Domestic Servitude in Asuncion (2023)

A domestic servitude case from 2023 in Asuncion, Paraguay. 1 source on file.

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What happened

Criadazgo remained a significant child labor and trafficking risk in Paraguay in 2023. Under this practice, children, predominantly from impoverished families, are placed in other households where they perform domestic work in exchange for accommodation, food, small payments or access to education. Girls are disproportionately affected. Authorities and international observers identify children in criadazgo as highly vulnerable to forced labor, physical and sexual abuse, and trafficking. Accused: Urban households receiving children from rural intermediaries.

Response and intervention

Paraguayan child protection services. Limited prosecution; criadazgo system challenged legally. Global Infancia Paraguay.

Sources

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Nearby cases

All 2 in Paraguay →

Forced Labor2008

Ciudad del Este, Paraguay, 2008

Paraguay PY

A group of homeless children were recruited to work at a shopping mall to help the customers carry their bags and to also clean the bathrooms, the floors, and parking lots of the mall. They were promised compensation from the shopping mall but what they got were only the tips from some of the costumers. The children were afraid of saying something to the owners because they knew that they could lose even the tips from the customers. However, a small group of courageous kids protested for their salary. The owners immediately fired the protesters, cleared them out of the area, and did not pay them for their work. They made sure to tell everyone that letting the children receive a tip and stay in the mall during the day is more than enough.

Needs a sourceArchive 2008–2016