Sir Mo Farah has spoken publicly about his experience of being a victim of child trafficking and slavery. In an upcoming documentary, the four-time Olympic gold medallist reveals he had been brought to the UK from Djibouti at the age of nine and forced to serve another family’s children.
Justine Currell, Director of Anti-Slavery charity Unseen, praised Sir Mo for telling his story, saying: “We will never be able to eradicate this scourge without more people appreciating the extent of modern slavery and child trafficking, and the signs to look out for. Mo has done a great job in moving understanding forward.”
Unfortunately, Sir Mo’s experience is not an isolated one, as reports of child slavery in the UK reached an all time high this year. Data released by the Home Office show that out of 3,777 potential victims of modern slavery, 1,471 (39%) were children. This was the highest recorded figure for a single quarter.
