POSITION PAPER

COMMITTEE: United Nations Human Rights Council

AGENDA: Modern Slavery Amidst an Increasingly Globalized World
COUNTRY: Republic of Finland

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The practice of slavery or the forced exploitation of people first emerged in the early civilization of
Mesopotamia back in 3500 BCE. Though ancient slavery mainly consisted of transatlantic slave
trade, modern slavery takes the form of forced labour, forced marriage, human trafficking and
more. Victims of these have significantly increased over the past few years with numbers rising to
about 50 million in 2021 according to statistics from the International Labour Organization (ILO).
Globalization coupled with technological developments and environmental degradation of the 21st
century has created this influx of modern slavery. But it is not to say that governments don’t play a
part in this. The lack of strict and proper legislation has in fact, aggravated the heinous institution
of modern slavery.
The prohibition of slavery and servitude has been explicitly mentioned in Article 4 of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights. The HRC Resolution 6/14 (2007) created the mandate of the Special
Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery and the Protocol of 2014 to the Forced Labour
Convention, 1930 requires States to take measures concerning the eradication of forced labour.
Further, the UN-GA Resolution 70/1 (2015) that introduced the Sustainable Development Goals,
positively affirms the eradication of forced labour, modern slavery, and human trafficking. All these
instruments have brought about reductions in the occurrence of modern slavery though a radical
change has not yet happened.
The Republic of Finland strongly condemns modern slavery- which we believe is a clear violation of
human rights. The country has ratified the 2014 Forced Labour Protocol and has been actively
assisting the global fight against modern slavery. This has been made possible through various
measures undertaken by the government which are as follows:
o The Finnish Constitution guarantees freedom to all its citizens and has explicitly stated in
Section 7 that no one shall be treated in a manner violating their human dignity.
o Since 2004, Finland has developed a strong legal framework to fight human trafficking by
adopting a National Strategy and more recently appointing a National Rapporteur for the
same.
o Furthering its commitment to ending acts of modern slavery such as child labour and forced
marriages, it has imposed labour laws and restrictions on the minimum age to work and the
legal marriageable age.
Modern slavery is a difficult conundrum to approach as it involves not one but numerous grave
issues such as debt bondage, human trafficking etc. This calls for wide-scale legislations and
programmes to be implemented by the Member States. Finland suggests the setting up of a
specialized regulatory body in every country that solely supervises working conditions of labourers
and to ensure that they have been recruited in an ethical manner. This body should also oversee
the in-flow and outflow of workers in the country to prevent instances of trafficking. Labour laws
must be strictly implemented with a special emphasis on combating child labour.
Further, governments must take the necessary steps to protect women and children from sexual
exploitation and forced prostitution. This can be in the form of stricter penalties for those
committing these crimes, social assistance, and awareness for the public to avoid falling prey to
such social evils. To prevent occurrences of forced marriages, the marriageable age must be equal
for all genders and be placed at 18 years or above.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen a significant reversal in the developments made to
eradicate slavery. People are at a disadvantage as they deal with an economic crisis, travel
restrictions and the lack of adequate healthcare, sanitation, and food. It is therefore essential that
the international community incorporate policies to eradicate modern slavery as part of their
greater programmes to achieve post-pandemic recovery.
In the words of former ILO Director-General Guy Ryder, “Nothing can justify the persistence of this
fundamental abuse of human rights.” The Republic of Finland thus reiterates the urgency for a swift
eradication of modern slavery. A world free of slavery not only brings about social progress but also
improves the economic prosperity and general well-being of the community. With that in mind, the
delegate of Finland looks forward to engaging in fruitful talks with the Member States and coming
up with effective solutions to fight the growing horrors of modern slavery.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:
o https://www.ilo.org/global/about-the-ilo/newsroom/news/WCMS_855019/lang--
en/index.htm
o https://www.ohchr.org/en/special-procedures/sr-slavery/overview-mandate#
o https://antislaverylaw.ac.uk/country/finland/
o https://www.ilo.org/global/topics/dw4sd/themes/forced-labour/lang--en/index.htm#
o https://50forfreedom.org/blog/news/finland-pledges-to-combat-forced-labour/