Adut Jel will never forget the night she became a slave.

With her three young children, Adut had been taking refuge in Malek Alel — a small Sudanese village thought to be a safe haven from a bitter civil war which raged across the rest of the country.

But one evening they were proved tragically wrong as a tribal militia launched a violent and bloody raid on the village.

Residents were put under trees and shot while property was burned to the ground as the tribe seized everything they could get their hands on, from cattle and sheep to utensils.

For Adut and her three youngsters — a son aged four and two daughters just two and three — that raid marked the beginning of an horrific seven-year ordeal.

Along with a handful of other villagers, Adut and her children were abducted by the tribe and forced to walk a 20-day journey to southern Darfur where, from that day on, they lived the lives of slaves. The Jel family were among more than 14,000 men, women and children abducted and forced into slavery in Sudan between 1986 and 2002.

Their story underlines just why The Royal Gazette’s Break The Chains campaign is calling for an end to modern day slavery all over the world.

We are backing Anti-Slavery International’s on-line petition which demands world leaders take action to help free at least 12 million modern day slaves.

And all you have to do to support it is log onto the internet and follow a few simple instructions on your computer screen.

Reflecting on her traumatic time as a slave, Adut told aid workers at Anti Slavery International: “It is the worst thing to be taken from your own home to someone else’s place and have to work for them.”

The daily tasks which turned Adut’s life into a misery began at 5 a.m., when she was made to weed and harvest vegetables.

She then had to cultivate watermelons, millet and groundnut, before grinding the millet.

Only on the completion of these chores was she allowed breakfast. She received no money for her efforts and was harshly beaten regularly. While the masters slept in their warm homes, Adut and her children were made to sleep on plastic sheets under a shelter which was open to the wind and rain. As soon as they were old enough, Adut’s children were forced to work too, taking sheep and cows for grazing.

Thanks to the efforts of aid workers, Adut was freed three years ago and reunited with her family in a transit camp in Aweil, her home town.

“I am very happy because I have been released from a life of hardship,” she said.

The conditions which led to Adut being enslaved were fuelled by civil war between the Sudan Government and Sudan People’s Liberation Army.

Of the thousands who became slaves, more than half were abducted when they were still under 18. Most were taken from northern parts of the country to west Kordofan and southern Darfur. They were forced into abuse including forced labour as domestic workers, cattle herders, agricultural workers, forced marriages and rape.

Some were sold or given away as presents, others hired out as casual workers.

In many cases, ill treatment included withholding youngsters’ food and drink.

Experts say they were left even more vulnerable by the fact they were separated from their home communities and moved to areas where the people, culture and language were completely unknown. Sudan’s last reported abduction was in May 2002, but many thousands still remain in slavery. Sadly, Sudan is just one of numerous countries where modern day slavery is rife.

The Philippines, the Persian Gulf countries, Albania, Bulgaria, Nigeria, India and Brazil are just some of the places plagued by it. Charities and rights campaigners say examples like Adut illustrate how urgent the fight against modern day slavery has become.

“Adut’s case study shows just how important it is that people back this campaign to help end slavery once and for all,” said the Anti Slavery International’s director Aidan McQuade.

“The word ‘slavery’ conjures up images of abuses that many believe were consigned to history. But the truth is, slavery continues today. At least 12 million people worldwide are forced to work through the threat or use of violence. They are denied freedom, dehumanised and treated as property or bought and sold.

“Even though it is illegal under international law, slavery is found in most countries and no region is free from this abuse.

“In Sudan, thousands of people have been abducted and forced into slavery; in the Philippines, young girls are used as domestic slaves; boys as young as four years old are abducted from their families in South Asia to be used as camel jockeys in the Gulf; young men in Brazil are used as forced labour to clear the Amazon making way for cattle farms; and women and girls are trafficked from Albania and forced into prostitution.”

Maryanne Scott, chairwoman of Bermuda’s Human Rights Commission, who has signed the petition, said: “It is heart-wrenching — nobody, especially children, should have to endure this. We do think of slavery as a historical abuse. I would certainly encourage people to promote an understanding of modern day slavery in our community.”

Petra Spencer-Arscott, health, safety and disaster services co-ordinator at Bermuda Red Cross, said: “Lots of people don’t know how serious the situation is across the world, so hopefully things like this can bring it to their attention.”

The on-line petition was launched in the run-up to the official bicentenary of the abolition of the slave trade in Britain and its territories in 1807.

It calls for an introduction of measures across the world to eradicate modern day slavery, which comes in various forms, including forced labour like Adut suffered, as well as human trafficking, child labour, bonded labour and forced marriages.* To sign the Anti-Slavery International petition, go to www.antislavery.org/2007/actionsign and fill in your details. To comment on The Royal Gazette Break The Chains campaign, call 278-0153 or email tsmith[AT]royalgazette.bm.