The world changes constantly. On any given day, people make history and in some cases even change the future. The human race occasionally absorbs themselves in the now and totally disregards the past which has shaped this town, state, country and world. A dig into the past reveals suppressed history that has often been forgotten or overlooked. This forgotten, overlooked, untaught history must be remembered if we are to be united

April 16, 1995:

BOY,  12 ,  MURDERED FOR CONFRONTING CHILD LABOR

Two hundred million. That is how many children are under gruesome child labor. Twelve million. That is how many Pakistani children who are sold into child labor, and a young 12 year old boy was one of those twelve million.

Iqbal Masih ( IHK-bahl mass-SEE ), was sold for seven dollars into child labour at the age of four. The minute he was sold to a carpet weaving company his childhood was stripped away.

While working in this carpet factory, Iqbal noticed that there were other children alongside him. The amount of torture and rigorous pain it was to work for 12 hours under command of masters who did not treat workers like human beings, was dreadful. Just imagine being stuck under working conditions as bad as that with only half-hour breaks in between. Not only that, but also being in extremely hot working conditions, be paid almost nothing and run on not even two meals a day. Thankfully, Iqbal was brave enough to escape the factory and that decision changed a lot of lives but ended his.

The first time he escaped but unfortunately, he was caught and sent back to the factory. This time his master intensified the pressure on Iqbal and the other children by chaining them up. But, Iqbal managed to escape once again. This time his escape lead to him joining the Bonded Labour Liberation Front, or BLLF for short.

The Supreme Court of Pakistan actually banned child labour but, factories like the one Iqbal worked in still put children to work. After his second escape Iqbal began to study law and child labor to find a way to free his fellow workers. A man named  Ehsan Ullah Khan, the Chairman of BLLF, heard his story and fought to free Iqbal.

His attempts were successful and Iqbal began to tour the world giving speeches about the horror of child labor. He organized rallies to get people to stand with him for the end of child labor and he once said that “children should have pencils in their hands, not tools”. This is very true. No child should have their life and freedoms ripped away and endure pain and torture.

Iqbal was returning home from a campaign in the U.S. on April 16th, 1995, when he was murdered in cold blood. No one knows for sure who killed him but, the fingers all point to the carpet weaving company that once had Iqbal enslaved.

At such a young age Iqbal changed so many lives. He spoke up when everyone was silent and it cost him his life. This proves that no matter how old or young, anyone can become a voice for the youth and speak up for what they believe in.  

This month in history we remember the brave and heroic actions of Iqbal Masih and continue to raise awareness against child labor. Because from the words of Iqbal Masih, “children should have pencils in their hands, not tools”.