Innovative alliances in the fight against human trafficking
In human trafficking networks masked as legitimate businesses, global traffickers capitalise on the vulnerability of their victims. They also bank on widespread government indifference and public obliviousness. Most victims of trafficking remain invisible, so raising awareness is a powerful weapon in the fight against this hidden exploitation.
Our partner Astra is an energetic anti-trafficking NGO in Serbia that uses innovative strategies to educate government and civil society about human trafficking. One of many ways it creates alliances outside the anti-trafficking sector is by partnering with investigative journalists to raise awareness among wider audiences through local and global media.
In November 2021, working alongside the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN), Astra helped break a story exposing labour exploitation and possible trafficking of Asian people to Europe.
Hundreds of Vietnamese workers building a Chinese tire factory in Serbia were revealed to be living in dirty, unheated dormitories with no hot water and just two toilets for 500 men. Living on insufficient food rations, forbidden from accessing medical care, their passports confiscated, the men had been told that clauses in their contracts meant the company would not pay for their trip back home if they terminated their employment.
The workers had paid agencies in Asia up to four thousand US dollars to receive their contracts in the first place. The contracts, written in English, which they were unable to read, violated Serbian law on many counts. One worker told reporters: "We are very poor in Vietnam and we came here to earn money for our families. But the Chinese contractors have no respect for our work or our lives."
“Together with its network of partner organisations, Astra not only provides victims of trafficking with immediate practical care and support. By putting the spotlight on cases like this, it also promotes victims’ rights and holds governments accountable. The story of the Vietnamese construction workers was published by media all over the world and was brought to the attention of the European Parliament. We are convinced that increased awareness of exploitation and innovative advocacy work of civil society organisations, like Astra, will lead to more effective governmental responses.”
Brigitte Stevkovski, Programme Manager Porticus Central and Eastern Europe
Porticus Partner: Astra
Top photo courtesy of Astra. Bottom photo copyright Andy Aitchison.
