Human Trafficking & Modern-day Slavery Poverty drives the unsuspecting poor into the
hands of traffickers Published
reports & articles from 2000 to 2025 gvnet.com/humantrafficking/India.htm
India is a source,
destination, and transit country for men, women, and children trafficked for
the purposes of forced labor and commercial sexual exploitation. Internal
forced labor may constitute India's largest trafficking problem; men, women,
and children in debt bondage are forced to work in industries such as brick
kilns, rice mills, agriculture, and embroidery factories. Although no
comprehensive study of forced and bonded labor has been carried out, some
NGOs estimate this problem affects tens of millions of Indians. Those from
India’s most disadvantaged social economic strata are particularly vulnerable
to forced or bonded labor and sex trafficking. Women and girls are trafficked
within the country for the purposes of commercial sexual exploitation and
forced marriage. Children are also subjected to forced labor as factory
workers, domestic servants, beggars, and agricultural workers. - U.S. State Dept
Trafficking in Persons Report, June, 2009 Check
out a later country report here or a full TIP Report here |
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CAUTION: The following
links have been culled from the web to illuminate the situation in
India. Some of these links may lead to
websites that present allegations that are unsubstantiated or even
false. No attempt has been made to
verify their authenticity or to validate their content. HOW TO USE THIS WEB-PAGE Students If you are looking
for material to use in a term-paper, you are advised to scan the postings on
this page and others to see which aspects of Human Trafficking are of
particular interest to you. Would you
like to write about Forced-Labor? Debt
Bondage? Prostitution? Forced Begging? Child Soldiers? Sale of Organs? etc. On the other
hand, you might choose to include precursors of trafficking such as poverty and hunger. There is a lot to
the subject of Trafficking. Scan other
countries as well. Draw comparisons
between activity in adjacent countries and/or regions. Meanwhile, check out some of the Term-Paper resources
that are available on-line. Teachers Check out some of
the Resources
for Teachers attached to this website. HELP for Victims International Organization for
Migration Missing Children CHILDLINE - Toll
Free Call 1098 - Night & Day www.childlineindia.org.in/1098/b1a-telehelpline.htm [accessed 12 August
2014] CHILDLINE reaches out to all
children in need of care and protection such as: street children, child labourers, children who have been abused, child victims
of flesh trade, differently-abled children, child addicts, children in
conflict with the law, children in institutions, mentally challenged
children, HIV/AIDs infected children, children affected by conflict and
disaster, child political refugees, children whose families are in crises. Website to track
missing kids soon Himanshi Dhawan,
Times of India Technology, New Delhi, 22 May 2015 www.gadgetsnow.com/tech-news/Website-to-track-missing-kids-soon/articleshow/47377675.cms [accessed 18
September 2016] If you have lost a
child or want to report a missing one, there is help at hand. The government
for the first time plans to launch a web portal that can be accessed by a
common man to upload visuals and details of missing children and help track
them. The website khoyapaya.gov.in will act as an enabling platform for
citizens to report missing children or those found as well as sightings. The web portal has
been initiated by the ministry of women and child development (WCD) along
with the department of electronics and information technology (DEITY) and
will be run with the assistance of Childline and
local police. It is likely to be launched in June. Website to track
missing children launched Anasuya Menon, The Hindu,
Coimbatore, Feb 10, 2007 www.hindu.com/2007/02/10/stories/2007021013590100.htm [accessed 10
February 2011] www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/Website-to-track-missing-children-launched/article14718566.ece [accessed 9 July
2017] Parents can post
photograph of missing child on the website Anyone who has lost
their child can post a message on this website and a search will be set in
motion simultaneously in 40 cities in the country. Launched by Don Bosco National Forum for
Youth at Risk in association with UNICEF, www.missingchildsearch.net will be closely watched and
monitored by child welfare organisations in all
major cities in the country and a search will be generated immediately. The
Don Bosco National Forum for Youth at Risk is a major partner of Childline India Foundation and extends service to
hundreds of children who are victims of war, conflict, natural calamities,
sexual exploitation, trafficking and HIV/AIDS. They also take care of street
and working children. ***
FEATURED ARTICLE *** Slavery in Our Time Nicholas D. Kristof,
The New York Times, January 22, 2006 www.pekingduck.org/2006/01/nicholas-kristof-slavery-in-our-time/ [accessed 12
February 2011] Historians will
look back in puzzlement at the way our 21st century world tolerates the
slavery of more than a million children in brothels around the world. India alone may
have half a million children in its brothels, more than any other country in the
world. Visit the brothel district in almost any city in India, and you can
meet 14-year-old girls who have been kidnapped off the street, or drugged, or
offered jobs as maids, and then sold into a world that they often escape only
by dying of AIDS. ***
