| News |
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There are 27 million slaves today |
09/12/2004 |
| By Christian Bodhi |
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How far are we prepared to go in our material greed and complacency? There are an estimated 27 million slaves around the world. Many of them work to satisfy the needs of the developed world. But aren’t our needs quite immodest, and aren’t we consuming far more than necessary and turning a blind eye to all those who are exploited only that we may feel materially “happy”?
Slavery is present not just in undeveloped countries: “...CIA estimates that 50,000 women and children are trafficked into the US each year as slaves.”
http://www.iabolish.com/today/factsheet.htm
Further information on modern slavery, which, according to what we have learnt in our schools, is supposed to be virtually non-existent, can be found on many anti-slavery websites. This is a social phenomenon of which many of us prefer to be unaware, but I believe that it is our moral obligation not to support exploitation of anybody. This does not mean that I propose a break up of discipline and that employees should not listen to their bosses - I only plead, from the depth of my heart, that everyone should be treated with respect, compassion and fairness. The norms which we, civilized human beings, have thoughtfully defined in the United Nations' Universal Declaration of Human Rights must be unhesitatingly implemented on all levels and in all places on Earth however remote or dark. Not a single person should be left hopeless if there is a possibility that we can help.
We cannot afford to be complacent, for by being so aren’t we devaluing our own lives and dignity, and, if material greed makes us so selfish and blind to the fundamental needs of others, shouldn’t we question it rather than accept it as something “normal” or typically human?
| Universal Declaration of Human Rights |
| Article 1. All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood. |
| Article 2. Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty. |
| Article 3. Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person. |
| Article 4. No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms. |
| United Nations: Universal Declaration of Human Rights |
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