International Day for Abolition of Slavery being observed today

LONDON: The International Day for the Abolition of Slavery is being observed today all over the world.

This day aims to focus on eliminating present-day forms of slavery, such as trafficking in persons, sexual exploitation, child labor, and forced marriage.

The International Day for the Abolition of Slavery was initiated by the United Nations General Assembly on 2nd December.

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The Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others was passed by the Assembly on 2nd December 1949.

According to the UN, an estimated 40.3 million people are in modern slavery, including 24.9 in forced labor and 15.4 million in forced marriage. Out of 24.9 million people are trapped in forced labor; 16 million people are exploited in the private sector like domestic work, 4.8 million people in forced sexual exploitation, and 4 million people in forced labor imposed by state authorities.

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Even, women and girls are disproportionately affected by forced labor that accounts for 99 percent of victims in the commercial sex industry, and 58 percent in other sectors.