ARCHIVES *** Dynamics Of Child
Trafficking In Madhepura District Manoj Varghese, Jaipur
National University Jaipur, Faculty Member [Long URL] [accessed 14
February 2022] Child trafficking is generally attributed to economic crisis at home, falling prey to the agents tempting offers and an aspiration to lead urban life style in cities. In the context of this study, children who went missing or were trafficked from the rural areas of five panchayats in Madhepura district of Bihar for various purposes have been categorized as a case of ‘Child trafficking’ Analysing The Status And
Consequences Of Human Trafficking In India Sidhi Jalan,
National University of Study and Research in Law, Ranchi [Long URL] [accessed 15
February 2022] Women are trafficked to the Middle East for commercial sexual exploitation. Indian migrants who migrate willingly every year to the Middle East and Europe for work as domestic servants and low-skilled laborers also sometimes end up being part of the human trafficking industry. In such cases, workers may have been 'recruited by way of fraudulent recruitment practices that lead them directly into situations of forced labor, including debt bondage; in other cases, high debts incurred to pay recruitment fees leave them vulnerable to exploitation by unscrupulous employers in the destination countries, where some are subjected to conditions of involuntary servitude, including non-payment of wages, restrictions on movement, unlawful withholding of passports, and physical or sexual abuse' Molki: Brides For Sale Pooja Kini, Makers India, 23 December 2020 in.makers.yahoo.com/molki-brides-for-sale-030634455.html [accessed 25
December 2020] In places where the sex ratio is low, the natural consequence is that men do not find brides. Men of the upper castes have more ‘options’ than those of the lower castes who resort to buying brides from other villages. Women are being sold by their parents into marriage without their knowledge or consent. At times, women are deceived or kidnapped by ‘agents’ and sold to families looking for a bride. This practice, referred to as molki, stems from the phrase Mol ki dulhan which literally translates to ‘bride that has a price’. The woman concerned is appraised like cattle on factors such as virginity, caste and beauty, and then sold. Molki marriages are not registered, casting the validity of the marriage into doubt and reducing the brides to fringe elements. These women are exploited sexually and as free labourers in the fields. They are not permitted to own property. In a study, over 80 per cent of the trafficked brides did not have ration cards and were not on the voter lists. They are also denied spousal rights as they are not considered to be a part of the buyer’s family unit. Upon the death of the husband, the family casts off the bride or sells her to another buyer. Often, women who are not sold have to resort to prostitution to fend for themselves and their children. The pandemic has
created a second crisis in India — the rise of child trafficking Jessie Yeung and Priyali Sur, CNN, 24 October 2020 www.cnn.com/2020/10/24/asia/india-covid-child-trafficking-intl-hnk-dst/index.html [accessed 25 October
2020] One evening in August, a 14-year-old boy snuck out of his home and boarded a private bus to travel from his village in Bihar to Jaipur, a chaotic, crowded and historical city 800 miles away in India's Rajasthan state. He and his friends had been given 500 rupees (about $7) by a man in their village to "go on vacation" in Jaipur, said the boy, who CNN is calling Mujeeb because Indian law forbids naming suspected victims of child trafficking. As the bus entered Jaipur, it was intercepted by police. The man was arrested and charged under India's child trafficking laws, along with two other suspects. Nineteen children, including Mujeeb, were rescued. Jaipur police said they were likely being taken to bangle factories to be sold as cheap labor. If Mujeeb and Aman hadn't been rescued by police on their way to Jaipur, they might have ended up like Nishad, a 12-year-old boy who was allegedly forced to work in a bangle factory under brutal conditions. Nishad, whose real identity can't be revealed under Indian law, was brought to Jaipur from Bihar by an alleged trafficker just before the March lockdown. Nishad claimed the man locked him and five other boys in a dingy room without any windows and forced them to make bangles for 15 hours a day. There was no way to call authorities or even contact their families, he said. "He made us work for so long and if we didn't work, he would hit us. We were not allowed to step outside. He said that if we got out the police would arrest us," said Nishad. Stolen lives: The
harrowing story of two girls sold into sexual slavery Yudhijit Bhattacharjee,
National Geographic Magazine, 28 September 2020 [accessed 30
September 2020] The day Sayeda left home, the boy she eloped with took her by bus from Khulna to a town near the Indian border. Arriving at night, they walked through a forest until they got to a riverbank. Sayeda noticed others on the same path, including young girls, but didn’t think much of it. At the river’s edge, the boyfriend bribed a policeman, and the two climbed into a boat that dropped them on the other side. They were in India. The boy took her to a house close to the river, where they stayed for a few nights. There, Sayeda met another girl who also had been brought over from Bangladesh, and she became suspicious. Sayeda confronted her boyfriend, and he told her she was going to work in a brothel. When she refused, he said, “I’ll kill you and dump you in the river.” Even if she could have escaped, Sayeda didn’t know whom she could have turned to for help. She had entered India illegally, and she didn’t see how she could go to the police. “I got so scared that I said OK,” she said. Activists warn of
