[Image above: Land owner applying fertilizer to the garden.] In January 2015, 101 individuals from 38 families in a small village in northern India were freed from bonded labor after four generations of exploitation. Although freedom marked the beginning of a new
When confirmed reports reached our Justice Hub partners in Nepal, the warning signs were unmistakable: African women lured to Kathmandu on tourist visas with false promises of legitimate work, allegedly coerced into prostitution, and some trafficked onward to countries including China, Singapore,
[Image: Example of a trench where bonded laborers are forced to work and the structure where they live.] Suhani* is a 16-year-old girl from a scheduled caste family in the western region of Bihar. At the time of this story, her family
When two brothers were found working long days in a motorcycle garage, a timely intervention changed the course of their lives and their family’s future. Kanu* and Manu* are brothers from a rural community in eastern India. Their father lost his job as a daily wage laborer
Nandkishore Rishi Dev* spent most of his life trapped in the cycle of bonded labour. Being in a poor household with no land or stable livelihood led to accepting advance payments from local contractors and employers; these advances forced him to labor long hours under
Freedom Begins: Reclaiming the Right to Choose When Hareram* was freed from bonded labor in May 2023, freedom meant more than leaving exploitation behind. For Hareram and others in the lowest caste Musahar community of northern India, it marked the beginning of
Seeking to escape a difficult childhood, Rosie* married at an early age to an abusive man who treated her cruelly. Unable to bear the mistreatment, Rosie left home and was sitting at a nearby railway station, hoping for a way out, when a woman approached her with the promise of a new job. However, the
https://youtu.be/L08J7sFf940 How Local Leaders and Survivors Are Rewriting the Story of Exploitation When Pari* walked into a small bar in Kathmandu, she believed she was taking the first step toward a better future. Instead, she found herself trapped—watched, silenced, and cut off from
In 2022, 14 families (totaling 41 people) migrated from their home communities to work at a brick kiln in another region of northern India. Each couple received an advance of about $57 and agreed to work at a rate of $8 paid for
For years, Ranjan Manjhi and eleven families from the Musahar community of scheduled caste members lived under the crushing weight of bonded labor. They had been taken on a long and grueling journey in October 2022 to a brick kiln under the
