Silk slaves: India’s bonded laborers are forced to work to pay off debts
CNNKarnataka, India CNN — The state of Karnataka, located in southwest India, is known for its silk. The process can be lengthy – sometimes taking years – and can require bonded laborers to come forward to authorities in the face of social pressures and intimidation. “It is very difficult to convince the bonded laborers, because they feel that they are beholden to the masters or to the landlords who have helped them in the hour of their need,” said Kiran Kamal Prasad, founder of Jeevika, an organization working to eradicate bonded labor. Sugam Pokharel/CNN Authority figures often come from the same communities as the keepers of bonded laborers, or are the same dominant caste as the landlords, Prasad explained. Jeevika has helped secure the freedom of nearly 7,000 bond laborers in India in the past six years, and last year it added Hadia and Naseeba to that total.
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