Christians in Pakistan are in an inferior position. They feel vulnerable and insecure. Not only because they are a minority in a Muslim country, but also because their level of education is mostly low. Thereby, fear is often a big part of their lives. In Pakistan, an estimated 80 per cent of street and sewer cleaners are Christian; they are seen as second-class citizens. Discrimination occurs in many areas; they are often (unjustly!) prosecuted for blasphemy. Poverty and slavery are rife among Christians.
About 1.5 million Christians work as slaves in brick kilns in Pakistan. The conditions these debt slaves live in are downright appalling. Husband and wife work long hours and do hard labour to get out of debt. In the process, the children work mostly from a young age, and then cannot go to school. They are together in a kind of self-perpetuating debt system. Children inherit the parents' debt, for example. Unfreedom as a way of life is innate to them. Entrepreneurs exploit the situation and are unmercifully cruel in exploiting this population.
A number of churches in eastern Pakistan do not accept this situation and have joined hands to free Pakistani Christians from this modern slavery. They are also promoting their socio-economic development and offering the opportunity to live a decent Christian life.
Why this project?
Diaconate CGK has been helping churches in Pakistan fight poverty and promote healthy social development (through micro-credits, for example) for several years. Yet it is more about mercy, giving to one's neighbour in need. Because there is so much injustice, we would also like to promote justice, breaking chains of slavery and oppression, helping to end human degradation. With this project, we hope to promote education alongside freedom and justice: giving those being helped access to education and skills so they can become self-sufficient. This also includes creating awareness: informing society and policymakers about their situation and advocating for their rights and also sending a signal to the government: there is hardly any legislation or protection to help these workers. Finally, safety and protection, especially preventing women and girls from becoming victims of forced conversion and abuse.
Impact
Through this programme, we hope to free 20 - 25 families annually from slavery, pay off their debts (negotiate with factory bosses and reach an agreement where 70-80% of the debt is repaid), arrange education for children and support housing and employment search.
What can we learn?
Slavery is a tough problem. In the Western world, slavery was abolished centuries ago, but in other countries it is still alive and well and is a major problem. We want to put our money where our mouth is and support local churches in Pakistan in this important work.
