Modern Slavery and Criminal Law

Literature on Legal Responses from Human Rights Perspectives

Abstract

Modern slavery is a widespread and complex global problem that impacts millions of individuals. It takes on different forms, such as human trafficking, forced labour, debt bondage, and other types of exploitation. Modern slavery is defined as the limitation of a person's freedom to refuse or leave due to the presence of threats, violence, coercion, or deceit, despite the global and local attempts to eliminate it. The purpose of this literature study is to demonstrate that the growing menace of contemporary slavery is a formidable problem for all nations, including India, irrespective of their economic standing. The primary inquiry revolves around the escalating threat of contemporary slavery. How is the emergence of a new form of exploitation impacting a significant portion of society? What are the current laws and why are they ineffective in addressing the emerging forms of exploitation in the modern era? The scholarship on this topic originates from three overarching strands of writing. The first strand examines the detection of criminal exploitation and modern slavery within the current legal framework and advocates for the dedicated enforcement of these laws to protect vulnerable individuals from becoming victims of exploitation. The second research strand aims to analyse the economic markets and commercial entities in India to assess their compliance with regulations against modern-day slavery. Additionally, it seeks to enhance corporate responsibility by enforcing labour standards in supply chains. The third category of literature focusses on the risk factors and root causes of contemporary slavery and criminal exploitation. The research aims to understand the exact processes via which this process occurs, the reasons that cause individuals to become involved in exploitative circumstances, and the possible preventive and corrective interventions.

Keywords: Modern Slavery, Criminal Exploitation, Potential Victims, Supply Chain, Business Entities, Human Rights.