Muthu pays his employees fair wages and has been able to put 20,000 rupees ($500 USD) into savings. "I am a free man now. If
i am not well, i can stop work and take rest. I am my own boss," he says. |
By the time Muthu* was 18 years old, he had already been
working in a brick kiln for 10 years. Seven days a week he
carried 40-pound loads of bricks on his head. One day he
was offered a new position at a different brick kiln. He
received a loan of about $150 USD to help him build a
better life as an incentive to take the job. At the new kiln, workers were not allowed to take days off. Muthu recalls,
"They forced us to work even when we were sick. ... They
used to beat us up if we did not work." On rainy days, they
were forced to work through the night to make up the lost
time. Laborers were not allowed to leave the facility and
were beaten if they did not reach the strict quota of bricks
each day
Muthu was promised a reasonable salary for his hard
work, but he only received cents a day. When he asked
about the deductions from his salary, the owner told
him they had been applied toward his loan. Despite
these deductions, Muthu's debt swelled to over three
times the amount he had originally borrowed. "This is
how they forced me to work," Muthu recounts. "I was
not even sure if the debt was real."
Muthu did not realize he was being held as a slave. In
violation of national law, he was held in bondage for
more than five years. While working in the kiln, Muthu
fell in love and married a woman who was also enslaved.
Therefore, their oldest son was born into slavery.
IJM investigators and government officials raided the brick
kiln, freeing all the slaves. Muthu, his wife and his young
son received official government release certificates. With
the money Muthu received from government assistance,
he opened his own brick kiln and now employs much of
his community, paying them fair wages. Muthu has three
children and is now able to devote his time to raising
them. He is thankful that his children will no longer be
enslaved. For Muthu, freedom is finally a reality. "I can
make my own choices and decisions," he says. "I have
freedom. I have peace of mind." |
Muthu washes his son's hands. Freedom gives him more time to spend with his children. |
Sandana and Geetika can now enjoy their childhood. photo | courtesy of IJM |
| Slavery-like practices may be clandestine. This makes it difficult to have a clear picture
of the scale of contemporary slavery, let alone to uncover, punish or eliminate it. The
problem is compounded by the fact that the victims of slavery-like abuses are generally
from the poorest and most vulnerable social groups. Fear and the need to survive do not
encourage them to speak out.
-United Nations Fact Sheet |
Sisters Sandana* and Geetika* were enslaved with the rest
of their family in a rice mill where they carried heavy bags
of rice and performed other grueling tasks in stifling heat.
The mill owner beat and abused the workers; once, he
doused a slave's arms with kerosene and set them on fire.
Although the girls' mother was able to escape, her
husband and two young daughters were still trapped in
the mill. She told IJM investigators who contacted Indian
government officials, and together they planned to raid
the mill.
The mill owner became aware that people were coming
to free his slaves, so he hid Sandana, Geetika, their father
and several other slaves in a nearby home where they were
beaten and threatened. He forced them to swear that if
government officials found them, they would say that they
were treated well and paid fairly.
When the government officials arrived at the mill, they
found the hidden slaves and brought them to the police
station. There, they were asked to make statements
about their working conditions so that the government
could file charges against the mill owner. However, none
were willing to speak up, fearing retribution from their
former owner. Then, Sandana and Geetika, just school-age
children, stepped forward. They told the police how the
owner had enslaved them and beat their father. Seeing his
daughters' bravery, Sandana and Geetika's father told the
police about the horrible conditions at the rice mill.
The girls have been reunited with their mother and the
whole family is now free. Asked how she felt when she
lived inside the mill, Sandana answered, "Inside the mill
I used to live with fear that the owner would come and
hit me, so that's why we did not play. But now we can
play, go outside and see friends." |
"I want to become a police officer so that i can catch all the criminals, and at the same time, i can help and protect the good
people of our village," says Kumar. |
| $35 USD is the average amount "loaned" in exchange for a child's labor. To India's vast
numbers of extremely poor this money can be, literally, a life-saver. With scant alternative
sources . the poor are forced to turn to the local moneylender, who extracts the only
collateral available: the promise of their labor or the labor of their children.
-Human Rights Watch |
"One day I was not feeling well, so I did not go to work. I was
taking rest in my home. At that time, my owner and Babu,
who is the brother-in-law of my owner, ... came to my house
and asked me why I did not turn up for work. I said I was not
feeling well. Then, Babu kicked my head, and both of them
dragged me to the factory."
Kumar* was also freed from slavery through IJM
intervention. "I used to work hard in my young days,"
he says. "Now, I am going to school and studying and
enhancing my talent and efficiency. I want to study well
and get a good job and earn a good salary." |
A mother freed from slavery in a factory enjoys time with her daughter. She and her family now live in a small community
with several other families freed from slavery. |
IJM's work in countries like India has given the poor
and oppressed a chance to realize the rights and
freedoms granted by their country's laws.
Since 2003, IJM has secured freedom for more than 2,000
adults and children held in forced labor facilities. IJM's
aftercare programs are creating new opportunities for
those rescued from a life of slavery.
Millions wait to be freed. |
International Justice Mission
PO box 58147
Washington DC 20037
USA
703.465.5495
contact@ijm.org
www.ijm.org |
>> click for a pdf version of this story (1343kb)
back | next story |
|
ONE
WORK
GENEROSITY
HOME
FUTURE
HEALTH
COOPERATION
KIDS
DIALOGUE
CONTRIBUTORS
ORGANIZATIONS
|
