Iqbal's Story

Iqbal was born in 1983 in the small town of Muridke, Pakistan. When he was just four years old his parents borrowed 600 rupees from the owner of a carpet factory to pay for the wedding of their eldest son. To repay the debt, which was the equivalent of only sixteen Canadian dollars, Iqbal was forced to work for the carpet factory. Chained to a loom Iqbal worked 12 hours a day, six days a week and was only granted a 30 minute break. As was the case for many children in Pakistan, the interest on his parent’s loan made it nearly impossible to pay off. When Iqbal reached the age of 10 his family’s debt had grown to 1300 rupees. He realized that his parents would never be able to pay off the debt with the rising interest rates. Iqbal escaped his bondage but due to the corruption of authorities in Pakistan, a bribe by the factory owner to the police soon brought Iqbal back to the factory where he was once again chained to a loom. Iqbal escaped again a short time after and joined the Bonded Labour Liberation Front where he became one of the most renowned speakers on child labour across the globe. Iqbal spoke holding a carpet tool in one hand and a pencil in the other. He told of his bondage and the power that education held. On Easter Sunday, April 16, 1995 Iqbal went to visit his uncle who he had not seen in some time. Along the path leading to the fields that his uncle was working in he was shot dead. His assassins thought that the voice of child labour had been terminated but in the words of a young child slave named Shenaz, “The day Iqbal died, a thousand new Iqbals were born.”