June 06, 2023

Welcome To Modern Slavery


Welcome To Modern Slavery
A shot from the film "Produkty 24" Metrafilms

Russia ranked eighth in the world for the prevalence of modern slavery, according to the Global Slavery Index. Which says that, in Russia, there are 13 persons in a state of slavery for every 1,000. That means about 1.9 million people in Russia live in conditions of slavery (among about 50 million in the world).

According to the rating, the situations in North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Tajikistan, and the UAE are worse than in Russia. And ranked just below Russia are Afghanistan and Kuwait.

"Modern slavery" is defined as any exploitation that a person cannot avoid due to threats, violence, coercion, deception, or abuse of power. This includes forced labor (sexual exploitation, domestic servitude, and the worst forms of child labor), human trafficking, and slavery-like practices (forced marriages, debt bondage, and child soldiers).

DOXA and the Russian fund Bezopasny Dom report that the real number of persons subjected to such slavery in Russia likely exceeds 1.9 million. "There are more and more victims," the fund said, "because the possibilities of systematic work to prevent and solve the problem are extremely limited, and the number of vulnerable groups is growing."

Representatives of Bezopasnij Dom say that there are no statistics on certain forms of exploitation in the country, but most cases in the world account for sex trafficking and forced labor.

One of Russia's most recently revealed cases of forced labor happened in Moscow, in Golyanovo. The victims were citizens of Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Tajikistan, mostly women, who for several years were forced to live in a grocery store and work for free. They were subjected to forced labor, sexual exploitation, and ill-treatment. Their plight inspired Michael Borodin’s film "Produkty 24."

You Might Also Like

FSB To Seize Passports
  • May 24, 2023

FSB To Seize Passports

The State Duma is going to give the FSB the right to take away passports at the border.
No Money, Only War
  • March 29, 2023

No Money, Only War

Russian authorities blame the "special military operation" for the disruption of infrastructural and social projects.
A Year of Decline
  • December 31, 2022

A Year of Decline

Russia’s War on Ukraine is exacting deep and enduring economic and social costs on the country.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar is a hilarious and insightful memoir by a diplomat who was “present at the creation” of US-Soviet relations. Charles Thayer headed off to Russia in 1933, calculating that if he could just learn Russian and be on the spot when the US and USSR established relations, he could make himself indispensable and start a career in the foreign service. Remarkably, he pulled it of.
Chekhov Bilingual

Chekhov Bilingual

Some of Chekhov's most beloved stories, with English and accented Russian on facing pages throughout. 
Driving Down Russia's Spine

Driving Down Russia's Spine

The story of the epic Spine of Russia trip, intertwining fascinating subject profiles with digressions into historical and cultural themes relevant to understanding modern Russia. 
Russian Rules

Russian Rules

From the shores of the White Sea to Moscow and the Northern Caucasus, Russian Rules is a high-speed thriller based on actual events, terrifying possibilities, and some really stupid decisions.
The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

A beloved Russian classic about a resourceful Russian peasant, Vanya, and his miracle-working horse, who together undergo various trials, exploits and adventures at the whim of a laughable tsar, told in rich, narrative poetry.
Survival Russian

Survival Russian

Survival Russian is an intensely practical guide to conversational, colloquial and culture-rich Russian. It uses humor, current events and thematically-driven essays to deepen readers’ understanding of Russian language and culture. This enlarged Second Edition of Survival Russian includes over 90 essays and illuminates over 2000 invaluable Russian phrases and words.
At the Circus (bilingual)

At the Circus (bilingual)

This wonderful novella by Alexander Kuprin tells the story of the wrestler Arbuzov and his battle against a renowned American wrestler. Rich in detail and characterization, At the Circus brims with excitement and life. You can smell the sawdust in the big top, see the vivid and colorful characters, sense the tension build as Arbuzov readies to face off against the American.
Marooned in Moscow

Marooned in Moscow

This gripping autobiography plays out against the backdrop of Russia's bloody Civil War, and was one of the first Western eyewitness accounts of life in post-revolutionary Russia. Marooned in Moscow provides a fascinating account of one woman's entry into war-torn Russia in early 1920, first-person impressions of many in the top Soviet leadership, and accounts of the author's increasingly dangerous work as a journalist and spy, to say nothing of her work on behalf of prisoners, her two arrests, and her eventual ten-month-long imprisonment, including in the infamous Lubyanka prison. It is a veritable encyclopedia of life in Russia in the early 1920s.
Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors

Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors

The Life Stories collection is a nice introduction to contemporary Russian fiction: many of the 19 authors featured here have won major Russian literary prizes and/or become bestsellers. These are life-affirming stories of love, family, hope, rebirth, mystery and imagination, masterfully translated by some of the best Russian-English translators working today. The selections reassert the power of Russian literature to affect readers of all cultures in profound and lasting ways. Best of all, 100% of the profits from the sale of this book are going to benefit Russian hospice—not-for-profit care for fellow human beings who are nearing the end of their own life stories.
Turgenev Bilingual

Turgenev Bilingual

A sampling of Ivan Turgenev's masterful short stories, plays, novellas and novels. Bilingual, with English and accented Russian texts running side by side on adjoining pages.
93 Untranslatable Russian Words

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955