A Canada-wide, toll-free hotline is now available to help victims and survivors of human trafficking.
The 24/7 phone line is an initiative of the Canadian Centre to End Human Trafficking and will provide services for victims seeking help, as well as tipsters.
Police say 43 victims rescued from 'modern day slavery' in Barrie
According to Statistics Canada, there were 1,220 incidents of human trafficking reported by police between 2009 and 2016. The agency says these incidents have been steadily increasing since 2010. StatsCan reports that 95 percent of victims are young women, most under the age of 25. It further found that Ontario has the highest number of reported human trafficking violations in the country. Between 2005 and 2018, the RCMP laid charges in 531 cases. The Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services says the number of incidents is likely much higher since most go unreported.
The federal government has funded the new hotline with a pledge of $14.5 million over five years in the 2019 budget.
The toll-free hotline is available any time day or night in more than 200 languages at 1-833-900-1010.
