Testimony of Annick Febrey: Multi-Sector Partnerships to Combat Human Trafficking

At Human Rights First, our mission is to foster American global leadership on human rights. We believe that standing up for human rights is not only a moral obligation; it is also a vital national interest. Our country is strongest when our actions match our ideals. For nearly forty years, we have worked to ensure that the United States acts as a beacon in a world that needs American leadership.

American leadership is sorely needed on the catastrophe known as human trafficking. Millions around the world are enslaved. The parasitic perpetrators of forced labor and child labor target the most vulnerable among us, violating their most fundamental human rights, including but not limited to freedom from fear and oppression, and denying the rights to free choice of employment and just remuneration. Modern-day slavery is as abhorrent as the bondage throughout human history. We should recognize it as such— and act accordingly.