Authorities in China are struggling to identify 30 people they rescued from illegal brick kilns where they were being enslaved and abused, according to state-run media reports.
The officials are having a difficult time identifying some of the workers because at least 17 of them are disabled or have a mental illness. "Some of them can't even speak a whole sentence, and they don't act like normal people," according to Liu Weiming, deputy director of publicity in Zhumadian, where the workers were rescued. "Most are staying at a relief station because they can't remember where they are from."
The scandal was exposed by the City Report TV channel who reported that workers were "abducted from streets and railway stations and then sold to bosses at brick kilns for 300 yuan to 500 yuan ($45 to $80)."
Bai Shasha, one of the rescued victims, said he and his father got lost in March and were abducted when several people with knives approached him. He said during the time he was enslaved at the kiln he was regularly beaten with bricks or whips, China Daily reported. Bai also said he and other workers were forced to work all day long without any rest, and then they all slept in cramped confines at night. One supervisor accused of beating the workers with whips is just 14 years old.
Incidents of kidnapping and forced labor are common, with over 1,500 people rescued from illegal brick kilns since 2007.
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