他語言：網頁資訊 – 衛生防護中心
有用嘅話就分享俾你嘅朋友啦！
香港
女囚友稱被強制加班趕製口罩 懲教署：可按意願選擇夜班工作
日期：2020年2月4日
來源：明報
立法會（社會福利界）議員邵家臻4日表示，收到女囚友報料稱懲教工業組（CSI）趕製口罩，囚友被強制加班3小時，部分被調「期數」（監房術語，即工作場所）的囚友被迫變相減人工，感當中涉及不公平。邵家臻要求懲教署改善囚友加班待遇和顧及人道安排。
有外傭突遭解僱 休息日不能外出照工作 外傭團體：社會歧視才是最可怕病毒
日期：2020年2月5日
來源：立場新聞
國際移工聯盟（香港及澳門分部）5日召開記者會，指收到許多外傭投訴，有僱主以終止合約來威脅外傭不能於休息日外出，更有僱主因考慮到疫情嚴重而突然解僱其外傭，或要求外傭休息日回家時要用酒精清洗全身。外傭團體認為武漢肺炎及勞工處日前的呼籲惡化了大眾對外傭的歧視。
蘋人誌：現代奴隸為公義而戰
日期：2020年2月5日
來源：蘋果新聞
ZN因應香港政府未有立法保障任何人免遭人口販運或強迫勞動，入稟法庭司法覆核。他本身也曾遭受強迫勞動，被巴籍僱主虐待四年，無薪工作不止，更被困在工作地點。漫漫司法路長達五年，直至1月10日，終審法院宣告敗訴，ZN失落地說：「如政府繼續拖延訂立有效嘅保護措施，其他受害者會一直被困於黑暗中，我們的痛苦只會日增。」
亞洲
人口販運船隻超載翻覆：15名羅興亞人喪生，孟加拉警方逮捕8名嫌犯
日期：2020年2月14日
來源：關鍵評論
一艘從科克斯巴扎爾出發到馬來西亞的漁船，於11日在聖馬丁島海岸翻覆，導致15名羅興亞人溺斃喪命。警方表示，這艘因超載而翻覆的漁船，是人口販子中間人引誘羅興亞人，經由海路前往馬來西亞。相關官員表示，「這艘船載了大概130人，但是船的運量只可負荷50人。」
+ 全文
+ 延伸閱讀：羅興亞難民營人數逼近百萬 灰色地帶成「兒童販賣」溫床
台灣人哭訴悲慘經歷：揭開東南亞博彩業的神秘面紗
日期：2020年2月17日
來源：BBC 中文
東南亞早已成為中國人離岸博彩業的基地，這些「海外網絡賭場」的業務皆面向中國顧客，員工則從中國、台灣招募而來。今年24歲、來自台灣的賴羽倩，去年因急於尋找新工作，並希望能有海外工作經歷，聽信朋友的建議到馬尼拉工作。她沒料到這趟海外之旅會充滿謊言、精神凌遲，甚至因為護照遭扣留，差點回不了台灣。
國際
「被偷走的孩子們」：揭秘美國校園性交易案
日期：2020年2月13日
來源：新京報
2010年末，剛出獄的勞倫斯·雷住進了他女兒在勞倫斯學院的宿舍。不久，雷開始對他女兒陷於麻煩中的同學和朋友實施所謂的“心理治療”，並在獲得學生們的信任後，通過威脅、身體暴力、侮辱等方式迫使學生們承認他們未曾犯下的罪行。雷還強迫至少一名學生從事賣淫工作，又要求幾名學生在他親戚家中從事無償勞動，以支付“欠”他的錢。
澳洲網上誘騙兒童個案增逾10倍
日期：2020年2月14日
來源：澳洲新報
10年間，澳洲網上兒童性剝削案件從1000件猛增到1.7萬件。聯邦警察發現，性罪犯正在滲透諸如在線遊戲等新的平台，通過偽裝成一名和孩子志同道合的遊戲迷，和孩子進行信息交易。另外一些人則會轉向父母，以承諾能夠參加時尚比賽或假裝是朋友推薦過來為理由，欺騙他們和他們的孩子。
人口販賣非同街頭擄拐 逾3成事主受男友誘使
日期：2020年2月23日
來源：加拿大星島日報
加拿大人對人口販賣存有誤解，據新近民調顯示，有73%的國民相信，人口販賣是始於從街上被人拐走，另有47%的受訪者認為當事人被綁架，被迫以賣淫來換取金錢。其實，很多受害人是被認識的人包括男友引誘及招募，而陷入人口販賣的境況。
評論及資源
性剝削、家暴、童婚…… 氣候危機下的暴力事件 女性首當其衝
日期：2020年2月4日
來源：國家地理雜誌
全球暖化帶來資源競爭壓力，乾旱、洪水和猛烈風暴等極端天氣事件越來越頻繁、破壞力越來越強。在世界大多數地區，婦女原本就處於弱勢地位，缺乏土地權和合法權利，更容易受到剝削。當氣候危機帶來額外壓力，女性首先成為目標。世界自然保護聯盟（IUCN）的報告發現，在自然環境受到壓力的地區，人口販運也會增加，性別暴力和野生動植物盜獵、非法資源開採等環境犯罪之間存在關聯。
評論：孟加拉成衣大樓倒塌 7 年後，今日血汗工廠有任何改善？
日期：2020年2月4日
來源：Heaven Raven
2013 年，孟加拉拉納廣場大樓倒塌，造成 1138 名成衣工人喪生及 2500 人受傷，受害者多為婦女勞工。該棟大樓裡有 6 間製衣廠，上萬人擠在同一棟樓工作，極度惡劣的工作環境裡充斥著對人體有害的化學物質。意外發生後，大眾意識到血汗勞工議題的重要性，並開始檢視品牌衣服背後製程、勞力以及原物料是否符合道德標準，同時呼籲品牌透明公開自己的供應鏈。
