Latest news with #GlobalSlaveryIndex
The Citizen
07-07-2025
- The Citizen
Birchleigh North house raid uncovers 19 human trafficking victims
A total of 19 Ethiopian men were rescued from a house in Birchleigh North, Kempton Park, on July 4, after they were allegedly held captive and assaulted with pangas and knives. The rescue followed after Freedom Front Plus councillor for Kempton Park, Jean Kriek, received reports of people calling for help from inside the property. Kriek went to the house to investigate and immediately contacted the police, the EMPD and a private security company for assistance. Also read: Gauteng is human trafficking hotspot The men were taken to hospital for treatment following their ordeal. A preliminary investigation revealed the men were allegedly lured from Ethiopia to South Africa under false pretences before being held captive in the house. Their captors are suspected of demanding large sums of money from their families for their release. The police's crime intelligence unit is currently investigating the matter. According to Kriek, human trafficking remains a harsh reality in South Africa, particularly in Gauteng, where people are illegally held in residential areas, often unnoticed by the public. Also read: Man busted for attempted human trafficking at OR Tambo Airport 'Both the Global Organized Crime Index and Global Slavery Index have listed South Africa as a hotspot for human trafficking, with an estimated 250 000 people believed to be trapped in modern slavery conditions in the country.' Kriek said the incident underscores the urgency of dismantling trafficking syndicates, improving border control, and fostering better cooperation between communities, security services, and law enforcement agencies. He thanked the Norkem Park SAPS, EMPD, MML Security, Elite Force Risk Solutions, Guards Must Be Crazy, and Crowned Elite for their swift response in assisting with the rescue. At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
Daily Mail
18-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Aussie exposes dark reality that hardly anybody knows about in the country: 'People still deny it happens here'
A young woman who has worked in anti-human trafficking for years has shared her shock at how few Aussies know it exists in the country. Stephanie Clarke said in a TikTok video in early May human trafficking was much more prevalent than a lot of people realised. In the viral video, which has been seen more than 700,000 times, Ms Clarke said she had been aware of the dark industry for more than a decade. 'I've been aware of human trafficking, the industry itself, for a really long time, probably close to 15 years,' she said. 'I've worked in the anti-trafficking space for close to four years now, and I have seen a lot. I've educated myself on a lot. 'And something that surprises me is, here in Australia, how (many) people still deny that human trafficking happens here.' Ms Clarke has worked for four years with Australian-based organisation Every Daughter Matters, which operates along the border of Nepal. She told Daily Mail Australia the industry was growing with figures from The Global Slavery Index revealing 41,000 people were living in modern day slavery in Australia. In the clip, Ms Clarke wondered if she was hyperaware of the extent of human trafficking due to her work in trying to prevent it. 'I'm genuinely curious as to how many people don't know about it?' she asked. 'Because I think when you work in an industry or you've been researching an industry for a really long time, you expect more people to be aware of it because you're so aware of it.' 'But then you start having conversations and you start talking about it, and people think it's such a big, far away issue that doesn't happen here in Australia in our own backyard.' Human trafficking is a multi-billion dollar criminal industry globally. It involves the coercion, recruitment, harbouring or transfer of individuals for exploitative purposes. It can be involve forced labour, domestic servitude, and sexual exploitation. The Australian Federal Police (AFP) reported 382 cases related to human trafficking and slavery in the 2023–2024 financial year. They included 69 reports of forced labour, 59 of sexual exploitation, and 21 of domestic servitude. The Australian Institute of Criminology previously estimated for every known victim of human trafficking and slavery, approximately four victims remain undetected. Ms Clarke said the disturbing industry is growing in Australia. 'Part is that it's also a growing industry, and I believe that schools need to start teaching on this,' she said. 'Because teaching about human trafficking, the signs, what to see, is also gonna educate people around spotting the signs for predators and grooming.' Many social media users said the issue was not well-known enough. 'I'm forever telling people, and no one believes me. They think it doesn't happen here in Australia,' one wrote. 'Never heard of it in Australia,' another said. 'To be honest, until recently I was not aware of it here in Australia. I was very naive and ignorant,' a third wrote. 'As a (domestic violence) worker here in (Australia), I feel the exact same about my work and how unaware people are about domestic violence and how common it is,' another said. One said human trafficking can take more forms than people realise. 'I believe the general public has a perceived image of what they think trafficking really is, when in reality they have no idea,' she wrote. 'It's happening under their noses. It's not simply people being sold.' Others shared times they believed they were close to being trafficked. 'I was 15 and ran for my life from two men yelling after me, saying I would cost a lot, that was the scariest day of my life, and that was the day I found out what it was,' one woman said.
