On the high seas roughly a thousand miles north of the Falkland Islands, an 18-year-old Chinese deckhand working on a Chinese squid ship nervously ducked into a dark hallway to whisper his plea for help. “They look like abuse.” For the last decade, Reyes has fielded hundreds of emergency phone calls from fishing-company agents, police, deckhands and the Indonesian Consulate, …
50 million people are living in conditions of modern slavery — a 25% rise over the last five years, says a new report. Among the G20 nations, India tops the list with 11 million people working as forced labourers, followed by China, Russia, Indonesia, Turkey and the U.S. Rights group Walk Free Foundation on May 24 released the Global Slavery …
Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Government inspectors have found cases of debt bondage among seasonal …
A culture of extravagance and exploitative practices force brides’ families to spend beyond their means – but change could be under way. “Indian weddings are more about showing off one’s wealth and status and not really about the institution,” says Veena Trikha, 55, a schoolteacher whose son married last year. According to Sunita, whose family faced crippling dowry demands, girls …
Australian Federal Police and their Indonesian counterparts say they have solved a double mystery behind a bizarre botched people-smuggling venture that unravelled across both countries earlier this year. Key points: The two men came to police attention after getting caught in floodwaters in the NT It is alleged they were meant to meet six men being smuggled into Australia by …
