COM1512 Assignment 1
Semester 2 Memo
(COMPLETE ANSWERS)
Due 20 August 2025
For assistance contact
Email:
, Answers
Question 1.1 – Slavery (7 marks)
Definition:
Slavery is the condition where individuals are deprived of their freedom and forced to work
under the control of others, usually without fair compensation, and with severe restrictions on
their rights and autonomy.
Historical slavery:
• Legally sanctioned and institutionalised (e.g., the transatlantic slave trade).
• People were considered property and could be bought or sold.
• Example: Enslaved Africans forced to work on plantations in the Americas during the
17th–19th centuries.
Modern-day slavery:
• Illegal worldwide but persists covertly.
• Involves forced labour, debt bondage, child labour, sexual exploitation, or forced
marriage.
• Example: Human trafficking in South Africa’s sex industry or migrant workers
exploited in Middle Eastern construction sectors.
Key difference: Historical slavery was legal and open, while modern slavery is illegal but
hidden, often enforced through coercion, threats, and manipulation.
Question 1.2 – Colonialism & Digital Colonialism (8 marks)
Colonialism (definition):
Colonialism is the practice where one nation exerts political, economic, and cultural
domination over another territory, often exploiting resources and suppressing local
populations.
Example: British colonisation of South Africa, which involved resource extraction, land
dispossession, and the imposition of foreign governance structures.
Digital Colonialism (definition):
Digital colonialism refers to a form of domination in the digital age, where powerful
multinational tech companies control data, platforms, and digital infrastructure of less
developed nations, thereby influencing economic and social systems.
Example: African users relying on U.S.-based platforms such as Facebook and Google,
which harvest personal data and generate profit with minimal reinvestment into local
Semester 2 Memo
(COMPLETE ANSWERS)
Due 20 August 2025
For assistance contact
Email:
, Answers
Question 1.1 – Slavery (7 marks)
Definition:
Slavery is the condition where individuals are deprived of their freedom and forced to work
under the control of others, usually without fair compensation, and with severe restrictions on
their rights and autonomy.
Historical slavery:
• Legally sanctioned and institutionalised (e.g., the transatlantic slave trade).
• People were considered property and could be bought or sold.
• Example: Enslaved Africans forced to work on plantations in the Americas during the
17th–19th centuries.
Modern-day slavery:
• Illegal worldwide but persists covertly.
• Involves forced labour, debt bondage, child labour, sexual exploitation, or forced
marriage.
• Example: Human trafficking in South Africa’s sex industry or migrant workers
exploited in Middle Eastern construction sectors.
Key difference: Historical slavery was legal and open, while modern slavery is illegal but
hidden, often enforced through coercion, threats, and manipulation.
Question 1.2 – Colonialism & Digital Colonialism (8 marks)
Colonialism (definition):
Colonialism is the practice where one nation exerts political, economic, and cultural
domination over another territory, often exploiting resources and suppressing local
populations.
Example: British colonisation of South Africa, which involved resource extraction, land
dispossession, and the imposition of foreign governance structures.
Digital Colonialism (definition):
Digital colonialism refers to a form of domination in the digital age, where powerful
multinational tech companies control data, platforms, and digital infrastructure of less
developed nations, thereby influencing economic and social systems.
Example: African users relying on U.S.-based platforms such as Facebook and Google,
which harvest personal data and generate profit with minimal reinvestment into local