STOP. 中文電子報每月出版，旨在向本港打擊販運人口的社區提供最新的新聞和資源。如你有反人口販運的資訊想透過本報發放，請聯絡 NEWS@STOPHK.ORG。本電子報內容並不反映 STOP. 的立場，謝謝您對本組織的支持。STOP. 是 希望枝子有限公司 (BRANCHES OF HOPE) 其中一個項目，旨在對抗人口販運。本組織與其他名稱類同的反人口販運組織並無關連。STOP ENEWS : JANUARY 2020
THIS MONTHLY NEWSLETTER IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY STOP TRAFFICKING OF PEOPLE (STOP), PROVIDING YOU WITH THE MOST UP-TO-DATE NEWS, EVENTS AND RESOURCES RELATED TO HUMAN TRAFFICKING. FOR DAILY UPDATES, VISIT OUR FACEBOOK PAGE.
HIGHLIGHT OF THE MONTH
Another shattering blow to Hong Kong’s trafficked and enslaved…
ZN was a victim of human trafficking for forced labour in Hong Kong between 2007 and 2010. He filed a judicial review against the government in 2015 after failing to receive help from the Immigration Department, the police and the Labour Department.
The Court of Final Appeal ruled earlier this month that the government has no duty under the Bill of Rights to enact specific legislation criminalizing human trafficking and forced labour crimes.
Here’s our response (please scroll down for English version).
Read about ZN’s case here.
Thank you Harmony Baptist!
We had the pleasure of giving a workshop on Human Trafficking in Hong Kong to the wonderful congregation of Harmony Baptist Church this month. Thank you so much for joining us and for your amazing energy, we hope you enjoyed it!
Let’s talk fashion, slave-free fashion.
New year, new me? Why not kick-off the Year of the Rat as a more sustainable shopper! As consumers, we have the power to end slavery in supply chains. To get you started, STOP has prepared a video, which talks about the fashion supply chain and its interwoven human rights abuses.
Find out more about how you can #GoBeyondTheLabel here.
ASIA
Abused, fighting for justice: the ordeals of Asia’s migrant domestic workers in 2019
Date: 25 December 2019
Source: South China Morning Post
There are more than 21 million migrant domestic workers filling the care gap in Asia and the Pacific, but despite their essential role and economic contribution, many face abuse and have few rights. Here are some of their stories.
