Do we really need a Global Commission on Modern Slavery?
Theresa May’s attempt at a legacy project won’t save anybody from ‘modern slavery’. But since it’s here, we have a few suggestions
A memorial to 391 deaths
NEW FEATURE | The Calais Border: a silent serial killer
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: FeatureThe silent serial killer: 391 deaths in 25 years at the UK border391 people died at the France-Belgium-UK border between 1999 and 2024. openDemocracy and Les Jours investigate
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: FeatureUK-France border: dying by the ferries at the Port of CalaisHundreds died trying to reach the UK in the last 25 years. Many of them lost their lives in this busy ferry port
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: FeatureDrivers said Eurotunnel was ‘a picture of war’ amid migrant deathsDespite fences and even moats, dozens of people have died trying to get to the UK via the Eurotunnel
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: Feature‘Reduced to a brawl’: punitive killings in Calais overlookedEthnic rivalries are often blamed when migrants get killed on the border. But sometimes it’s a war over turf
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: FeaturePolice violence ‘rarely punished’ at France and Belgium border to UKMigrants trying to reach the UK have been shot, beaten and refused medical care by police. Many never get justice
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: FeatureUK border crossings: 20 years of dying in lorries but still ‘no change’People have been convicted for the deaths of migrants in lorries, but people continue to die in them
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: FeatureThe path to the ‘small boats’ crisis is littered with past deathFortifications elsewhere have made ‘small boats’ the best bet for migrants crossing the channel.
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: FeatureMigrant suicides in Calais: a border designed to create despairPushed past their limits, these migrants took their own lives at the border between the UK, France and Belgium
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: Feature‘Your borders, our dead’: remembering 25 years of victims in CalaisAt least 391 people died on the UK-French border between 1999 and 2024. Their family and friends call for justice
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: ExplainerEXPLAINED: Has the UK ever managed to control Channel crossings?Two decades of deals and hundreds of millions of pounds, but the UK hasn’t ever stopped crossings – or deaths
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: NewsExperts demand safe routes to UK after 400 people die at the borderRevealed: Average of one death a month for past 25 years despite government spending £800m to stop Channel crossings
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: AnalysisEU-migration by way of Russia: is Moscow or Brussels to blame?Fortress Europe’s walls are thickest and deadliest on the southern borders. Some migrants are heading north instead
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: OpinionTheresa May leaves legacy of cruelty for domestic workersMay’s heartless policies will go on tormenting migrant domestic workers long after she steps down as MP
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: OpinionDid crying modern slavery in Leicester benefit the workers?Without alternatives or safety nets to fall back on, closures of fast-fashion factories left workers worse off
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: FeatureA human smuggler's love storyUnable to marry in Morocco, and unable to get to Europe via Turkey, this couple became smugglers to pay the bills
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: OpinionMy friend died trying to get to England. Now I know whyI’ve lost multiple friends to EU border violence. How many more must die before our policies change?
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: FeatureCrotone disaster a year on: EU still making the same mistakesA year ago 100 people drowned off the Italian coast. It was a tragedy waiting to happen, and it will happen again
NEW FEATURE: Migration and the global tomato trade
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: FeaturePriced out by imports, Ghana’s farmers risk death to work in ItalyFarmers in Ghana say cheap Italian tomatoes are ruining their businesses. Many have travelled to seek work abroad
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: InterviewFarmers swap poverty in Ghana for exploitation in EuropeOwusu couldn't make a living in Ghana. He travelled to Italy to find work – but was shocked by the conditions there
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: InterviewMigrants returned from Libya say UN has 'forgotten' themAppiah was returned to Ghana by the UN after being imprisoned in Libya. But now he says he feels abandoned
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: InterviewMigrants accepted voluntary return to escape ‘torture’ of Libya jailKwaku was imprisoned for a year in Libya after being rescued at sea. He says his return to Ghana wasn’t a choice
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: InterviewMigrants returned to Ghana say they can’t afford to stayThe UN helped Adu return to Ghana from Libya, but he says he still can’t make a living in his home country
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Published in:Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: InterviewItalian tomatoes ruined my business, so I went to farm in ItalyApah Joseph abandoned his failing farm in Ghana and went to Libya, but he never made it across the Mediterranean
Inside Beyond Trafficking and Slavery
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First-hand writing from sex workers, domestic workers, migrant workers, and child workers
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Published in: Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: OpinionWill Rishi die on his immigration hill?Sunak's policy on migration has become a farce, but he keeps ploughing on
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Published in: Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: Feature‘We only ate rice for a week’: refugees struggle to survive in JordanAn asylum ban, limited access to work permits and aid cuts have pushed refugees into poverty and exploitation
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Published in: Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: FeatureOn the edge of Europe: one man’s search for safetyAwadh escaped war in Sudan and endured a brutal journey through North Africa. He is determined to reach Europe
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Published in: Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: InterviewI left Ghana to farm in Italy. I was exploited in both placesKojo risked his life mining in Ghana. He went to Italy for better opportunities, but was shocked by what he saw
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Published in: Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: OpinionGaza: did the West learn nothing from the peace process in Ireland?UK politicians’ ambivalence over a ceasefire shows how little they learned from the Troubles
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Published in: Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: OpinionIs Labour ready for an immigration overhaul?Labour may be entering No. 10 next year. What did their conference tell us about their plans for migration?
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Published in: Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: OpinionWhat gives Israel the right to annihilate Gaza?Suggesting that both sides are equally to blame is not a defensible position
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Published in: Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: InterviewCan an American NGO survive calling for the decriminalisation of sex work?Freedom Network USA was nervous when it called for the US to decriminalise sex work. Two years on, they’re fine
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Published in: Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: OpinionCambodian women left holding bill for UK fashion’s cancelled ordersUK fashion industry still owes Cambodian garment workers for unpaid wages during the pandemic
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Published in: Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: FeatureFrom safe haven to place of suffering: life as a migrant in BrazilIn this ten-part series, ten African migrants tell stories of hardship and success building new lives in Brazil
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Published in: Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: OpinionWhere was Frontex when 600 people died in the Med?The EU agency should be monitoring Greek borders, but when 750 people got into trouble at sea, it wasn’t there
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Published in: Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: Feature"A stranger helped me": stories of asylum in BrazilThese five migrants say entering Brazil was easier than many other countries. But arrival is just the first step
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Published in: Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: Feature"I escaped FGM": migrant journeys to BrazilSix migrants tell of arriving in Brazil after fleeing domestic violence and conflict in their home countries
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Published in: Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: Feature"It's an open-air prison": living undocumented in BrazilFour migrants share stories of life without papers, with many forced into exploitative work or rental contracts
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Published in: Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: Feature"The bureaucracy is the worst part": gaining citizenship in BrazilSix migrants hope to gain Brazilian citizenship. But long waits and a lack of information stand in their way
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Published in: Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: Feature"My children couldn't escape with me": tales of reunification in BrazilThese five migrants have spent years away from their families. Now, they hope to be reunited
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Published in: Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: Feature"I waited for seven years": jumping visa hurdles in BrazilEight migrants from DRC share stories of complicated visa processes, lack of information and language barriers
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Published in: Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: Feature"I couldn't get a bank account": life and work for migrants in BrazilMigrants say a lack of public awareness about documentation is preventing them from accessing basic services
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Published in: Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: Feature"It's become normal": migrants tell of racism in BrazilAfter two African men were fatally attacked in 2020 and 2022, migrants live with the constant fear of assault
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Published in: Beyond Trafficking and Slavery: Feature"This document is the key": building a new life in BrazilSeven migrants share hopes of a future in Brazil: of gaining documents, status, and a chance to be heard