美国有线新闻 CNN 报告称全球有4000多万现代奴隶制受害者（在线收听）

报告称全球有4000多万现代奴隶制受害者

Slavery is officially illegal in every nation on earth. But that hasn't stopped it from happening. We've reported that there have been more slavers worldwide in recent years than there have been at any time in human history.

How many exactly? It's impossible for governments to know for sure. It's a crime slave traders want it to stay hidden, different studies have different definitions for slavery. There aren't reliable statistics.

But there are estimates, and there's a new report out on the issue that was produced by a United Nations Labor Rights Agency, and an international volunteer group working to end slavery. It indicates that as recently as last year, there were more than 40 million victims of slavery worldwide and one in four of them were children.

The largest part of modern day slavery, according to the report, is made up of people who are forced to work. There are an estimated 25 million slaves in forced labor, most of them are threatened or pressured to work on farms, in construction and manufacturing, in mining and other businesses. Almost 5 million are in forced prostitution. In addition to that, the report says more than 15 million people worldwide were victims of forced marriages.

In terms of where people are enslaved, the continent of Africa accounts for most of the world's slaves, followed by Asia and the Pacific region, then Europe, and finally the Americas.

Many of these slaves are migrants, people who leave their home countries, fleeing dangerous conditions or looking for somewhere better to live.

CNN recently found evidence of the ongoing slave trade in the North African nation of Libya. The country has struggled with political and stability since a civil war broke out there in 2011. Its security situation has gotten worse. Its living conditions have gotten worse. And it's become a major hub for migrants and refugees who are trying to get across the Mediterranean to Europe.