Indian slaves swap life of bondage for seat in boardroom at tea plantation
Date: 9 January 2020
Source: Reuters
Sharda Krishnan’s mind wandered from the boardroom to the farm where she was enslaved as a child. Her only payment had been in paddy rice and porridge, autonomy was unimaginable and despair perpetual. Now she co-owns a tea plantation in Kerala. Run by former bonded laborers for nearly 35 years, it is a place where freedom is a given and fear does not exist.
Rise of Chinese-only prostitution catches Philippines by surprise
Date: 12 January 2020
Source: South China Morning Post
Nearly 300 Chinese sex workers and their clients were rounded up in raids by the National Bureau of Investigation and the Philippine National Police on 12 brothels in the second half of last year. Tied to the explosive growth of online gambling companies in the Philippines, many of the sex workers were enticed to gamble, loses money, then forced to turn in their passports and become prostitutes to pay their debts.
Confusion mounts over Qatar’s new exit permit regime
Date: 17 January 2020
Source: Middle East Eye
Domestic workers who fail to give 72-hour warning to their employers of their intent to leave the country will face financial penalties, according to Qatar’s interior ministry. “It is not clear how this 72-hour rule will work in practice and it is obviously open to abuse… it seems to signal a desire to retain excessive control over domestic workers,” said an independent analyst focusing on Gulf migrant rights.
GLOBAL
Fleeing home: Refugees and human trafficking
Date: 31 December 2019
Source: Council on Foreign Relations
Global refugee flows have reached the highest levels in history as over twenty-five million people have been forced to leave their home countries. Many refugees already face perilous journeys, harsh living conditions in camps, and discrimination in host countries, but they are also at risk of a human rights violation too often insufficiently addressed in security and conflict prevention efforts: human trafficking.
Levels of child criminal exploitation ‘almost back to Victorian times’
Date: 2 January 2020
Source: The Guardian
While in previous years, sexual or labour exploitation were the biggest reasons to class someone as a modern slave, it was now criminal exploitation driven by drug gangs. British Chief constable Shaun Sawyer said as state provision for children receded in the last decade, driven in part by austerity, criminals had exploited the space between “the school gate and the front door”, and called for a gender bias against seeing boys as victims of criminal exploitation to end.
Charged with prostitution, she went to a special court. Did it help?
Date: 6 January 2020
Source: The New York Times
When New York State created a network of 12 Human Trafficking Intervention Courts, criminal justice professionals hailed it as an innovation. The courts send people into counseling sessions to help them leave the multibillion-dollar sex trade while dismissing their charges and sealing their records. But even as courts like these have begun to proliferate nationwide, New York’s own have come under increasing criticism, six years into their operation, that they are not living up to their promise.
Canada finally decides to make sure it’s not buying goods made by forced labour
Date: 23 January 2020
Source: Vice
Honing in on supply chains is vital to ending forced labour—while many companies claim that they don’t use forced or child labour, inhumane practises are often employed by their contractors or sub-contractors. Australia, UK, the Netherlands and France all passed laws in recent years requiring companies to publish statements outlining their efforts to ensure human rights are respected in their supply chains. Canada has no such legislation, just a strategy.
RESOURCES
Scapegoats to supply chains: Five aims for the anti-slavery fight in 2020
Date: 31 December 2019
Source: Reuters
With a decade for the world to meet a United Nations target of ending modern slavery, experts say anti-slavery efforts must be guided by survivors, supported by law enforcement and kept at the top of the global activism agenda. Here are five priorities for the global anti-slavery movement in 2020 as told to the Thomson Reuters Foundation by campaigners, civil servants, and migration and trade experts.
Hiding in plain sight: the faces of modern-day slavery
Date: 8 January 2020
Source: The National
Sixty metres underground, Lisa Kristine is enveloped in darkness. It’s hard to breathe. The air is heavy with dust and fumes, and she feels the heat of bodies shuffling around in the shadows. She can hear the sound of tools hitting stone, of men coughing. They are in an illegal mine in Ghana. The men are here to break stone and carry the pieces to the surface in the hope that some of the fragments might contain gold. But, Kristine is here for something else – their photographs.
Opinion: It’s 2020 but bonded labour is still a reality in India. Here’s why.
