A thematic exhibition "People Are Not For Sale!" dedicated to the World Day Against Trafficking in Persons is on show at the Official Documents Service Department (207) from July 14 to August 31.

Trafficking, or modern slavery, is a global problem and one of the most serious crimes against basic human rights and human dignity. It is a phenomenon that should have remained in the distant past, but still exists, affecting the fate of millions of people around the world, be it the country of origin, transit or destination of "human commodities".

On 30 July 2010, the UN General Assembly adopted the United Nations Global Plan of Action against Trafficking in Persons. This date subsequently marked the beginning of the annual UN campaign, when the 68th session of the General Assembly (Resolution A/RES/68/192) established the World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, celebrated on July 30 beginning in 2014. The Republic of Belarus became one of the initiators of the establishment of this Day.

The need to end trafficking in children and people in general, as well as violence against women and children, has been formulated as specific goals and objectives in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

According to the UN, 50,000 victims of human trafficking in 148 countries were found and registered in 2018 alone. About two-thirds of the people enslaved are women and girls. Globally, one in three detected victims is a child. Over the past 15 years, the proportion of children among the identified victims of trafficking has tripled.

The target of the modern slave trade, which brings millions in profits to criminal groups, is often people from the most vulnerable population, who are in a desperate situation or simply looking for a better life. Sexual exploitation is the most common form of modern slavery (50%), followed by forced labour (38%). In addition, people caught in the hands of slave traders are forced to commit crimes, beg, marry and are used to extract internal organs. And often even after their release from slavery, the problems of trafficked victims do not end. They relive traumatic events, facing misunderstanding, stigmatization and not receiving the necessary support.

It is these people who are the official theme of the 2021 World Day Against Trafficking in Persons campaign with the motto "Victims' Voices Lead the Way." The campaign presents them as key players in the fight against the modern slave trade, focusing on their contribution to developing measures to prevent these crimes, identify and rescue victims and rehabilitate them. The feedback of these people's experiences and implementation of their proposals lead to a more effective approach to combating trafficking and its consequences.

The exhibition includes the following thematic sections:

The problem of human trafficking: history and modernity
International cooperation in the field of counter-trafficking in persons
Compensation for victims of human trafficking
International legal framework for combating human trafficking
Belarus vs. Trafficking

The exhibition features documents in Russian, German, French and English. The greater part of the exhibition consists of international organizations' publications: books, brochures, mimeographed UN documents, periodicals.

The exhibition is targeted at a wide range of readers: employees of investigative and operational units of law enforcement agencies, psychologists, social workers, judges, lawyers, teachers and students of higher education legal institutions, as well as for all concerned with anti-trafficking issues.

People Are Not For Sale!

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