Manpower agencies in the country have warned that they will suspend their operations for an indefinite period of time if, what they call, ‘police brutality’ does not end.

 

The call comes a day after police raided at least 15 manpower agencies and rounded up at least 12 promoters of those agencies on charges of swindling money from job aspirants and sending unemployed youths abroad with false promises of placements in foreign companies.

 

Issuing a statement today, the Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies (NAFEA), the umbrella body of manpower agencies, said all manpower agencies have shut down their offices from today.

 

“However, manpower agencies have been asked to make necessary arrangements for departure of job seekers, who have already obtained final permit to leave for overseas job destinations, within a week,” reads the statement. “But from March 5, all manpower agencies will stop sending workers for an indefinite period of time.”

 

The NAFEA has argued that police should not intervene in matters related to manpower agencies, as the Department of Foreign Employment (DoFE) is the concerned body that looks into these issues.

“Only the DoFE has the right to investigate manpower agencies facing criminal and other charges,” says the statement. “If other state agencies start raiding manpower agencies, rounding up agents, or confiscating documents from offices of manpower agents, then the foreign employment sector may collapse.”

The police, on the other hand, have said that the actions were taken based on complaints filed by victims who were deceived by manpower agencies.

 

Yesterday’s raids were conducted by the Metropolitan Police Crime Division (MPCD).

 

Of the 12 promoters rounded up by the MPCD, six have been handed over to the Metropolitan Police Range Kathmandu for further investigation. Similarly, another two promoters rounded up by the MPCD have been handed over to Metropolitan Police Range Lalitpur and four to the DoFE.

 

Currently, more than 600 manpower agencies are operating across the country. These agencies, till date, have sent around four million Nepalis abroad, especially to labour destinations in the Gulf and countries, such as Malaysia.

 

Nepalis working abroad sent home Rs 617.28 billion in the last fiscal year, show the statistics of Nepal Rastra Bank. These workers remitted Rs 323.69 billion in the first six months of the current fiscal year through mid-January.