Berkeley (CA) High School Jacket December 10, 1999

Young Indian Immigrant Dies in Berkeley Apartment
South Asian Community Says "Indentured Servitude" May Be to Blame

By Megan Greenwell and Iliana Montauk

The recent death of a young Indian immigrant girl in a Berkeley apartment has brought up deep issues about the exploitation of young workers.

Seetha Vemireddy, 17, died after a blocked heating vent in the apartment she shared with her sister filled their room with highly poisonous carbon monoxide. Her sister was taken to Alta Bates Hospital in critical condition, and has since been released

Residents of 27 other apartments in the Berkeley Park Apartments were evacuated to a nearby hotel after the defective heating units were discovered. "The heaters tested at 2,000 parts per million of carbon monoxide," explained Jonathan Franks, a PG&E spokesperson. "The sensitivity device only goes up to 2,000, so it seems like it was higher."

The building's owner, Vijay Reddy, owns many of Berkeleyis largest apartment buildings, along with Pasand restaurant and one hotel.

Seetha Vemireddy, though high-school aged, was not attending Berkeley High or any other Bay Area high school, according to a BHS student who knew her but wished to remain anonymous.

Many of the youth who the Jacket contacted asked to remain anonymous. Some insinuated that they feared for their safety.

"She wasn't going to school," the student continued. "She was just working for Mr. Reddy, at his restaurant and the apartments."

Several members of the South Asian community have speculated that Vemireddy was probably an "indentured servant". Indentured servitude means that an employer in the United States helps bring foreigners over, possibly paying for their visas and their passage, and then requires that the immigrants work for low pay, sometimes below minimum wage.

"People can bring their family over to work," the same student said. "[The employers] usually provide them with food, shelter, all the basics, but the employees aren't paid much, if at all. I know that Vijay Reddy sets up contracts for people to come to the U.S. and work. Seetha probably came through him."

That speculation has remained unconfirmed, although it has been established that Vemireddy was working instead of attending school.

Although indentured servitude is illegal, it can exist because employers can help bring people from foreign countries to the U.S. by sponsoring them for work visas. "The employer has to show that there is a lack of people in the U.S. with the skills needed to do the job," said Hina Shah, lawyer for the Asian Law Caucus.

UC Berkeley student Mukti Chamitiganti said that it is commonly known in the Indian community that indentured servitude exists in restaurants in this area. A UCB sophomore who preferred to remain anonymous also said that she had been told not to eat at Pasand because the workers there are exploited.

Berkeley High video teacher Dharini Rasiah said that exploitation of Indians who come on an indentured servitude basis can happen for many reasons. She said that such immigrants are vulnerable because they do not have the skills necessary to find another job, they do not speak English, and because they feel indebted to their employers.

"Workers are almost under care of their employer and there's a sense of obligation from workers to employers," said Rasiah. There's a sense of debt and it's hard to break out of that."

Although the Indian community seems to be aware of this issue, many people said that indentured servitude is often seen as an opportunity for Indians. Rasiah said that the term "indentured servitude" is not used in the community. "That sounds like a negative thing. [Some people think] it's a positive thing because people are bringing people over who wouldn't be able to come. Someone's bringing them over and giving them a life that could be better than in India."

Chamitiganti said, "Since we're looking at it from an American viewpoint it seems negative, but it all depends on perspective." She added that if people in India were told of the situation for workers here, they would think it was normal.

Rasiah, Chamitiganti, and a few youth who preferred to remain anonymous said that people think of indentured servitude as a community issue. However, both Rasiah and Shah are involved in a collaboration with lawyers and activists whose goal it is to "look at the needs of the South Asian community" including worker exploitation, according to Shah. Shah said that, if she were to hear specific allegations involving indentured servitude, she would be very interested in investigating the case. Although she has received several phone calls reporting rumors of exploitation in Indian restaurants in Berkeley and Mountain View, no specific allegations with concrete evidence have been made.

"There's a great fear to speak out because workers are afraid of being retaliated against from their employer," said Shah. She also mentioned that if anyone would be willing to give her more information, she could be contacted at (415) 391-1655.