Debt
Family debt forced mothers and fathers to surrender their children to the state-run Office of Financial affairs. As commodities of the state, children were bought and sold until the age of 18. By law, the collectors could gather children to satisfy unpaid debt using any means necessary.
Family debt forced mothers and fathers to surrender their children to the state-run Office of Financial affairs. As commodities of the state, children were bought and sold until the age of 18. By law, the collectors could gather children to satisfy unpaid debt using any means necessary.
Her head ached, her eyes swollen from hours of crying. She pleaded her case and promised to sell a kidney but it was too late. She looked through the 8-foot high chain link fence as the guards loaded her son onto the truck. The boy was crying. He begged not to go. She yelled out his name and cried, “I’ll get you back”.