Modern slavery risks in Iran: Economic desperation and brutal repression compounding risks
Iranians have taken to the streets repeatedly over the past 17 years to protest their authoritarian government. The demonstrations now unfolding appear to be among the largest yet. Protests that began in Tehran’s Grand Bazaar, sparked by economic collapse, have spread to universities and cities nationwide.
As in previous crackdowns, security forces have responded with riot police, tear gas, mass arrests, and live ammunition. According to the Human Rights Activists News Agency, at least 4,500 people have been killed and more than 26,000 arrested. However, the true figures are most certainly higher. One Iranian human rights monitor explains:
It is difficult to determine the real toll because the government has deliberately severed communications to hide what is happening.
Economic desperation, combined with brutal crackdowns, internet blackouts, and restrictions on journalists, is not incidental. They are part of a strategy to obscure the scale of repression—and the broader human rights abuses and conditions for modern slavery to flourish.
Economic collapse and exploitation
The latest Global Slavery Index estimates that 597,000 people in Iran are living in modern slavery. This translates to over 7 in every 1,000 people, trapped in forced labor or forced marriage.
These figures follow years of international sanctions, economic mismanagement, and entrenched corruption. Even before protests erupted, millions of Iranians were struggling to meet their basic needs. Protesters have pointed to rising prices for bread, fruit, and other essentials, alongside shrinking job opportunities and unpaid wages.
As Walk Free warns in its reporting, “risks of abuse can increase where legal protections are weak, and livelihood options are limited.” In Iran, both conditions are entrenched.
Workers facing unemployment or unpaid wages are more likely to accept dangerous or coercive work. Families under acute financial pressure may see forced or early marriage as a survival strategy. Children are pushed out of school and into exploitative labour.