Untouchables of Asia - Child labour

Jakob Carlsen

Freelance

Jassi is 12 years old and a child labourer caught in debt bondage. She belongs to the Meghwar caste of the Dalit minority in Pakistan. Her father has borrowed money from the carpet factory owner. She earns a little over 11 euros working 40 days to make one carpet. If she is sick she gets no pay. Over time, she might lose her eyesight as many child carpets labourers do. She is not going to school. Her instructor, Loono, 27, tells her how the patterns of the carpet should look. Loono owes the carpet factory owner close to 400 euros. He earns 35 euros per 40 days with which he repays his loan.

Jakob Carlsen, "Untouchables of Asia - Child labour," in POYi Archive, Item #43158, http://archive.poy.org/items/show/43158 (accessed May 3, 2024).