By: International Justice Mission (IJM)
International Justice Mission Warns of Growing Forced Scamming Crisis.
30 July marks World Day Against Trafficking in Persons – a global day dedicated to raising awareness about human trafficking and promoting the protection and rights of victims and survivors.
International Justice Mission (IJM) Australia CEO David Braga said, “Human trafficking is a crime that thrives on vulnerability, denying people their freedom, dignity, and fundamental human rights. It affects millions of people worldwide and takes many forms, including forced labour, sexual exploitation and forced criminality.
This year’s World Day Against Trafficking in Persons aims to raise awareness of trafficking into forced criminality in online scam centres, also known as forced scamming.
“Forced scamming is a rapidly evolving form of human trafficking where victims are trafficked via fake job ads, stripped of documents and confined in guarded compounds under threats of violence and torture where they are forced to run lucrative online scams, such as crypto fraud and sextortion.”
“This human trafficking crisis has its roots in Southeast Asia in countries including Cambodia and Myanmar and is expanding globally to set up operations in Latin America, Eastern Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, affecting hundreds of thousands of trafficking victims – often vulnerable migrant workers from over 80 countries around the world.
Archangela* is an Indonesian survivor of forced scamming in Manila who IJM assisted and is now a founding director of the United Resilience Network. She said, “I hope what I went through never happens to anyone else—the ordeal I experienced as a victim of human trafficking… It was a decision I made in the midst of my vulnerability, driven by fear and anxiety about meeting my basic needs and securing my future.
“I faced many challenges in trying to return home and escape this terrifying situation, such as exorbitant fines imposed by the company… I had to work for hours on end if targets weren’t met or if I had to put in long hours; on top of that, various punishments awaited me, and I never received the salary I had hoped for,” Archangela said.
IJM has worked to support over 2,700 people whom we have determined to be victims of forced scamming in Southeast Asia’s scam compounds. We have secured 18 convictions against scam bosses responsible for human trafficking offences, including a landmark 30-year sentence handed down in Thailand and recently three sentences of life imprisonment in the Philippines.
“IJM is also partnering with tech platforms to monitor and remove fraudulent recruitment ads targeting potential trafficking victims. We have collaborated with the UNODC on the #TrappedInScamCrime awareness campaign aimed at preventing trafficking into online scamming, and are supporting survivor-led movements like the United Resilience Network who are shaping solutions to this crisis,” Mr Braga said.
As communities around the world mark World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, IJM is encouraging Australians to learn more about the realities of modern slavery and the role each of us can play in helping end violence and exploitation against vulnerable people. You can read more here.
*Pseudonym used to protect the identity of this survivor.
Article supplied with thanks to IJM
IJM is committed to protecting the dignity, privacy and safety of vulnerable people. Names, details and images may be changed or represented by actors to protect identities. All stories and images are used with informed consent and safeguarding practices.
Feature image: Canva
