NIRMAL GHIMIRE

Abdul Aafij of Mahodpur village was apprehended by the police on August 6 while he was trying to sneak a woman to India through Laukahi checkpoint at Bardiya district of Nepal.

On January 11, eight women were rescued by the police from another checkpoint along Indo-Nepal border in Bardiya. The traffickers, Santosh Kumar Tharu and Dhana BK, were taken under control and the women handed over to their family members. As recently as September 3, the police rescued seven women after they had already crossed the border. The women, aged between 17 and 40, were also handed over to their family members and relatives. The police filed human trafficking charges against Chhetra Bahadur Chhetri of Gunapa-7 and Khadak Bahadur Magar of Suryapatuwa village after they conceded that they were taking the women to Delhi. The duo is in judicial custody.

These days the police at the border routinely nab traffickers and hand over the victims to their family members. The police say that traffickers mostly use unmanned check points, where security personnel are not on duty round the clock. The police sometimes manage to intercept traffickers with the help of sources deployed in the area. According to Nirmala Thapa of Shakti Samuha, an organization fighting human trafficking, the police have failed to control human trafficking. "In fact, it seems trafficking is growing day-by-day," she said. Noticeably, most of the women rescued from the western border have turned out to be locals from the eastern parts of Nepal. "They say that they were going to India for employment," said Thapa. "The traffickers find western border convenient for taking women to India. They are increasingly using the route," she added. The police as well as the staffs of the organizations working against human trafficking keep vigil at border checkpoints. But at several places along the border, there are no help desks or regular presence of the police or staff of the organization fighting trafficking. Despite reports of the growing use of deserted checkpoints for trafficking, neither the police nor the organizations have been able to extend their presence at these points.

Commoners are allowed to pass through just two checkpoints in the district. Gulariya and Rajapur are the legal checkpoints through which people travel back and forth between Nepal and India. Indo-Nepal border in the district stretches to 80 kilometers. Locals on both sides have opened several informal routes for their own ease, which is exploited by human traffickers as well. According to Thapa, one of the reasons why girls and women easily fall in the trap of traffickers is the fewer choices left to them following government ban against women of certain age from working in some Gulf countries. While the government has banned Nepalese women from working in some nations due to high risk factor, the lack of employment at home compels them keep exploring the options. Thapa said in lack of effective mechanism to control human trafficking, banning entry to the Gulf countries is only making things worse.

"We are concerned about the trafficking through the illegal routes along the border though we have not deployed our staff there yet," she said. Superintendent of Police Birendra Kumar Basyal stated that there is a need to establish help desk at the checkpoints being used by traffickers. "Such desks allow us to interrogate and monitor people and their activities," he said.

Published on: 10 November 2014 | Republica