Welcome to the Slavery Research Bulletin, designed to provide busy readers in the anti-slavery community with a succinct monthly update on new and interesting research.

Slavery amongst domestic migration workers in East Asia
Farsight and the Macquarie Group Foundation have found that migrant domestic workers face exploitation and human rights violations in all phases of labour migration. The survey of over 4,000 workers from Indonesia and the Philippines found that 71% experience exploitation during the recruitment process.

Slaveholders and traffickers
A special edition of the Journal of Human Trafficking focuses on those who violate human rights. Articles examine issues such as the profile and role of female traffickers in China, and the operation of trafficking networks. Results suggest an individual is more likely to be trafficked by someone within their own community, and traffickers rely on diaspora networks.

Forced labour in Thailand’s fishing industry
A survey of nearly 600 fishers from Thailand, Cambodia and Myanmar has found that 17% of respondents are victims of forced labour. The report from Chulalongkorn University and the University of Auckland also highlights the exploitative working conditions and coercive recruitment practices in the industry.

Using participatory statistics to measure prevalence
An innovative approach to measuring prevalence using participatory statistics, has been developed by the Institute of Development Studies with Praxis in India. The method, used to measure bonded labour with Freedom Fund partners in northern India, may provide more accurate results in certain contexts, allows participants to be part of the data collection process and means that results can be used immediately.

Protecting human rights in the context of disaster
A team including Swatantrata Abhiyan, Gramin Mahila Srijanseel Parivar and Free the Slaves Nepal have published a report on human trafficking following the Nepal earthquake. They concluded that activities to strengthen community-based protection mechanisms were helpful in protecting those most vulnerable to trafficking.

Read on…

• The Anti-Trafficking Monitoring Group have released work examining pregnancy and parenthood in the UK’s response to human trafficking.
• The Human Trafficking Center has released a brief on supply chain transparency.
• The University of South Florida has found girls with learning disabilities have a higher risk of being trafficked for sexual exploitation.

And finally
SOMO have released a fact sheet for companies using migrant workers in the textile and garment industry.

News & updates
For the latest updates from the Freedom Fund click here to view our Newsroom.

Contact us
If you have feedback or suggestions, please contact Dr. Zoë Fortune, the Freedom Fund’s Senior Research & Evaluation Officer.

Photo credit: Brent Lewin © The Freedom Fund