Read the rest of this series: Part I | Part II | Part III
Jalandhar (India) and Latina (Italy): Sitting in his courtyard in Garhshankar village in Hoshiarpur district, Punjab, on a sunny January morning, Balbir Singh said assertively, “I am a free man today.”
This might sound like a cliché, but Balbir’s words hold a deep meaning. Like lakhs of Punjabis, Balbir had gone to Italy in search of greener pastures. But his quest for a better life became a tale of struggle and misery when he was virtually incarcerated by his employers in the Lazio region of Latina province, Italy, for six long years.
Paid only 50-100 euros per month in that terrible period of his life, he survived by scavenging stale bread and old vegetables from the farm’s animal fodder and using public washrooms for his ablutions. He was also badly beaten twice and once he was even threatened with a gun. “Even now, when I think of those turbulent days at the dairy farm, I get goosebumps,” he said.
Fortunately, his story had a happy ending. When the Italian authorities learned of how he had been treated, his employers were arrested and in 2018, the judge in his case granted him a permesso di soggiorno or long stay visa “for reasons of justice” – the first visa Italy had ever granted on this basis to any non-Italian. He will also receive financial compensation for his suffering when the case finally concludes this year.
But Balbir Singh may not be the only illegal immigrant to be so terribly exploited. Which is why, when he returned to his Punjab home for a vacation in January 2023, he shared the details of his horrifying experience with The Wire.
The entrapment
As the owner and headmaster of a private school in Garhshankar in Hoshiarpur district, Punjab, Balbir Singh ought to have been doing well in education-obsessed India. But his venture was not profitable enough to truly support his family.
So in 2004, he decided to work in Italy as an agricultural labourer because that would mean earning in euros. This would translate into lakhs of Indian rupees and a good life for his family. “It was my decision to move abroad for a better life to Italy,” Balbir said.
Balbir Singh became the first person to get permanent residency for ‘reasons of justice’. Photo: Stefania Prandi
Having paid Rs 5 lakhs for an Italian tourist visa, Balbir entered Italy the same year. He knew there would be hardships ahead. A tourist visa is not a work visa and the life of an irregular immigrant is always precarious. However, he was determined to face whatever came his way.
Between 2004 and 2009, Balbir did odd jobs to survive, picking them up via fellow Punjabis working in Italy. But his aim was always to get a contract, which would make him eligible for legal residence in the country.
When he found a contract job at a dairy farm in Borgo Sabotino in Lazio region of Latina province in 2010, he was delighted. In 2012, he was even happier when his employer’s daughter asked for his passport and other legal documents so the farm owner’s family lawyer could apply for a residence permit on his behalf. But that was when his life changed.
“I was looking forward to a permanent residency, but I ended up captive to the farm owners,” he said.
When Balbir gave his employer his passport, he found himself trapped. The documents were never returned to him. Neither did he get a residence permit. Nor did he receive the pay of 800 euros per month that he was promised in 2011. After being paid that amount once, he was only given 50 to 100 euros per month.
‘Lowest time of my life’
Since Balbir saved even this small amount to send to his family at home, he scavenged much of his food from the dry fodder given to the farm animals. “I used to search for pieces of leftover bread and vegetables in the fodder. I was so badly traumatised that sometimes I used to cry. Then there were moments when I was just numb. Even then, I kept working,” he said.
For accommodation, he was given an old caravan fitted with a bed, a chair and a small kitchen. This was parked at a distance from the farm and hidden from public view because not only is it illegal in Italy to live in a caravan except during a vacation, but as per Italian law, a farm worker should have a separate room, kitchen and washroom.
The caravan in which Balbir Singh lived at a dairy farm in Italy. Photo courtesy Marco Omizzolo
But Balbir had to use public washrooms for his ablutions since the caravan was not fitted with running water, electricity or heating. “I’d get up early in the morning, clean the public washroom, and then use it. To bathe, I used the warm water meant to feed the little animals on the farm. This meant I had to bathe late at night to escape the wrath of my employers,” he said.