Date: 28 January 2020
Source: The News Minute
In July 2019, a viral photo showed a 60-year-old man with his knees and hands on the barren ground, expressing his gratitude to the Tamil Nadu state officials who helped release him from debt bondage. The moving, yet heartbreaking photo offers a small glimmer of hope for victims of the exploitative and abusive system. Yet it also belies the truth — bonded labour is a reality even in 2020, with no evidence to show the problem abating.
Access the article here.
Read more about India’s undercompensated trafficked here.
STOP ENEWS, PUBLISHED EVERY MONTH, AIMS TO PROVIDE CURRENT NEWS, EVENTS, AND RESOURCES TO THE ANTI-HUMAN TRAFFICKING COMMUNITY IN HONG KONG. IF YOU HAVE ANTI-TRAFFICKING RELATED ACTIVITIES OR RESOURCES YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE THROUGH OUR ENEWS NETWORK, SEND YOUR SUGGESTIONS TO NEWS@STOPHK.ORG. INCLUSION OF CONTENT IN NO WAY REFLECTS THE VIEWS OF OUR ORGANISATION. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT.STOP IS AN INITIATIVE OF BRANCHES OF HOPE BASED IN HONG KONG. IT IS NOT ASSOCIATED WITH ANY OTHER ANTI-TRAFFICKING ORGANISATION OF THE SAME OR SIMILAR NAME.STOP 電子報：2020年01月
本月焦點
ZN案敗訴：對人口販運受害者的又一沈重打擊
ZN係一名強迫勞動受害者，2007年被販賣嚟香港工作後，遭僱主勞役四年之久。佢事後曾向入境處、警務處及勞工處求助，但都不獲受理。2015年，ZN提出司法覆核，控告政府未有立法保障任何人免受人口販運或強迫勞動。終審法院今月初裁定，香港政府冇絶對責任就相關行為制訂刑事罪名，STOP 對此結果表示非常失望。
Thank you Harmony Baptist!
多謝Harmony Baptist嘅信眾支持同參與STOP於19日舉行嘅人口販運工作坊，希望當日嘅內容有讓你哋更了解香港人口販運嘅問題啦！
良心新時尚
人口販運係全球第二大嘅跨國罪行，冇任何一個國家、城市或產業免疫，包括時裝產業。作為消費者，我哋有能力影響企業嘅決定。當消費者普遍要求企業要有良心地對待供應鏈中嘅人，並且關心當中有冇強迫勞動和現代奴役，企業先會開始重視勞工嘅權益同供應鏈嘅透明度。今日起，一齊#GoBeyondTheLabel，做個良心時尚人，唔好等啦！
+ 去片了解時尚業的血汗代價（英）
+ 更多有關標籤背後的故事…
+ 去片了解時尚業的血汗代價（英）
+ 更多有關標籤背後的故事…
亞洲
雖有勞工保護協議，移工仍遭虐致死：菲律賓暫停輸出勞工至科威特
日期：2020年1月3日
來源：關鍵評論
