Each week the Freedom Fund curates the most insightful and timely news stories about modern slavery. Check out what we’re reading among this week’s top slavery articles.

Nearly 200 children freed from south India brick kiln in one of biggest rescues
Thomson Reuters Foundation, 4 January 2017
Indian police rescued nearly 200 children, most of them under the age of 14, who had been found working in a brick kiln in the southern state of Telangana in one of the biggest operations in the region. The children were rescued as part of “Operation Smile”, a national campaign to tackle child labour and missing children.

Slavery trafficking victims crippled by fear in UK
Aljazeera, 3 January 2017
Survivors of modern slavery and human trafficking often suffer severe trauma and are in need of treatment. There are an estimated 13,ooo people in modern day slavery in the UK, and the number is increasing. Last year British authorities identified 3,266 victims, many of whom had mental health issues.

Fish caught by slaves may be tainting your cat food
Public Radio International, 30 December 2016
Much of the pet food sold in the West is supplied by a Southeast Asian seafood industry, centered in Thailand, where reports of human trafficking and forced labour are common. Murky supply chains make it all but impossible to know who hauled the fish aboard which boat.

From DNA to laws to data, five key tools to combat trafficking in 2017
Thomson Reuters Foundation, 29 December 2016
With the power of technology and legal clout, many experts agree that 2017 could be the tipping point in the global battle against human trafficking and modern slavery. Reuters asked activists what they see as the five most important tools in the year ahead to tackle the illegal trade in humans that is worth an estimated $150 billion per year.

Story of woman held captive in UK ‘shows how real slavery is’
The Guardian, 29 December 2016
The UK’s first independent anti-slavery commissioner has said people need to have a much more open mind regarding who might be a modern-day slave, after a British woman told of how she was enslaved for 13 years. “This isn’t something that’s happening miles away,” said commissioner Kevin Hyland.

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Photo credit: UN Photo/Kibae Park