Time to curb human trafficking
– NGOs join hands to make women self-sufficient
ABHIJEET MUKHERJEE
Ranchi, April 27: Sheila (named changed) from a small village in West
Singhbhum, was an ordinary girl with an ordinary life till she was
lured out of her home with false promises of employment and sold off
to a brothel in Mumbai.
Fortunately, Sheila was rescued and her trafficker arrested. Sheila
was later transferred to a Calcutta-based NGO called Sanlaap. Today,
she is back in her home state, travelling with Sanlaap and attending a
workshop, “Trafficking-transported lives and aborted souls”.
The workshop, held in State Institute of Rural Development (SIRD), was
organised by Hyderabad-based NGO Centre for World Solidarity.
It focuses mainly on the capacity building of different NGOs and would
highlight on the various aspects of preventive, proactive and active
campaigns that include awareness, formation of committees to stop
trafficking and implement registration of migrating workers from other
states.
Participating NGOs plan to submit their findings to the government.
Sheila, and women like her, will be provided vocational training so
that they can fetch a job for themselves and also provide counselling.
Sheila was here to get information about the laws about trafficking.
Indrani Sinha, director of Sanlaap, speaking on the occasion
highlighted on the risk of exploitation that minors and other women
face while seeking work outside their own states. Many are sold off to
brothels, especially in large metros like Delhi and Mumbai, for
commercial sexual exploitation.
“This is because metros have an organised network of gangs which
provides an opportunity for lucrative flesh-trade. Four recent cases
of trafficking from Jharkhand have come to our notice lately. Rescued
girls are minor, ignorant and illiterate. People they know and trust
are usually responsible for their plight,” she added.
“Migration and trafficking are related to lack of education, ignorance
and basic amenities, which result in exploitation of women, especially
tribal women. Administration is also responsible for increased
trafficking as this issue is not prioritised enough,” said Harleen
Walia, moderator of CWS.
“The geographic condition of Jharkhand is such that it forms an easy
transit point for trafficking. Jharkhand forms a triangle with Bihar,
West Bengal and Orissa on three sides with large markets. Women of
Jharkhand are trafficked for various reasons and not specifically for
prostitution, unlike in Andhra Pradesh that has the highest rate of
trafficking for prostitution. Here they are trafficked for labour
purposes but are also vulnerable to sexual as well as physical
exploitation. Often their organs are sold in the market,” added Walia.
“What we are trying to do is to monitor migration of tribal women and
minors, which is presently not done. In most cases, women go traceless
after moving outside their state. Parents also play an important role
in the exploitation because they, too, have vested interest. They do
not verify anything beforehand and depend blindly on the middlemen who
take them out for work. Mostly women and girls go out with the men or
women who are from their own village,” said Poonam Sharma convenor of
Jharkhand Anti Trafficking Network (JATN).