科威特於2018年屢傳菲勞受虐身亡消息，甚至還有失蹤一年多的女性移工屍體在棄置公寓的冷凍庫被發現，馬尼拉當局一度全面停止輸出勞工到科威特，並大舉召回當地菲勞。談妥勞工保護機制後，馬尼拉當局才解除輸出菲勞至科威特的禁令，然而上月再有在科威特工作的菲籍家務移工疑遭科威特雇主虐打致死。
+ 全文
+ 延伸閱讀：網絡人販子 女傭和嬰兒像商品一樣跨國流通
越籍女子被騙赴台當按摩師 被迫接客還慘遭毆打
日期：2020年1月10日
來源：三立新聞網
檢警兵分24日，在台北市中山區等處破獲越南賣淫集團，不僅主嫌陳俊吉全家一家5口人都是集團成員，為管理方便，還雇用越南移工負責監督，有人想逃便恐嚇「打斷腿」，逼越南女子全天候關在套房內不斷接客。偵辦後將陳俊吉等一共14人依傷害、恐嚇、妨害自由、違反人口販運防治法等罪起訴。
國際
黑奴貿易在歐洲重演 難民營有進無回
日期：2020年1月3日
來源：聯合新聞網
為減緩穿越地中海進入歐洲的非法移民浪潮，歐盟撥款了數百萬歐元給利比亞，希望改善因虐待與走私人口而惡名昭著的拘留中心環境，但根據美聯社調查，即便在聯合國監督下，民兵組織仍以酷刑折磨、勒索及其他方式虐待移民來索取贖金，許多移民甚至在拘留中心內消失，被賣給人口販子或其他拘留中心。
極端貧困下的非洲灰色產業，不到20元就能租到一個黑人小孩
日期：2020年1月16日
來源：每日頭條
為減緩穿越地中海進入歐洲的非法移民浪潮，歐盟撥款了數百萬歐元給利比亞，希望改善因虐待與走私人口而惡名昭著的拘留中心環境，但根據美聯社調查，即便在聯合國監督下，民兵組織仍以酷刑折磨、勒索及其他方式虐待移民來索取贖金，許多移民甚至在拘留中心內消失，被賣給人口販子或其他拘留中心。
拒絕「可可」童奴 荷蘭巧克力商推動販賣「100%無奴隸巧克力」
日期：2020年1月31日
來源：創藝時代
在非洲迦納與象牙海岸2個地方，種植可可豆的農業家庭有250萬個，粗估約有210萬名兒童持續在極端惡劣的勞動條件下被剝削、從事奴隸般的工作。儘管眾多國際品牌已於2001年共同簽署可可協議（Harkin-Engel protocol），要用10年根除童工現象，但時至今日可可產業的進展似乎有限。開始打破這個局面的，是來自荷蘭、創立於2005年的Tony’s Chocolonely。
評論及資源
綠色和平報告揭露漁工陷於海上奴役
日期：2019年12月31日
來源：綠色和平
人類文明進入21世紀第2個十年，你會否驚異「奴役」依然處於現在進行式？事實上，奴役存在於國際漁業，而我們鄰近東南亞國家的民工，為了生活離鄉別井，成為遠洋強權漁船上的「外籍漁工」，卻在缺乏國際社會監管的大海中，長期受到剝削壓榨，而遠洋漁業中系統性的惡性循環，甚至危及他們的健康及性命。
「因為她像個小孩」：泰國的性產業和奴隸制
日期：2020年1月8日
來源：新浪網
關於奴隸制，在很多人的印象里，已經成為歷史了。《用後即棄的人》作者凱文·貝爾斯告訴讀者：「在我們生活的世界上，仍然隱藏著超過2700萬奴隸，他們不一定是按照傳統的形式被奴役，更多的，是在全球經濟的新奴隸制下生存。」界面文化經出版方授權刊載書中部分章節以饗讀者，希望這部分的內容能夠幫助你更加瞭解這個世界，也希望我們分享的這個故事，可以成為推動社會變化的種子和契機。
觀點：唇膏、胭脂為何成為礦區孩童的夢魘？藏在美麗彩妝下的黑暗秘密
日期：2020年1月21日
來源：天下雜誌
住在賈坎德邦、11 歲的 Pooja Bhurla 鑽進狹窄的地道，費力的挖出亮晶晶含有雲母的砂土，一簍接著一簍用頭頂到外頭；其他一起在礦區工作的小朋友繼續接手，將雲母挑出。Pooja 從 8 歲就開始，每日在雲母礦坑工作，沒有所謂的週休二日、更不是一個短暫的兼差，「如果我們不來挖雲母，我們要怎麼讓餐桌上有食物？」但是，Pooja 一天的薪水僅有 20-30 盧比之間。
STOP. 中文電子報每月出版，旨在向本港打擊販運人口的社區提供最新的新聞和資源。如你有反人口販運的資訊想透過本報發放，請聯絡 NEWS@STOPHK.ORG。本電子報內容並不反映 STOP. 的立場，謝謝您對本組織的支持。STOP. 是 希望枝子有限公司 (BRANCHES OF HOPE) 其中一個項目，旨在對抗人口販運。本組織與其他名稱類同的反人口販運組織並無關連。Final issue of Branches of Hope eNews 2019
