logo
UN judge jailed for 6 years for modern slavery offences

UN judge jailed for 6 years for modern slavery offences

News2402-05-2025
A UK court on Friday jailed a United Nations (UN) judge for six years and four months after she was found guilty of forcing a young woman to work as her maid.
Ugandan judge Lydia Mugambe, 50, was convicted under Britain's Modern Slavery Act of taking "advantage of her status" over the victim while studying law at Oxford University.
The jury at Oxford Crown Court found Mugambe guilty of conspiring to break UK immigration law, facilitating travel with a view to exploitation, forcing someone to work, and conspiracy to intimidate a witness.
The court was told Mugambe, who is also a High Court judge in Uganda, forced the victim to work as her maid and provide childcare for free, while preventing her from holding a steady job.
Judge David Foxton outlined Mugambe's legal accomplishments in his sentence, adding that it was a "very sad case".
Mugambe engaged in "illegal folly" to arrange for the young woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, to come to the UK.
She was also convicted of trying to intimidate the woman to persuade her to drop the case.
The court was told in a written statement during the trial that the victim described living in "almost constant fear" as a result of Mugambe's powerful standing in their home country.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

France, Germany, UK Threaten to Reimpose UN Sanctions on Iran
France, Germany, UK Threaten to Reimpose UN Sanctions on Iran

Bloomberg

time11 minutes ago

  • Bloomberg

France, Germany, UK Threaten to Reimpose UN Sanctions on Iran

Leaders from France, Germany and the United Kingdom threatened to reimpose UN sanctions on Iran if the Islamic State does not reach a nuclear deal by the end of August. In a letter addressed to the UN and dated last Friday, top diplomats from the three countries — known as the E3 — said they were ready to bring back international sanctions on Iran that were lifted under the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. Sanctions could be reinstated using the 'snapback' mechanism built into that agreement.

Cambodia targets workers in crackdown on scam centers
Cambodia targets workers in crackdown on scam centers

American Military News

timean hour ago

  • American Military News

Cambodia targets workers in crackdown on scam centers

This article was originally published by Radio Free Asia and is reprinted with permission. Cambodia's government on Friday said that at least 2,000 people have been arrested in a crackdown ordered this week by prime minister Hun Manet on scam centers — prison-like compounds that aid groups say run on the work of human trafficking victims. Images and videos released by state-controlled media showed people running from alleged scam-center sites, Cambodian troops inspecting seized electronic equipment and groups of detainees in plastic wrist ties. Officials said detained workers included Chinese, Vietnamese, Indonesian, and Indian nationals. Information Minister Neth Pheaktra told Agence France-Presse that authorities had expanded the scope of their raids to nine of the country's 25 provinces and will 'dismantle every scam network no matter where they hide.' The move comes after an Amnesty International report released last month said that the Cambodian government was 'deliberately ignoring a litany of human rights abuses' at the centers, 'including slavery, human trafficking, child labour and torture being carried out by criminal gangs on a vast scale' at at least 53 sites across the country. Scam centers have also figured into Cambodia's recent political tensions with neighboring Thailand. As she closed border crossings between the two nations last month, the now-ousted Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra cited Cambodia's scam centers as 'a hub of world-class criminality and a national threat.' Across Southeast Asia, scam centers generate nearly $40 billion in annual profits, according to a United Nations estimate. Rong Chhun, an adviser to the opposition Nation Power Party in Cambodia, told RFA Khmer that shutting down scam centers would require targeting organizers, not workers. 'If we only target and sweep up the workers hired by these masterminds without capturing the leaders themselves, it won't be long before the operations reappear,' he said. Ny Sokha, president of the Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association, said the Cambodian government must find and prosecute those who have allowed scam centers to take root and flourish. 'If the government is truly committed to eliminating gambling and especially online scams, I believe further investigation is needed to uncover those behind the scenes. Regardless of how powerful or influential they may be, they must be brought to justice in accordance with the law.' Based on interviews with 423 former Cambodian scam-center workers, the Amnesty International report described adult and child workers as young as 14 being attacked with electric-shock batons, being held in cages and being sent to 'dark rooms' for punishment if they failed to meet productivity targets. Nearly all of the workers Amnesty interviewed had been lured using deceptive recruitment tactics and false promises of legitimate jobs. In May, United Nations officials described brutal conditions at scam centers across Southeast Asia. 'Once trafficked, victims are deprived of their liberty and subjected to torture, ill treatment, severe violence and abuse including beatings, electrocution, solitary confinement and sexual violence. They have limited access to food and clean water, and must endure cramped and unsanitary living conditions,' their statement said. A former scam-center worker named Tu Anh Tu told RFA in 2024 that he accepted a job in Bavet, a Cambodian border town, after a friend vouched for an employment offer. He described confinement in a gated compound, trainings on how to scam targets using social media, and enduring a severe beating that knocked out three teeth and left him covered in lash marks when organizers thought he had contacted Cambodian police. Includes reporting from Agence-France Presse.

Tea, cakes and funny signs greet Vance in quintessentially British countryside
Tea, cakes and funny signs greet Vance in quintessentially British countryside

NBC News

timean hour ago

  • NBC News

Tea, cakes and funny signs greet Vance in quintessentially British countryside

LONDON — JD Vance got a very English welcome after he, his family and their large security detail rolled through the village of Charlbury this week, just not the kind the vice president would have hoped for. Bathed in sunshine, dozens of demonstrators drank tea, ate cake featuring a meme of the vice president's face and held up humorous placards Tuesday in the small community in the Cotswolds, as this part of the countryside is known. 'JD Vance Netflix password is 'password,'' said one handmade sign at a protest near where the Vances are vacationing some 100 miles west of the capital, London. A second sign declared that Vance 'claps when the plane lands,' referring to a practice mocked by some Britons who see it as very un-British overenthusiasm. Others held placards quoting Vance when he said he 'never liked' President Donald Trump. 'Cotswolds childless cat ladies say go home,' another read, referring to comments Vance made to former Fox News host Tucker Carlson in 2021 about senior Democrats in Congress that resurfaced during last year's presidential race. In the nearby town of Chipping Norton, some locals said they were unprepared for the level of security disruption as some of the already tight roads in the area were closed for Vance's motorcade. Design manager Geoff Holliday, 51, said Wednesday he was 'getting bored' with the closures, adding that he was longing for the motorcade to be slowed down by 'a disgruntled farmer and a combine harvester.' Nestled among the rolling hills that rise up from meadows of the upper River Thames, the Cotswolds' picture-postcard towns and villages have been popular with holidaymakers for centuries. More recently, the area has attracted a wealthier crowd. Chipping Norton and its surrounding area are known for the 'Chipping Norton set,' including former Prime Minister David Cameron and his wife, Samantha Cameron; Elizabeth Murdoch, media executive and daughter of Rupert Murdoch; and more recently, comedian and talk show host Ellen DeGeneres. Former "Top Gear" presenter Jeremy Clarkson's 'Diddly Squat Farm' in Chadlington is also nearby, and he shared an image on Instagram which highlighted how his farm is under a no-fly zone over the Cotswolds. Appearing to reference filming for his 'Clarkson's Farm' Amazon show, he wrote: 'The JD Vance no fly zone. We are the pin. So on the downside, no drone shots today. On the upside, no annoying light aircraft.'

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store