He also preferred to sleep in a nearby forest instead of the caravan because his employers were abusive and he was afraid he would be killed while he slept. “It was mentally draining and the lowest period of my life,” he told The Wire.
Escape seemed impossible. Not only had Balbir’s employers taken his documents, but he had also been working in Italy illegally for years and had a very real fear of being detained by the police and deported. As dire as his situation was, he wanted to stay in Italy.
“What would I have done in India? I had my family to support. But my life was being wasted and I was helpless,” he explained.
In any case, his employers never let him leave the farm. And though he did have a mobile phone, he had no idea who to call. Wherever he looked, Balbir was trapped.
Balbir’s wife, daughter and mother while preparing to welcome journalists who visited his house in Garhshankar town of Hoshiarpur district in October 2022. Photo: Stefania Prandi
As the years passed, Balbir could not afford basic items like detergent and had to remain in filthy clothes smeared with cow dung. Meanwhile, his hands and feet developed deep wounds and injuries. “Blood oozed out of my nails because of the wounds on my hands and feet,” Balbir said. “I was in very poor condition. But since I could not leave the farm, I couldn’t consult a doctor.”
He couldn’t afford a doctor either. “Whenever I asked for my salary, my employers shouted at me. Twice, they beat me badly. They were strongly built men and it wasn’t easy to escape them,” Balbir said. “On one occasion, my employer even threatened me with a pistol, swearing that if I informed anyone about what was happening to me, he would kill me and bury me in the farm itself.”
Troubles back home
Meanwhile, back home, his family had their own share of troubles. Balbir’s wife had diabetes and was not on good terms with her in-laws. “I raised my children all alone and my in-laws did not bother to assist us in our time of crisis. It was a harrowing time,” she said.
At first, the situation was not too bad, either at the Italian farm or back home in Garhshankar. In fact, Balbir returned to India twice. On the first occasion in 2012, his passport had still been in his possession and since he had a work contract, he could return to Italy safely. In 2013, his employers returned his passport so he could visit India and even said they would give him 2,000 euros to take home.
“Things were still fine then and I was hopeful of getting my permanent residence documents,” said Balbir.” Though they promised me 2,000 euros, they kept 1,000 euros which they said was required for my residence documents. But when I returned and gave them my passport again, I never received these documents.”
Balbir’s mother and father narrating their ordeal from when Balbir was stuck at the dairy farm in Italy for six years. Photo: Stefania Prandi
Balbir’s family know a few things about his ordeal at the dairy farm, but not everything because he never wanted to cause them anxiety. “They would have slipped into depression,” he said. “There were moments when I felt completely helpless and cried, but I always kept those feelings to myself.”
However, after his employer pulled a gun on him, Balbir began looking for a way out, ready even to risk deportation if he had to. So when a fellow Punjabi visited the farm to buy milk, Balbir spoke to him. The shocked man then put Balbir in touch with his personal advocate. “But I had no money to pay the advocate’s fee,” said Balbir.
Omizzolo the ‘God sent’
The turning point in Balbir’s struggle came during a strike by illegal workers in Italy in 2016. “It was then that I first heard the name of Marco Omizzolo,” Balbir recalled. “I searched frantically and contacted him first through Facebook and then through the president of the Indian/Punjabi community of Lazio region in Italy.”
Omizzolo is a sociologist, researcher and journalist who has been documenting and denouncing human rights violations against the migrant workers exploited in the fields of Latina.
To document their situation, Omizzolo worked undercover in the fields with them and once also went to Punjab to trace an Indian human trafficker while investigating the connections between human trafficking and the agrimafia.
Hailing Omizzolo as “god sent”, Balbir said, “Marco was much in the news at that time. He was helping all the workers in Italy, whether Indian, Bangladeshi, Italian, Pakistani or African. He still helps workers. But because of this he gets threats from the mafia.”
