Article content continued

The special mobile group, created in 1995, is one of Brazil’s main tools in the fight against human trafficking.

While any labor inspector can rescue workers from slavery, the group is dedicated to the task and travels nationally to raid farms and workplaces suspected of using slave labor.

The mobile group also has labor prosecutors and federal authorities that accompany inspectors on operations, and bring charges against employers that enslave workers.

Brazil’s leading anti-slavery labor prosecutor, Lys Sobral Cardoso, supported the measure taken by the Labor Inspector’s Office, saying the operations could put the workers they aim to rescue at risk.

“There is even a risk of contaminating communities living in the most distant regions of the country,” she said.

In Brazil, slavery is defined as forced labor but also covers debt bondage, degrading work conditions, long hours that pose a risk to health, and any work that violates human dignity.

Last year 1,054 laborers across all industries were rescued, down from 2,604 in 2012, government data showed. Since 1995 about 54,000 have been found by labor inspectors.

The 2018 Global Slavery Index estimated that 369,000 people are living in slavery among Brazil’s 205 million people.

Riga said he hoped to work from Sao Paulo, where he is based, but health concerns had to be taken into account.

He feared even after the freeze was over, the budget for operations might be further reduced due to the economic impact of the coronavirus outbreak, which could limit operations.

“No one knows the economic impact (of the coronavirus), and how it will affect the state’s budget,” he said. (Reporting by Fabio Teixeira //news.trust.org)