JOHNSON SMITH… modern-day slavery is not limited to the inhumane treatment of African migrants on the continent. It includes the young girl in rural Jamaica who finds herself forced into prostitution or threat of death
The Government has condemned the acts of slave trading which have been reported in Libya.
“This human indignity is unreservedly and entirely condemned by the Government, and we commit to working with the international community to curtail this despicable trade in human beings, wherever it occurs across the world,” Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Kamina Johnson Smith told the sitting of the Senate on Friday.
Her comments follow international media reports of migrants in Libya being auctioned as labourers.
Senator Johnson Smith said the United Nations and its member states must continue to publicise and educate citizens about the different forms of modern -day slavery and its consequences, especially on the most vulnerable.
“We encourage all countries to take the necessary measures within their borders to identify and eliminate this abhorrent practice, and in this regard we note and welcome, even with caution, announcements emerging from the African Union/ European Union Summit in Cote D’Ivoire…where specific actions are to be taken to address the situation of migrants of Libya,” she said.
Even as Jamaica condemned the Libya auctions, Senator Johnson Smith said the country should also focus its outrage and offence on issues occurring locally.
“Modern-day slavery is not limited to the inhumane treatment of African migrants on the continent. It includes the young girl in rural Jamaica answering an advertisement in the paper promising on-the-job training in customer service, who finds herself forced into prostitution or threat of death if she seeks to run away.
“[It also] includes the young boy who lost his parents and is taken in by a member of a neighbouring community, but who is made to work seven days per week, not attend school, not play, and he is given little food or drink, but an abundance of beatings,” she added.
To this end, the government is taking steps to increase awareness of the different practices and is working to reduce the vulnerabilities of the population.
“In that regard, work has crossed administrations and we have established an inter-ministerial National Taskforce Against Trafficking in Persons, in which the foreign ministry is involved,” Senator Johnson Smith said.
As part of that campaign, Jamaica was most recently an active participant in the United Nations High Level Meeting on Trafficking in Persons, held in September 2017.
Her comments were also applicable for International Day for the abolition of Slavery, observed on Saturday.
“Let us pay special attention to the most vulnerable among us, as no form of slavery should be excused or tolerated in our societies. We must all remain vigilant to ensure the eradication of this scourge that is a stain on humanity, whether on the continent of Africa or right here at home,” she said.
For his part, acting Leader of Opposition Business in the Senate Dr Floyd Morris said, “We, on this side, are fundamentally opposed to any form of slavery. Slavery has been a scourge on humanity.”