Talk to Al Jazeera - Kailash Satyarthi: Saving India's child slaves

Talk to Al Jazeera - Kailash Satyarthi: Saving India's child slaves

For his work he has endured beatings and has received death threats. For his efforts and courage, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014 - along with Pakistani youth activist Malala Yousafzai.

For the past 35 years, Indian rights activist Kailash Satyarthi has devoted himself to freeing children working under terrible conditions in his native India.

"The notorious people who engage children in slavery, the slave masters and traffickers, are powerful people, they are like mafia. They are well-connected with the local police and authorities. They earn a lot of black money.... Human trafficking is the largest illicit tade in the world today.... They are powerful people so risks are always there. I lost two of my colleagues - one was shot dead, one was beaten to death. I have scars almost everywhere on my body.... But I accepted it as challenge. Each time when these people tried to kill me I realised that I am on the right path," he says.

Satyarthi's contribution to freeing children from exploitation and abuse is enormous, rescuing more than 80,000 children from illegal and hazardous work across India.

But child labour remains a serious issue across the world. According to the International Labor Organisation, there are currently 168 million children engaged in forced labour worldwide.

Satyarthi says the Nobel Prize is a recognition and honour to those children, who are still deprived of their childhood. However, the main question remains: Can child slavery be eradicated?

Nobel Peace laureate Kailash Satyarthi talks to Al Jazeera about his fight against child slavery and abuse, women's rights in India, and how to protect children across the world.At Al Jazeera English, we focus on people and events that affect people's lives. We bring topics to light that often go under-reported, listening to all sides of the story and giving a 'voice to the voiceless.'
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