WUNRN

http://www.wunrn.com

 

http://www2.ohchr.org/english/issues/slavery/rapporteur/index.htm

 

 

Special Rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Slavery

News

In May 2008, the Human Rights Council appointed Ms. Gulnara Shahinian as the first Special Rapporteur on Contemporary forms of slavery, its causes and consequences. Ms. Shahinian is a lawyer and has extensive experience working as an expert consultant for various UN, EU, Council of Europe, OSCE and government bodies on children’s rights, gender, migration and trafficking. She is also a former trustee of the UN Voluntary Trust Fund on Contemporary Forms of Slavery.

Please click on the following to read the Special Rapporteur’s first report: [E | F | S | C | A]

Introduction

Article 4 of the UDHR states that ‘No one shall be held in slavery or servitude: slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms’.

Slavery was the first human rights issue to arouse wide international concern yet it still continues today. Slavery like practices remains a grave and persistent problem today.

Contemporary forms of slavery includes: debt bondage, serfdom, forced labour, child labour and child servitude, trafficking of persons and human organs, sexual slavery, children in armed conflict, sale of children, forced marriage and the sale of wives, migrant work, the exploitation of prostitution, and certain practices under apartheid and colonial regimes. As a legally permitted labour system, traditional slavery has been abolished everywhere, but it has not been completely stamped out. There are still reports of slave markets. Even when abolished, slavery leaves traces. It can persist as a state of mind- among victims and their descendants and among the inheritors of those who practised it –long after it has formally ended.

Slavery-like practices are often clandestine. This makes it difficult to have a clear picture of the scale of the contemporary slavery, let alone to uncover, punish or eliminate it.

The majority of those who suffer are the poorest, most vulnerable and marginalised social groups in society. Fear, ignorance of one’s rights and the need to survive do not encourage them to speak out.

In order to effectively eradicate slavery in all its forms, the root causes of slavery such as poverty, social exclusion and all forms of discrimination must be addressed. In addition, we need to promote and protect the rights of all especially the most vulnerable in our society. Where human rights violations have already been committed, we are called upon to help restore the dignity of victims.

Contact Information:

To contact the Special Rapporteur:

Fax	E-mail address
+ 41 22 917 9006	srslavery@ohchr.org

Mailing address:

Ms. Gulnara Shahinian
Special Rapporteur on Contemporary forms of slavery
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
Palais des Nations
CH-1211 Geneva 10
Switzerland