Three families free after 15 years of exploitation in South Asia
Trafficking
December 2024
Local authorities in South Asia recently brought three families, including a baby and a 10-year-old girl, to safety from an abusive rice mill.
The survivors have finally returned to their hometown after 15 years of exploitation. The two children had been born into this horrendous situation.
The rice mill owner had trapped the families by lending them advance payments, taking advantage of their need to pay for their children’s medical expenses.
The mill owner forced the families to work for over 16 hours every day—including one labourer who had a physical disability. Their daily tasks exposed them to intense heat and thick dust. They were physically exhausted but only had two short breaks a day to eat a small meal.
One survivor shared, “The owner beat us using a stick, saying that we were not working.”
When a 13-year-old boy was tragically killed in a bike accident, his family were not even allowed to return home to bury him properly. The devastated family had to bury their son near the rice mill, without a formal funeral or any time off to mourn.
Desperate to escape, several people managed to make it back to their hometown. The owner tracked them down and took them back—but not before their relatives realised that something was terribly wrong.
Their relatives reported the case to a local survivor network, who then requested action from a senior government official.
At the end of November, authorities travelled to the worksite alongside IJM, the survivor network, and a local NGO to investigate the case. The families were brought to safety and their false debts were cancelled.
The senior government official shared, “I witnessed the terrible conditions that the victims endured within the facility. It was a stark realization of the exploitation that is happening right under my division, and it deeply affected me.
“I felt compelled to act and, as a result, I made the decision to seal the rice mill to prevent further exploitation.
“This experience has reinforced my belief that we must continue to fight against such injustices. It is crucial that we work collectively to ensure that exploitation does not occur in the future.”
Encouragingly, the official shut down the rice mill, despite the owner being related to a local police officer.
The government has yet to start legal action against the owner, but IJM and another NGO will support officials to ensure he faces consequences. We will also connect the survivors with government welfare programmes to support their ongoing recovery.