Page 116 - Prime Time 1-5 Leaflet

Close your eyes and imagine what slavery looks like. You see a time
in the past with hordes of people shackled together, dirty and
dressed in rags, right? But could you imagine that the person
serving you in a restaurant or begging on the street could in fact be
a victim of modern-day slavery?
Two hundred years after English member of parliament William
Wilberforce campaigned to end slavery, an estimated 27 million
people are still trapped in a modern-day form of slavery. Its
victims are forced into sweatshops, agriculture, construction or
to be street beggars for little or no pay. Shockingly, this is
happening more now than at any other time in human history.
It is the fastest growing criminal activity in the world.
Given Kachepa, a boy born in a small poverty-stricken village in
Zambia, found himself a victim of one of the most widespread
forms of this evil trade, illegal forced labour. Orphaned at the
age of nine and with no direction, he joined a local singing
group where he met Keith Grimes. Grimes was so impressed
with the group’s singing that he set up auditions to form a
boys’ choir to tour the USA. Grimes’ offer seemed like a
perfect dream to Given, so when Grimes offered him a place in
the choir, he eagerly accepted.
But after arriving in the USA, things were very different from
what Given had expected. Grimes forced the choir boys to
perform between four to seven hour-long concerts every day,
often without any food or rest. Deprived of any healthcare,
many of the boys were often sick. When they complained,
Grimes threatened to send them back to Zambia in disgrace.
After a year, Grimes passed away, but his equally brutal
daughter took over the choir. By then, the boys had realised
that no one was sending any money home and began to resist
instructions. The officers arrived, but after questioning
the boys, what they heard horrified them. It seemed the
members of the choir had become victims of human trafficking!
Eventually, Given and the boys found good foster homes in the
USA or returned to Zambia.
As for Given, he attended university in Texas and now gives
speeches at anti-slavery events and advises other trafficking
victims.
Although Given’s story eventually had a happy ending, he is
one of only a few lucky ones to escape the shackles of modern-
day slavery. The crime thrives on deception, corruption and
secrecy. A trafficker may offer to smuggle someone into a
country and make them work as a waitress or a nanny and then
force the unsuspecting victim to endure long work hours with
little or no pay and even physical brutality. Offenders are very
good at controlling victims by threatening to hurt their family if
they do not comply.
With recent reports suggesting that the average cost for a slave
today is just $90, authorities are finding trafficking very difficult
to combat. Charities such as Anti-slavery
International are fighting human trafficking and
helping survivors. Support their campaigns by
donating to them or even taking part.
Something else we can all do is become a fair-
trade consumer, which means finding out
which companies support ethical
working conditions and only
shopping with them. We should also
be alert to suspicious situations.
Trafficking clues include: poor living
conditions, not being allowed to
speak to a person alone and
employers holding identity
documents. If you notice any
tell-tale signs then contact your
local police immediately.
One person cannot
fight it; it requires all of us to
come together and battle for
justice.
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Skills Practice 1
Reading
1 Read the article. Seven
sentences have been removed.
Choose from the sentences
A-H the one which fits each
gap (1-7). There is one extra
sentence which you do not
need to use.
A But there were warning signs.
B He has won numerous awards for outstanding community service
and even helped to pass an anti-trafficking law in Texas in 2003.
C He promised his recruits an American education and salary and
money for the boys’ village to help build much-needed schools.
D As a result, Grimes’ daughter called the US immigration office
to deport them.
E This is a 21st century crime.
F To make matters worse, corrupt officials often look the other way.
G There was no question of escaping as Grimes kept their passports.
H There is a glimmer of hope, though.