There are more people enslaved today than at any other time in history.

Taking a stand against human trafficking, about 200 people joined thousands of others across the world for the A21 Walk For Freedom in Ballito on Saturday morning.

Locally hosted by the Rise Up Movement, the silent demonstration started and ended at Concha Café on Compensation Beach Road.

Miss Ballito Mellisa Landman (middle) with 2nd princess Chantelle Souchon and 1st princess Micheline Souchon.

Participants wore black and carried placards with messages condemning the industry which generates an average of 150 billion dollars per year.

Set up in 2008, A21 is one of the largest organisations in the world that is solely focused on fighting human trafficking. They estimate there are 40.3 million people enslaved right now across the world.

From forced labour and forced marriage, to child soldiers and domestic servitude – human trafficking takes a lot of forms.

In response to this global crisis, A21 now works at 19 locations in 14 countries, including South Africa.

A21 also operates national human trafficking hotlines, the only reporting mechanisms available 24/7 to receive reports of exclusively human trafficking in Bulgaria, Greece and South Africa.

According to A21’s 2020 Impact Report, South Africa is predominantly a destination country for human trafficking, with the most common types of exploitation being sex trafficking and forced labour in both commercial and domestic sectors.

Victims include domestic citizens and foreign nationals. Typically, victims are recruited by a promise of a job opportunity or by the ‘loverboy’ method where a victim is groomed, often by someone they know.

Trafficking predominantly occurs in the larger cities such as Cape Town and Johannesburg, where victims are typically recruited from impoverished or less-resourced areas to these larger urban areas.

Rise Up Movement founder Josha Daniel expressed his appreciation to all who participated and the sponsors supporting the event.

“Awareness is empowerment, and through actions such as this we can help combat human trafficking and sexual assault. The highlight of the day was to see community members signing the declaration against human trafficking.”

To report human trafficking, call the The South African National Human Trafficking Hotline (NHTH) at 0800 222 777.

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