A/HRC/12/21
page 14
forced labour typology unlawful practices of debt bondage, under which labourers and their
families are forced to work for an employer in order to pay off their actually incurred or inherited
debts, noting that these practices still affect a significant number of people.18
59. In Asia, the kamaiya and haliya systems are examples of bonded labour in the agriculture
sector. Under the kamaiya system of bonded agricultural labour a kamaiya (worker) is bonded to
a sole landlord over a long period of time by an advance which usually ranges from the
equivalent of US$ 1 to $10. The haliya system is a similar system but with a short-term contract.
The labourer will receive food and a piece of land for his own cultivation. If a kamaiya or haliya
fails to turn up for a day’s work, even in the event of serious illness, he loses two days’ wages or
has to send a substitute.19
60. On the basis of the information received through the questionnaire sent to Member States,
the Special Rapporteur is of the view that in most countries bonded labour falls into the category
of trafficking in persons and that it is indeed difficult to secure exact data specifically on forced
labour or bonded labour. In these instances, domestic servitude, sexual slavery and industrial
labour, particularly in the construction sector, have been identified as the most common forms of
bonded labour.
61. Based on these findings, and keeping in mind that the Special Rapporteur has been
requested by the Council in its resolution 6/14 to “focus on aspects of contemporary forms of
slavery which are not covered by existing mandates of the Human Rights Council”, the Special
Rapporteur will, in the next part of this report, look at the link between forced labour, bonded
labour and trafficking.
C. Forced labour, bonded labour and trafficking
62. Trafficking in persons is the acquisition of people by improper means such as force, fraud
or deception, with the aim of exploiting them.20
63. There are many ways in which a person can be coerced into undertaking work against
his/her free will. The victims are lured, given false promises and transported to their new
workplace by the trafficker and must, on arrival, repay the travel and organizational costs
incurred. This is used as a tool, for example, to push women into prostitution.
64. Forced labour is closely linked to human trafficking, but is not identical to it. The ILO
estimates of forced labour include people who are coerced to work both across borders and in
18
The cost of coercion: Global Report under the follow-up to the ILO Declaration on
Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work, report of the Director-General to the International
Labour Conference, 98th session, Report I (B), 2009, p. 8.
19
20
Ibid.
Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and
Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention on Transnational Organized Crime,
art. 3 (a).
Select target paragraph3
Connect to a paragraph
Connect to an entity
Disable highlights
Add to table of contents