"No Money, No Friends: Brazilian Woman Exploited for 55 Years Since Age 7"

Forced to Work for a Single Family Since the Age of 7
Brazil Still Faces Widespread Problems of Modern Slavery

A Brazilian woman who had lived virtually as a slave without pay for a single family for 55 years since the age of seven was finally rescued in her 60s.

According to Yonhap News on July 10 (local time), citing an announcement from the anti-slavery rescue task force under Brazil's National Labor Prosecutor's Office, Ms. A (62) had been held in virtual confinement, performing domestic labor for life in a household in Fortaleza, Ceará state, northeastern Brazil, since 1971.

Investigations revealed that Ms. A began housework at the age of seven. Her mother also worked for the same employer's family, and Ms. A followed the employer’s family from generation to generation, taking on cleaning, meal preparation, and child care. She lived a life completely cut off from society, never learning to read or write.

According to the Ministry of Labor investigation, Ms. A’s day started at 4:30 a.m. She prepared breakfast, helped the children get ready for school, and spent the entire day repeatedly cleaning and cooking. There were no holidays or paid leave. It was even found that the employer’s family collected and used the government welfare payments that Ms. A was supposed to receive for low-income support.

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The case came to light after an anonymous tip-off. Following an investigation by prosecutors and labor authorities, the employer agreed to provide an apartment equipped with furniture and appliances worth about 30,000 dollars (approximately 45 million won), and additionally pay 10,000 dollars in compensation.

Maria Neuzeli, the prosecutor in charge of eradicating domestic servitude, said, "Ms. A lived in a kind of prison. She never managed money, never had a bank account, never made friends, and never even went to the beach alone."

Authorities have decided to continue temporary protective measures, taking into account that Ms. A has lived isolated from society for a long time and is psychologically dependent on the perpetrator family, until relatives are found and support systems for her independence are established.

The Spanish-language media outlet Infobae reported that the perpetrator family consists of a retired couple, a lawyer, a public servant, and a veterinarian. They are denying allegations of labor exploitation.

Although Brazil legally abolished slavery in 1888, forced labor and human exploitation remain social issues today. According to the Brazilian authorities, more than 2,700 victims of slavery were rescued in 2025 alone, and about two-thirds of them were found not in rural areas but in urban regions.

Previously in Korea, in 2014, the so-called "Salt Farm Slavery Case" came to light, where people with disabilities and vulnerable individuals were imprisoned and forced to work on salt farms in Sinan County, Jeonnam without being properly paid, sparking public outrage. Although those involved were punished, similar cases of labor exploitation have continued to be uncovered.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.