Golam*
Golam is 13 years old and comes from a large family. When he was 12, a man in the village paid his father to send him to India for work. The man accompanied Golam to a small house in a village where he was forced to make local cigarettes (beedis). The house was full of children from Bangladesh and India, all about the 12 years old or younger. They had to make 2,000 beedi each per day. If they did not meet their quota, they were beaten and denied food. He tried to run away, but was caught twice. On his third attempt he was successful.

He has been living in ACD's shelter home for nine months and is enrolled in school.

 

Roushan*
Roushan is 14 years old. She was sent to live with her grandmother when her father died and mother remarried. When she was 12 some men from the village promised her grandmother they could get Roushan a good job in the city. They pestered her until she agreed.

First Roushan was taken to the border and sold to a woman for 500 taka (£6) to work as a domestic. Then, after several days, the woman took her to India to work in a bangle factory. She was beaten because she did not know how to make bangles. After several months, she managed to escape and return to her village.

The police found her and took her to ACD where she has been living and attending school for the past two years. Her grandmother and uncle do not know what happened to her and are angry she did not stay in her job in the city.

Neither Golam nor Roushan were paid for their work.

 

*To protect their identities the names have been changed.