The woman, who cannot be named, came to the UK on a domestic worker visa in 2005 with the intention of sending her wages home to her family. But her passport was taken and she was forced to work without rest or pay. In abuse that spanned years, her life was threatened, she was physically attacked by her keepers and was made to sleep on the floor. She was raped on several occasions. The woman was extremely vulnerable – unable to speak English, uneducated, and, with her family and friends continents away, extremely isolated. She managed to seek help from the police and others on numerous occasions but her story wasn’t believed and, her pleas for help ignored, she was handed back to her abusers.
She was eventually able to escape but it was only two years later – after Liberty drew the police’s attention to their obligations under the Human Rights Act – that a full investigation into trafficking and forced labour was launched. In May 2012, six people were charged with numerous offences. Last week three were found guilty of the serious abuse of a domestic worker.
The trial may not have happened at all had Liberty not reminded the police of such obligations. We are now bringing a civil claim against the police on behalf of our client – also under human rights laws – for their failure to investigate and protect her from a breach of Article 4, the prohibition on slavery and servitude.
Our client will bear the physical and mental scars of her
ordeal for the rest of her life. Her story is a vivid reminder of just how
vital our much-maligned Human Rights Act is when it comes to protecting the
most vulnerable people in our society.
