18 October 2013 Last updated at 09:24 GMT
Friday is world anti-slavery day, dedicated to raising awareness of people trapped in forced labour, manifestations of which are often referred to as modern-day slavery. To mark the day, we asked campaigners and activists around the world to nominate examples of campaigns or individuals that have had a positive impact on fighting human trafficking.
Kenya attack: Westgate mall bodies 'probably gunmen'
Two charred bodies pulled from Kenya's Westgate shopping centre on Thursday are "highly likely" to be two of the attackers, an MP has told the BBC.
Ndung'u Gethenji, chairman of the committee investigating the attack, said AK47 rifles used by the militants were found next to the bodies.
The authorities will now conduct forensic tests on the bodies.
At least 67 people died when suspected al-Shabab militants stormed the Nairobi shopping centre on 21 September.
The attack sparked a four-day siege, in which large parts of the shopping centre were destroyed.
Human trafficking: stories from the frontline
On anti-slavery day, activists and campaigners nominate those who have made a positive impact on tackling the problemFriday is world anti-slavery day, dedicated to raising awareness of people trapped in forced labour, manifestations of which are often referred to as modern-day slavery. To mark the day, we asked campaigners and activists around the world to nominate examples of campaigns or individuals that have had a positive impact on fighting human trafficking.
The Nepali trade union federation – ensuring safe migration
Vittorio Longhi says: In Nepal the majority of migrants move through private recruitment agencies. These have offices throughout the country, even in the remotest areas, in the countryside, where they take advantage of ignorance and naivety. Contracts often turn out to be bogus or will tie someone to high-debt burden or labour they are forced to accept.
In 2008 the General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (Gefont) started the safe migration campaign, sending representatives from village to village to provide information on the safest way to emigrate.
''We cannot stop this flow of migrants leaving, because our economy is too weak and we depend on remittances," says the general secretary of Gefont, Umesh Upadhyaya, "but we must do what we can to make work safe.''
Nepali unions create links with other organisations to accompany their workers. There is a specific agreement with Malaysian wood trade unions so that registered Nepali workers are followed individually. And in Hong Kong the organisation of construction workers has united locals and migrants.
Rise in polls gives Le Pen hope for presidency
The National Front leader as France’s head of state may not be such a far-fetched idea
Lara Marlowe
Marine Le Pen, president of France? It may sound far-fetched, but a victory by the leader of the extreme right-wing National Front (FN) is a frequent subject of speculation in Paris.
President François Hollande’s 24 per cent approval rating is the lowest measured for a French president since the Ipsos barometre was created in 1996. If the socialist Hollande faced Le Pen in the 2017 runoff, some conservatives predict the right would vote massively for Le Pen.
And if Hollande were eliminated in the first round, pitting the former presidentNicolas Sarkozy – the favoured candidate of UMP supporters – against Le Pen, the “republican front,” whereby establishment parties formed an alliance against FN candidates, is no longer likely to function.
CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC
Anarchy, violence grip Central African Republic
The violence in the Central African Republic is increasingly taking on religious overtones. Tens of thousands are fleeing, and at least 30,000 people are waiting for help in the town of Bossangoa alone - so far in vain.
The signs of fighting are already visible 90 kilometers from Bossangoa, hometown of toppled President François Bozizé. There are burnt-out houses everywhere, with clothes and household objects lying strewn in front of them. Chickens, goats, and cows wander through abandoned fields and villages. The air is deadly silent, broken only by bird song.
A few weeks ago, this spot, around 300 kilometers north of Bangui, capital of the Central African Republic, was the scene of fierce fighting between fighters for the Séléka movement and supporters of the ousted president. At least a hundred people were killed, many more injured, and houses were plundered and burnt down. Tens of thousands fled the violence and are now still homeless.
Iranian man who survived gallows likely to be hanged again
October 18, 2013 - 7:44AM
Tehran: Amnesty International has called for Iran to spare a convicted drug trafficker who survived the gallows.
The prisoner, identified only as Alireza M, 37, was pronounced dead by the attending doctor after spending 12 minutes hanging from the noose suspended from a crane in a jail in northeastern Iran.
But the following day, staff at the mortuary in the city of Bojnourd where his shrouded body was taken discovered to their shock that he was still breathing.
He is now recovering in hospital while jurists argue over whether the law requires that he be taken to the gallows a second time.
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Amnesty International called for an immediate stay of execution for Alireza M and for all other death row prisoners in Iran, which carried out more executions last year than any other country bar China.
Haiti's child slaves land country high on new global slavery index
The global slavery index considers Haitian children sent to live with wealthier families and serve as household servants – a common practice – modern-day slaves.
But many of the 29 million modern day slaves might challenge your concept of who is a slave. It might be an indebted laborer, a victim of human trafficking, or, in the case of Haiti, the child working in the kitchen.
Walk Free Foundation used an expanded definition of slavery to produce what it says is a first-of-its-kind look at the practice in the modern world.
“It would be comforting to think that slavery is a relic of history, but it remains a scar on humanity on every continent,” says Nick Grono, CEO the Australia-based
foundation that produced the Global Slavery Index 2013, the first of a planned annual publication.
Nearly half of the world’s slaves lives in India. But the index ranked 162 countries according to the percentage of enslaved people in the general population. Western Africa’s Mauritania, Haiti and Pakistan had the three highest rates of slavery, respectively, according to the index.
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