1 of 17

Write now Article Tools

Page 2 of 3

and bring them back to live at the home with their sister. He paid the price of their debt: Twenty-five U.S. dollars.

Neela's young brother and sister were freed from their life of bondage, but for most such children freedom never comes.

One out of four children reported missing in India are never found. The strong link between missing persons and slavery indicates an immediate need to find and rescue children who have been reported missing. People trafficking is the fastest growing illegal trade in the world, second only to arms. With an estimated revenue of forty-two billion dollars it is so lucrative that many drug dealers are changing their cargo to human beings.

India represents forty percent of the world's human trafficking. In 2007 the South Asia Centre for Missing and Exploited Persons was formed precisely for this reason. "Tracing missing children and women across South Asia before they are exploited is emerging as a key focus area in the efforts to prevent human slavery," wrote Ashley Varghese, Legal Counsel for the organization, in a letter to me.

Pratham, a nonprofit organization that aims to give every child an education by taking schools into the slums and workplaces, has been at the forefront of the fight against child labor. In an interview with me, Farida Lambay of Pratham acknowledged that sometimes children have little choice but to work due to economic reasons; in those cases, when employment is stopped, then rehabilitation and a safety net must be provided to ensure that families and children have the ability to sustain themselves.

But she contended that the financial necessity of child labor as a whole is vastly overstated. "When these children work, the economic situation of most families does not improve at all. We must look at why children are really working." She outlined the major factors Pratham identified as perpetuating child labor: Lack of opportunity, lack of education, lack of role models and lack of family or other parental support.

"The unemployment in this country is high," Ms. Lambay continued. "So why are we employing children? Why aren't their parents in these jobs instead?" She paused, and then answered her own question. "Because the children, they can be hired and exploited much more cheaply. In India we must come to a place where child labor is not acceptable."

The 2006 Human Rights Watch investigation in India concluded that caste-based discrimination is at the heart of bonded labor and is hugely intertwined with child exploitation.

• << previous page
• 1
• 2
• 3
• next page >>

Add your voice

Know something about Slavery past and present?
We want to hear your view. Write now!