PRAGUE, Czech Republic- According to the Global Slavery Index 2013, the Czech Republic is Europe’s third worst modern-day slavery offender. The study, conducted by Australia’s Walk Free Foundation, scores nations based on “combining the proportion of the population that is enslaved, the numbers in child or early marriages and the level of trafficking into or out of the country,” states The Prague Post. The Czech Republic is one of the most affected countries in Europe, scoring behind only Albania and Montenegro.
There are a reported 38,000 people in the Czech Republic bound by the modern slave trade. This may be a hard number to visualize, but consider this: Rutgers, Texas A&M, Penn State, and the University of Texas at Austin all have an undergraduate enrollment around 38,000 (based on the 2009-10 school year). Thus, the entire undergraduate student body of these colleges would be enslaved. While this only consists of 0.36 % of the Czech population of 10.5 million, this is more than 7 times higher than the average of 0.05 % in other Western European nations.
The Czech Republic is a primary destination for migrant workers from surrounding European nations, such as Bulgaria and the Balkan states. Migrant workers are often more vulnerable to trafficking or forced labor. As Suzanne Hoff, international coordinator for La Strada, told the Prague Post, “[migrant workers]are more likely to be involved with ‘less formalized’ types of employment and they may be undocumented.” Thus, violations of labor laws are easier accomplished and more overlooked by authorities.
Although not a new problem to the Czech Republic, modern-day slavery is slowly gaining awareness. “The Tree Workers’ Case” a 2012 film, highlighted the largest case of labor exploitation in the Czech Republic’s history. While working for a large forestry corporation, more than 2,000 Vietnamese migrants were forced to work in unlawful conditions. The Czech Republic has also recently joined the Palermo Convention on Transnational Organized Crime and adopted an EU directive on human trafficking.
Furthermore, there are many NGOs and nonprofits involved in the fight against trafficking and exploitation in the Czech Republic. Taking the lead is La Strada CZ, an international women’s and labor rights organization. La Strada CZ began its work in 1995 as a branch of the ProFem Foundation. It is one of the founding members of the La Strada network, with offices in Bulgaria, Belarus, Macedonia, Moldova, Poland and Ukraine. In 2011, La Strada CZ initiated a new campaign called “Every Job Has Its Value” to support exploited migrant workers in the Czech Republic.
Despite these efforts, there is still not enough being done to combat slavery in the Czech Republic. The Global Slavery Index has, however, prompted the Czech Labour and Social Affairs ministry to contact the Walk Free Foundation and address the issue. Hopefully new efforts to fight trafficking and raise the Czech Republic’s current ranking will arise out of this collaboration.
Outside of its European comparisons, the Czech Republic scored 54th globally – lower than Afghanistan, Angola, Colombia, and Sri Lanka. World nations most affected by modern-day slavery include Mauritania, Haiti, Pakistan and India. For more information on the Global Slavery Index, please visithttp://www.globalslaveryindex.
– Mallory Thayer
Sources: Prague Post, Radio Praha, La Strada
Feature Image: The Guardian