Increasing Incidents Of Girl Trafficking

Some Ways Of Control

By B. M. Dahal

DESPITE the efforts of the government and a number of social organisations to combat the heinous crime of women trafficking, it is emerging as a major social problem in Nepal. The scourge that has already affected more than three dozen districts of the country has been expanding rapidly all over the country. Some of the most women trafficking-prone districts include Sindhupalchowk, Nuwakot, Makawanpur, Dhading, Sindhuli and Udayapur. Now with the launching of awareness campaigns and income generating activities to check women trafficking in those districts, traffickers seem to have chosen other areas bordering India as their new hunting ground.

High Figure

Although there are no official data showing the exact number of the Nepalese girls trafficked to foreign countries as commercial sex workers (CSWs), the non-governmental organisations involved in fighting girl trafficking and rescuing the victims believe that 5,000-7,000 women, including minors, are trafficked to India alone each year. This figure excludes the children trafficked for other forms of child labour such as factory workers, domestics, farm labourers, circus players, among others. Around 200,000 Nepalese women are also reported to be leading a hellish life in the brothels in different cities of India. The brothel owners are said to free the victims only after they are infected with the HIV virus. Of the total number of Nepali sex workers in the Indian brothels, around 50 per cent are reported to have already been infected with many sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).

Due to alarming trend of STDs, including HIV/AIDS, the clients are reported to have started demanding for minors. As per the clients’ taste, the demand for the teenagers has been increasing among brothels in India for the last few years. Reports show that more than 30 per cent of the trafficked victims are young girls below 18. To meet such ever-growing demand of such girls, traffickers seem to be targeting the village young girls who are easily lured and deceived.

The entire South Asian Region is not free from this problem. Reports say that over two million women are involved in the world’s oldest profession, sex trade, in India alone. About 25 per cent of the total number of sex workers are minors there. And 90 per cent of the total CSWs are from the Indian origin and five per cent each from Nepal and Bangladesh. More than 10,000 Bangladeshi women are said to be trafficked to India as CSWs every year. Similarly, around 500 women from Bangladesh are also trafficked to Pakistan for the same purpose. Boys ranging between 4-12 years are trafficked to the Gulf countries for camel racing. The boys are reported to be exploited sexually by the employers. The government report of Sri Lanka shows that there are at least 2,000 children associated with the sex industry. However, the extent of cross-border trafficking in children from Sri Lanka is regarded to be less compared to the situation of other South Asian nations.

Once Nepal was known to the world from the prestigious name of Mt. Sagarmatha and we used to feel proud of it. But with the passage of time, we are losing our prestige as several thousands Nepalese girls are being trafficked for sex trade every year. This is certainly a matter of great concern for all of us. If the trafficking is not controlled, the country’s image will be tarnished in the international arena.

Poverty is often blamed for playing a decisive role behind the emerging problem of girl trafficking in Nepal. Many girls in the rural areas are lured by the traffickers with prospects of a better life. The traffickers also do not lag behind in giving false promises of jobs and marriages to the young girls. Due to high illiteracy and deteriorating financial status of their families, the women and girls often fall prey to the traffickers. Besides, lack of strong legal provisions against the traffickers has also helped further aggravate the problem. Another important factor contributing to the scourge is the political protection of the traffickers. Many traffickers are reported to have been released from the police custody due to the political pressure.

Generating public awareness against girl trafficking is the key to combating the crime. The awareness campaign needs to be launched extensively so as to make everybody alert against trafficking. All the adverse aspects of trafficking such as social and health hazards must be revealed to the public while conducting the awareness campaign. As part of creating awareness among the people from different walks of life against women trafficking, National Network Against Girl Trafficking (NNAGT), a coalition of various social organisations fighting girl trafficking, in collaboration with the Delhi-based Regional Office of the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), has started a year-long nation-wide awareness campaign against it from December 4. The national campaign is expected to be instrumental in combating girl trafficking in the country. Such awareness programmes need to be conducted every year so that the general public could be more alert against the crime.

Moreover, effective income generating activities have also to be started so as to enable the poverty-stricken families to stand on their own feet. The government and the NGOs need to move ahead with income generation programmes jointly. The political parties have also to express their firm commitment to work for the welfare of women by including the women issues in their programmes.

Solution

Since trafficking in women and children has been the problem of all the member countries of the entire SAARC Region, the draft convention on trafficking needs to be ratified during the upcoming SAARC summit. The member countries have also to hold talks to seek permanent solutions to the problem.

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