Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Abolishing Slavery and its Contemporary Forms

Forms of Slavery
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marriage has taken place officially and exists “on paper” but the couple do not live together sub-
sequently as husband and wife). When a woman in such a marriage is forced to earn money for
her husband or another person through prostitution or in any other income-generating activity, she
is a victim of trafficking in persons.
H. Child Labour and Child Servitude
119. This section summarizes international standards on child labour before focusing on defini-
tions of child slavery and servile status, which, for lack of any other term in general use, are
referred to here as “child servitude”. The need to protect children from exploitative practices was
formally acknowledged at the international level early in the twentieth century. The League of
Nations included the protection of children within the ambit of its work on eliminating slavery and
the slave trade. The League, in the Geneva Declaration of the Rights of the Child of 1924, stated
that children must be protected against every form of exploitation.
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120. The Universal Declaration and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
contain provisions prohibiting slavery, servitude and forced labour in all their forms and acknowl-
edge the special place of children in society. Article 24 of the International Covenant declares that
every child has the “right to such measures of protection as are required by his status as a minor”.
In addition to the general prohibitions on slavery and forced labour, which are applicable to chil-
dren as well as adults, the Supplementary Convention of 1956 specifically defines a servile status
that is restricted to children alone. The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights echoes the requirement of numerous ILO conventions that States should specify a minimum
age below which “the paid employment of children should be prohibited and punishable by
law”.
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121. Increased awareness in the 1980s and 1990s of the economic exploitation of millions of
children around the world has pushed its consideration into the international arena and “to the
forefront of a debate within governments, international organizations and the business sector”.
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Limits on child labour have been introduced as it has been universally accepted that children, by
virtue of their physical and mental immaturity, need special protection.