INFORMATION

Lost Childhood: Where Exploitation Begins Too Early

Sexual exploitation affects children and young people worldwide on an alarming scale. Many become victims before they can even comprehend the danger, whether offline at the hands of known perpetrators or online via social media and chat platforms. UNICEF emphasises that children often find themselves in situations of exploitation or abuse through false promises, power […]

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The Dark Economy of Human Trafficking: How Traffickers Launder Their Illegal Millions

When we think of money laundering, many still picture the cliché image of gang bosses like Al Capone. Today’s reality, however, is far more sophisticated and deeply embedded in the structure of the legitimate economy. Illegally acquired assets – so-called “dirty money” – pose a major risk to offenders because they can often be traced

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Three Million Documents and the Failure of Justice

For many years, the name “Jeffrey Epstein” was synonymous with the very deepest abysses of the global elite. Now, under pressure from the “Epstein Files Transparency Act”, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) has published a vast tranche of documents: over three million pages, 180,000 photos and 2,000 videos have been made available in an effort to

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Rent-a-Girlfriend in Japan: Loneliness, Commerce, and the Line to Prostitution

In Japan, a business model has emerged in recent years that often surprises observers abroad: renting “girlfriends” and, increasingly, “boyfriends.” These services let customers book a companion for a few hours in exchange for payment. The rented girlfriend treats the customer as if she were his partner. All costs incurred during the date are paid

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Invisible exploitation: Why women and girls are the main victims of human trafficking

The 8th of March is International Women’s Day. Weeks before this date, a wide variety of campaigns and events are launched here in Vienna to draw attention to this day and its significance. We at Hope for the Future are also joining in. Forced prostitution, human trafficking and exploitation are everyday phenomena that almost always

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The “Door of No Return” in Ghana: Witness to the Transatlantic Slave Trade

If you travel to Ghana, there are few places where history can be experienced at first hand in such a way as Cape Coast Castle. Now a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site, the former slave fort serves not just as an entertainment programme, but also as a place to learn about and understand the terrible atrocities committed by

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Perpetrator Perspective: Why Do Men Buy Sex and Thus Support Exploitation? 

When prostitution and human trafficking are discussed, the focus is usually on the people who are exploited, controlled, and harmed. Far less often are the perpetrators – the buyers of sexual services – placed at the center. Yet they are the reason this market exists. Without demand there is no supply, and without money there

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Modern slavery: exploitation in private households

Modern slavery is not a phenomenon of the past – it manifests itself in many ways and inconspicuously in private households today. Whether as cleaners, nannies, employees or carers, these people work hard and are often exploited because of their situation.  Modern human trafficking in private households Human trafficking is a serious human rights violation

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Forced Adoption of Ukrainian Children: Russia’s Catalog of Shame

Since the start of the full-scale invasion, Russia has forcibly removed thousands of Ukrainian minors from their families, their homes, and their homeland. These children have not only been abducted but, on a disturbing scale, put up for adoption in Russia.  The numbers are shocking: there are reports of 19,546 unlawful deportations and forced transfers

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