“When I was about 6 years old, I was taking my parents’ cattle out to graze with my friends when a man offered us sweets. I ended up being kidnapped and forced to work as a slave for 6 years,'

I worked from five in the morning to about ten at night. I had to keep the house clean for the family who owned me. They had children who went to school, but I had to work. I had to cut the grass and often cut my fingers, as I was dizzy from the drugs in the tea. Sometimes I would pass out in the field, but nobody cared. I carried bricks and tried not to complain so I wouldn’t get beaten.

My father searched for me for years. He was told that I was dead, but he didn’t give up. They threatened to beat him, but he asked for help from an agency that rescues children from slavery. After a long search they were able to save me. I am now at a rehabilitation centre where I can play and attend school with other boys who have had similar experiences.