It boggles the mind that well into the first decade of the 21st century there are people in the world who still have no sense of the evil involved in buying and selling human beings. Yet a court that hears cases stemming from activity in a collection of West African nations has just held the government of Niger liable for not preventing the selling into slavery of a young girl at the age of 12. The regional tribunal ordered Niger to pay the woman, now 24, the equivalent of US$19,000 for failing to protect her. Slavery is prohibited across Africa but still exists in pockets of Niger, Mali, Mauritania and amid conflicts like the one in Uganda. Antislavery organizations estimate that 43,000 people in Niger alone are enslaved. The Tuareg and the Toubou, nomadic tribes of Niger, have for centuries held members of other ethnic groups as slaves and continue to do so today. But if a functioning government exists in Niger, or anywhere else, for that matter, there is no excuse for such practices to continue today, let alone with the tacit support of the government. In the case of Hadijatou Mani, the government clearly refused to intervene on her behalf. She was sold into slavery for $500 at the age of 12 and forced to work in her owner's fields for a decade. She also claims that her owner repeatedly beat and raped her. When she escaped to her family, she was returned to her owner. In 2005, the owner gave her a certificate freeing her, but when she tried to get married, the owner claimed that he was already married to her. A lower court ruled for Ms Mani and she went ahead and got married. However, a higher court reversed the decision and then in an astoundingly absurd action, sent her to jail for two months for bigamy. Such abuse of women or any human being is intolerable and all nations should force governments to enforce their antislavery laws. It is especially important that those people who once participated in slavery – capturing, selling or buying slaves – be at the forefront of such a campaign. __
