The rise in modern slavery over the past few years represents an ongoing challenge to anti-trafficking campaigners, the first European conference of the Santa Marta group was told.
The conference took place in Cologne, Germany and online on the International Day of Prayer and Awareness against Human Trafficking, the day commemorating St. Josephine Bakhita, the patron saint of anti-trafficking. Its objectives were to follow the call of Pope Francis to eradicate modern slavery, provide information, encourage action and cooperation and develop an action plan.
Former metropolitan police chief Kevin Hyland was among the speakers. He said that anti-trafficking campaigners “need to admit we’ve not done a very good job” according to one expert and pointed to the significant rise in human trafficking and modern slavery over the past few years.
He said that the number of victims of trafficking had risen since 2014, the year Santa Marta was founded. Although the number of slavery and trafficking prosecutions dropped due to the coronavirus, Hyland noted, cases brought to trial had already been in a steep decline. The issue, he said, was simply not a priority for governments.
His sentiments were echoed by Cardinal Vincent Nichols, president and co-founder of the Santa Marta group, a global coalition of police chiefs and Catholic bishops, who said: “We should not be afraid of admitting failure.” Cardinal Nichols said victims should remain the “central focus”. He called on those present to join today’s “marathon of prayer” on the International Day of Prayer against Human Trafficking.
Other speakers at the conference, which featured experts and activists from across the world, warned that the economic foundations of human trafficking remained intact and may even have been reinforced by the uncertainty of the coronavirus pandemic. With tens of millions of people held, modern slavery is highly lucrative, worth more than $150 billion by some estimates. Without action to build up the economies of nations where people are vulnerable to traffickers, the conference heard, the phenomenon could get even worse.
According to the United Nations, the pandemic acted to “accelerate” human trafficking. On 22–23 November last year, the UN General Assembly sponsored a special meeting to appraise the effectiveness of anti-trafficking measures, with forced labour related to debt and “online trafficking” particular areas of concern in the shadow of Covid-19.
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