“I couldn’t even afford one meal a day,” says Nadeem, a Christian brick kiln worker in Pakistan.
Brick kiln workers are generally low paid, and Christians often among the most impoverished of people in Pakistan. But Nadeem’s situation was worse still.
A large chunk of the already low wages of Nadeem and his wife Yasmin was being kept back by his employer as a loan repayment.
The couple had no choice but to enter into this agreement. Nadeem’s eldest daughter Muqadas is diabetic, and it was the only way he could afford her treatment. Doctors had warned of the risk of organ failure.
With nearly half of his wages being kept back, Nadeem could no longer afford even one full meal a day
Nadeem had done the only thing he could to help his daughter. But as a result he had lost nearly half of his wages.
“Slavery and forced labour”
This is the reality for thousands of low-paid Christian brick kiln workers in Pakistan.
When faced with an emergency or illness, their only option is to take a loan from the brick kiln owner. These debts then keep them bonded to the brick kiln.
Until the debt is repaid, they become trapped and are unable to seek out another job. They cannot pay off their debt, as money is deducted from their wages to pay the interest. It becomes impossible for them to pay off the loan in full.
Their debt – and therefore even they themselves – can even be sold to another brick kiln owner.
No wonder Nadeem describes his situation as “slavery and forced labour”.
The impact on children
The impact of brick kiln debt goes beyond just the financial. So pressing was the need of Nadeem to make bricks for his employer that not only his wife but also his children had to join him in the dirty and difficult work.
“I had to ask my kids to drop out of school and help me out,” he says sadly.
Nadeem’s wife Yasmin and their children had to work in the brick kiln just to be able to have enough food to eat
The result of situations like this is that Christian children are robbed of the opportunity to gain the knowledge, skills and formal qualifications that they need to improve their own prospects. Many work in the brick kilns for the rest of their lives.
Brick kiln owners apply unmanageable levels of interest to their employees’ debt, and as a result the debt may never be paid off in full. The debt is then passed on to the worker’s children, and sometimes even their grandchildren.
In these ways indebtedness and bonded labour passes down the generations like a curse. The poor are punished for their poverty – and the punishment is even deeper poverty.
More work to do
Praise God that Nadeem, Yasmin and their children are among 100 families that have been freed from bonded labour in the 23rd phase of Barnabas Aid’s loan repayment project.
“I give thanks to God,” says Nadeem. He now receives his full salary without any deductions, allowing him to afford the basic necessities of life.
His children, he tells us gladly, have now returned to school to continue their education.
But there is more work to do. Thousands more are trapped in the relentless misery of bonded labour in Pakistan’s brick kilns.
Many Christian families remain trapped. Can you help us to set them free?
It is only because of the generosity of our supporters and, as Nadeem puts it, “the grace of God” that Barnabas has been able to set anybody free.
We are now preparing for the next phase of our mission to set free our brothers and sisters.
Will you pray for the success of our work and that the Lord, who saves with “a mighty hand and outstretched arm” (Psalm 136:12), will set more of his people free?
Could you consider donating to this work? Debts range from £300 ($360; €330) to £1,000 ($1,200; €1,100), and gifts of any amount will be received gratefully.
How you can help
Below are some suggested donation amounts, but gifts of any amount can help and will be gratefully received.
£30 ($36; €33) could pay off one tenth of a smaller debt owed by a Christian brick kiln worker
£100 ($120; €110) could pay off one tenth of a larger debt owed by a Christian brick kiln worker
