Linked with our presentation of South Asian Coalition on Child Servitude (SACCS).
Also linked with our presentation of 6th World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates.
Kailash Satyarthi has saved tens of thousands of lives. At the age of 26 he gave up a promising career as an electrical engineer and dedicated his life to helping the millions of children in India who are forced into slavery by powerful and corrupt business- and land-owners. His original idea was daring and dangerous. He decided to mount raids on factories — factories frequently manned by armed guards — where children and often entire families were held captive as bonded workers. (Red more on this page).
Kailash Satyarthi – India
He says: « If not now, then when? If not you, then who? If we are able to answer these fundamental questions, then perhaps we can wipe away the blot of human slavery. »
He says also in a long Interview given to Speak Truth to Power: « These children have been in bondage ever since the time they can remember. Liberty for them is an unfamiliar word. They don’t know what it is like to be ‘free’. For us, the fore-most challenge is to return to them their lost childhood« .
The New Heroes tells the 12 dramatic stories of daring people from all corners of the globe who, against all odds, are successfully alleviating poverty and illness, combating unemployment and violence, and bringing education, light, opportunity and freedom to poor and marginalized people around the world.
Also known as « social entrepreneurs, » he and his organisations develop innovations that bring life-changing tools and resources to people desperate for viable solutions. Identifying and solving large-scale social problems requires a committed person with a vision and determination to persist in the face of daunting odds. Ultimately, social entrepreneurs are driven to produce measurable impact by opening up new pathways for the marginalized and disadvantaged, and unlocking society’s full potential to effect social change. (Read more on Global March against Child Labor).
Bio: Kailash Satyarthi is India’s lodestar for the abolition of child labor. Over the last decade he has emancipated over 40,000 people, including 28,000 children from bonded labor, a form of slavery where a desperate family typically borrows needed funds from a lender (sums as little as $35) and is forced to hand over a child as surety until the funds can be repaid. But often the money can never be repaid—and the child is sold and resold to different masters. Bonded laborers work in the diamond, stonecutting, manufacturing, and other industries. They are especially prevalent in the carpet export business, where they hand-knot rugs for the U.S. and other markets. (Read this long Interview with him, by Kerry Kennedy, on Speak Truth to Power).
Another good Biographical Note you’ll find on asha Princeton.
links:
Speach of Kailash Satyarthi on http://saccsweb.org.in/news/noblepeaceprize.php3.;
Bal Mitra Gram (Child Friendly Village);
Brutal Attack on Aachen Peace Awardee Kailash Satyrthi;
IUL in german;