Balbir’s wife at their house in Garhshankar town in Hoshiarpur district. Photo: Stefania Prandi
When Omizzolo first heard Balbir’s story, he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Then he sent police officials in civilian clothing to check if my story was true or fake,” Balbir said. “The police approached me directly and spoke to me at length. They said they would raid the farm and arrest its owners and gave me the confidence to remain at the farm until the action was taken.”
The moment the police officially arrived, Balbir’s employers told him to leave. But he remained because the police had already informed him of the impending arrests. “When the local Italian media came, it led to a big breaking story,” he said.
When questioned by the police about Balbir’s passport and other documents, the farm owner’s daughter first blamed the family advocate and then said that because Balbir had not paid his taxes, the authorities had blocked his residence permit.
When the police phoned their family lawyer, the truth emerged. “Even at that moment, my employers said they would get me a residence permit. The police scoffed and said since they hadn’t done it in seven years, how did they expect to do it now?” Balbir recalled.
Balbir’s wife Surinder Kaur making tea at their house in Garhshankar town of Hoshiarpur district. Photo: Stefania Prandi
Wisely, on the suggestion of one of his friends, Balbir had started recording his employers’ behaviour towards him before the police arrived. “Those recordings acted as proof of my harassment at the hands of the farm owners,” he said.“When the police checked everything, they found that from the caravan to the gas canister I had been provided for my cooking, everything was illegal. There was nothing legal there.”
After the raid, Balbir was taken to the local police station, where he showed them his recordings. A case was filed in a court in Latina in 2017 and a few months later, the judge ordered the provision of a sojourno visa – a long stay visa – to Balbir for “reasons of justice”.
Meanwhile, two members of his employer’s family were arrested, fined and jailed for six months. “Their fine was 30,000 euro. Since they could not pay it, the court auctioned their farm,” Balbir added.
‘Never again’
Now, with his court case near completion, Balbir feels the struggle was all worth it. “One should never give up,” said Balbir. “Life is a struggle and you have to fight. I faced so much trouble, but seeing how my children are succeeding, I forget it all.”
Balbir’s son is settled in New Zealand, while his older daughter is a lawyer. His younger daughter studied medicine and is preparing to move to Canada on a study visa. “Since my children are settled now, I want to take my wife to Italy soon. She has struggled all her life and all alone at that. I have decided to build a house in Italy and live there,” he says.
He expects a large payout as compensation for his years of suffering on the dairy farm. “I’ll invest this money in Italy and not in India,” he said.
He is happy to credit his victory over injustice not only to Omizzolo, but also his friend Baba Bhajan, the Indian community in Italy and some Italians. “They too deserve kudos. They guided me according to the law at the time I needed them the most,” he said.
Since his victory in court in 2017, Balbir has been speaking up whenever he spots irregularities in the working conditions of farm labour. In 2021, he made a complaint to the La Fenice Agricultural Society in Pontinia, where he worked from January 1, 2021, to December 31 of that year as an agricultural labourer involved in raising and milking cattle and dairy buffaloes.
Balbir’s daughter Bhawana studying at their house. A medical student, she will be moving to Canada for higher studies. Photo: Stefania Prandi
In his complaint, Balbir listed more than one irregularity: hours worked in excess of what is stipulated in the national collective agreement, including on holidays; no days off; unpaid overtime; and unpaid wages. In 2022 Balbir worked for three months at a kiwi farm that sells the fruit to a consortium that supplies the New Zealand-based multinational, Zespri, which is the biggest buyer of the kiwi fruit produced in Lazio.
“I have no complaints about the way they treated me. They gave us gloves and boots. We only lacked raincoats for when it rained,” said Balbir about that experience.”Of course, they were paying me six euros an hour when I should have been getting nine.”
Even though his case against the owners was near completion, Balbir has been warned to never stay in one place in Italy for too long. The police even advised him to change his phone number and stay invisible on social media.
“After I left the farm, the farm owners made death threats against me,” Balbir said. “Now my safety must come first.”
This investigation has been conducted jointly by The Wire, Danwatch and IRPI Media with the support of the Journalismfund Europe.