Debt bondage is when a person pledges him or herself against a loan. In debt bondage, the services required to repay the debt may be undefined, and the services' duration may be undefined. Debt bondage can be passed on from generation to generation.
In modern times, debt bondage is most prevalent in
South AsiaSouth Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities , also includes the adjoining countries to the west and the east...
.
Legal definition
Debt bondage is classically defined as a situation when a person provides a loan to another and uses his or her labor or services to repay the debt; when the value of the work, as reasonably assessed, is not applied towards the liquidation of the debt, the situation becomes one of debt bondage. See
United Nations 1956 Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of SlaveryThe full title of this treaty is: The United Nations 1956 Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery, the Slave Trade, and Institutions and Practices Similar to Slavery. A 1926 Slavery Convention proposed to secure the abolition of slavery and of the slave trade...
. This was very common in Ancient Greece. In ancient Athens,
SolonSolon was an Athenian statesman, lawmaker, and poet. He is remembered particularly for his efforts to legislate against political, economic and moral decline in archaic Athens...
forbade taking out loans using oneself as a security and ended any current such debts, ending debt bondage.
Historical background to bonded labor
Prior to the early modern age, feudal and
serfdomSerfdom is the status of peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to Manorialism. It was a condition of bondage or modified slavery which developed primarily during the High Middle Ages in Europe and lasted to the mid-19th century...
systems were the predominant political and economic systems in
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
Historical peonage
Peonage systems have existed in many places at many times throughout history.
Historical examples
- American colonies - Persons bonded themselves to an owner who paid their passage to the New World. They worked until the debt of passage was paid off, often for years.
- In Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
a peonage system existed from the 16th century until land reform[Image:Jakarta farmers protest23.jpg|300px|thumb|right|Farmers protesting for Land Reform in Indonesia]Land reform involves the changing of laws, regulations or customs regarding land ownership. Land reform may consist of a government-initiated or government-backed property redistribution,...
in the 1950s. One estate in Peru that existed from the late 16th century until it ended had up to 1,700 peons employed and had a jail. Peons were expected to work a minimum of three days a week for their landlord and more if necessary to complete assigned work. Workers were paid a symbolic 2 cents per year. Workers were unable to travel outside of their assigned lands without permission and were not allowed to organize any independent community activity. In the Peruvian Amazon, debt peonage is an important aspect of contemporary UrarinaThe Urarina are an indigenous people of the Peruvian Amazon Basin who inhabit the Chambira, Urituyacu, and Corrientes Rivers. According to both archaeological and historical sources, they have resided in the Chambira Basin of contemporary northeastern Peru for centuries. The Urarina refer to...
society.
The rise of Dalit politicians in India, with overwhelming support by non-Dalits, as well as a government commitment to overall improvement of education, communication and living standards has resulted in the rapid decline of bonded labor there.
Modern views
According to the Anti-Slavery Society:
Pawnage or pawn slavery is a form of servitude akin to bonded labor under which the debtor provides another human being as security or collateral for the debt. Until the debt (including interest on it) is paid off, the creditor has the use of the labor of the pawn.
Debt bondage has been defined by the United Nations as a form of "modern day slavery" and is prohibited by
international lawPublic international law concerns the structure and conduct of sovereign states; analogous entities, such as the Holy See; and intergovernmental organizations. To a lesser degree, international law also may affect multinational corporations and individuals, an impact increasingly evolving beyond...
. It is specifically dealt with by article 1(a) of the United Nations 1956 Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery. It persists nonetheless especially in developing nations, which have few mechanisms for credit security or
bankruptcyBankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
, and where fewer people hold formal title to land or possessions. According to some economists, for example
Hernando de SotoHernando de Soto is a Peruvian economist known for his work on the informal economy and on the importance of business and property rights. He is the president of the Institute for Liberty and Democracy , located in Lima, Peru.-Childhood and education:Hernando de Soto was born in 1941 in Arequipa,...
, this is a major barrier to development in those countries - entrepreneurs do not dare take risks and cannot get credit because they hold no
collateralIn lending agreements, collateral is a borrower's pledge of specific property to a lender, to secure repayment of a loan.The collateral serves as protection for a lender against a borrower's default - that is, any borrower failing to pay the principal and interest under the terms of a loan obligation...
and may burden families for generations to come.
Researcher
Siddharth KaraSiddharth Kara is an author and one of the world's foremost experts on modern day slavery and human trafficking. He is the first Fellow on Human Trafficking with the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University...
has calculated the number of slaves in the world by type, and determined the number of debt bondage slaves to be 18.1 million at the end of 2006.
See also
- Debtor's prison
A debtors' prison is a prison for those who are unable to pay a debt.Prior to the mid 19th century debtors' prisons were a common way to deal with unpaid debt.-Debt bondage in ancient Greece and Rome:...
- Human trafficking
Human trafficking is the illegal trade of human beings for the purposes of reproductive slavery, commercial sexual exploitation, forced labor, or a modern-day form of slavery...
- Involuntary servitude
Involuntary servitude is a United States legal and constitutional term for a person laboring against that person's will to benefit another, under some form of coercion other than the worker's financial needs...
- Restavek, Haiti
- Peon
The words peon and peonage are derived from the Spanish peón . It has a range of meanings but its primary usage is to describe laborers with little control over their employment conditions.-English usage:...
- Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention
The Convention concerning the Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour, known in short as the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, was adopted by the International Labour Organization in 1999 as ILO Convention No 182. It is one of 8 ILO fundamental...
- Modern day slavery
The number of slaves today remains as high as 12 million to 27 million, though this is probably the smallest proportion of the world's population in the history of civilization, as slavery was unknown prior in paleolithic times. Most are debt slaves, largely in South Asia, who are under debt...
- Forced labor
- Child labour
- Trafficking of children
Trafficking of children is a form of human trafficking. It is defined as the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring, or receiving of children for the purpose of exploitation....
- Forced prostitution
Forced prostitution, also known as involuntary prostitution, is the act of performing sexual activity in exchange for money on a non-voluntary basis. There are a wide range of entry routes into prostitution, ranging from "voluntary and deliberate" entry, "semi-voluntary" based on pressure of...
South Asia:
- Bonded Labour Liberation Front, India
- The State of Bonded Labor in Pakistan
The State of Bonded Labor in Pakistan, by Shujaat Ali Rahi, is a treatise that reflects the status of bonded labor in Pakistan, a country with an estimated population of 1.7 million in bonded labor. The book has been published by National Coalition Against Bonded Labor , with the support of TRoCAIRE...
External links
International legal instruments