Iqbal masih was born in 1983 in muridke a commercial city outside of lahore in punjab pakistan into a poor christian family.
Carpet child labor.
At age four he was put to work by his family to pay off their debts.
Today child labor is present in many industries from the carpet sector in afghanistan to the cocoa plantations in the ivory coast.
Iqbal s family borrowed 600 rupees less than us 12 00 from a local employer who owned a carpet weaving business.
This was a study of the prevalence of working children and child labor in the production process of the export oriented handmade carpet industry in pakistan in 2009 2010.
The use of child labor in several countries where hand woven rugs and carpets are produced has been well documented.
The study included wool processing activities supplying the yarn as well as carpet production and finishing.
The history of child labor can be traced back to the industrial revolution when very young children were forced to work in coal mines factories sweatshops and even as domestic servants.
This study adhered to international standards by considering all persons younger than 18 years of age to be children.
The use of this type of forced child labor in pakistan happens in the brick carpet and coal industries.
Carpet manufacturers and the carpet export industry in pakistan as well as carpet importers and retailers in the usa and other western countries have announced that child labor no longer exists in the carpet weaving industry.
In return iqbal was required to work as a carpet weaver until the debt.
International definition according to the ilo s worst forms of child labor convention child labor is the enslavement i e sale trafficking debt bondage serfdom compulsory labor of anyone under the age.
But those of us who are fortunate enough to have been born and raised in a free western country such as america where child labor laws are in place and rigidly enforced may be totally unaware of the early age and the extent to which children in these countries are working at.
Child labour in the industry the study also aims at mapping out supply chain linkages between indian carpet producers who use child labour and us importers who import carpets from these producers.
Even today as per unicef a whopping 150 million children all over the globe are engaged in labor.
They have attacked unicef the society and other charities as do gooders the phrase used by the.