sharp rise in human trafficking in near future Press Trust of India
PTI, New Delhi, 2 August 2020 [accessed 2 August
2020] Tarannum (name changed) has
many cut marks on her wrist, scars that constantly remind her of the several
years she spent in a brothel where she was sexually exploited countless
times. "Three years of hell," she recalls. Daughter of a fisherman
from a cyclone-prone area of the Sundarbans, 13-year-old Tarannum
was trafficked by a local shopkeeper in 2012. He
tricked her into believing that he would get her a job as a domestic worker
with a good salary. Once in Delhi, he sold her to a woman at a brothel. After
three years, she was rescued by a local NGO with the help of police. But even
after she returned home, the trauma of the past haunted her and she turned
suicidal, trying to slit her wrist multiple times. Slowly recuperating now, Tarannum hopes no one ever goes through what she did. How Bengal, India’s human trafficking hub,
is weaving a turnaround story Snigdhendu Bhattacharya,
Hindustan Times, Kolkata, 11 November 2019 [accessed 12
November 2019] West Bengal
accounted for 25% of India’s trafficking cases between 2010 and 2016. In
2016, the state recorded a whopping 44% share of the total cases related to
human trafficking in India. “There is no denying that West Bengal police
played an exemplary role in rescue but the ten-fold decrease looks
unrealistic, as the number of children who went missing in 2017 stood as high
as the previous year,” said Rishi Kant, co-founder of the NGO ‘Shakti Vahini’ that partnered with the West Bengal police in the
rescue of a number of trafficked persons. As many as 8187
children went missing from West Bengal in 2017 (12.9% of India). The number
was slightly less than 8,335 cases reported in 2016 (13.14% of India). Incidentally, the
US State Department’s Trafficking in Persons Report published in June 2019
alleged, “Some authorities in West Bengal and Jharkhand allegedly ordered
police to register trafficking cases as “missing persons” to reduce the
number of trafficking cases in official statistics.” The report claimed
to have received these allegations from NGOs working in this field. Hitting Brothel
Owners where it Hurts Nicholas D. Kristof,
The New York Times, Calcutta, January 24, 2006 query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=F60913F9385B0C778EDDA80894DE404482 [accessed 14 July
2013] [24 January 2006] Imagine what you
would have done if you'd been in Hasina Bibi's sandals. She was a
lonely 16-year-old working in a garment factory in Bangladesh when an older
employee began mothering her. They grew close, and one day the older woman
gave Hasina some cakes to eat. Two days later, Hasina emerged from a
drug-induced stupor in India, sold to a brothel in faraway Gujarat. The
brothel's owner beat Hasina and threatened to deform her face with acid if
she tried to escape. She had to do whatever the customers wanted, with or
without condoms. 2020 Country
Reports on Human Rights Practices: India U.S. Dept of State Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and
Labor, 30 March 2021 www.state.gov/reports/2020-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/india/
[accessed 9 June
2021] PROHIBITION OF
FORCED OR COMPULSORY LABOR Bonded labor
continued to be a concern in many states; however, no reliable statistics
were available on the number of bonded laborers in the country. Most bonded
labor occurred in agriculture. Nonagricultural sectors with a high incidence
of bonded labor were stone quarries, brick kilns, rice mills, construction,
embroidery factories, and beedi (hand-rolled
cigarettes) production. Those from the most disadvantaged social strata were
the most vulnerable to forced labor and labor trafficking. PROHIBITION OF CHILD
LABOR AND MINIMUM AGE FOR EMPLOYMENT The International
Labor Organization estimated there were 10 million child workers between ages
five and 14 in the country. The majority of child labor occurred in
agriculture and the informal economy, in particular in stone quarries, in the
rolling of cigarettes, and in informal food service establishments. Children
were also exploited in domestic service and in the sugarcane, construction,
textile, cotton, and glass bangle industries in addition to begging. Commercial sexual
exploitation of children occurred (see section 6, Children). Nonstate armed groups recruited and used children as
young as 12 to organize hostility against the government in Jammu and
Kashmir, including Maoist and Naxalite groups. Nonstate
armed groups sometimes forced children to handle weapons and explosive
devices and used them as human shields, sexual slaves, informants, and spies. Forced child labor,
including bonded labor, also remained a serious problem. Employers engaged
children in forced or indentured labor as domestic servants and beggars, as
well as in quarrying, brick kilns, rice mills, silk-thread production, and
textile embroidery. Freedom House
Country Report 2020 Edition freedomhouse.org/country/india/freedom-world/2020 [accessed 28 April
2020] G4. DO INDIVIDUALS
ENJOY EQUALITY OF OPPORTUNITY AND FREEDOM FROM ECONOMIC EXPLOITATION? The constitution bans
human trafficking, and bonded labor is illegal, but the practice is fairly
common. Estimates of the number of affected workers range from 20 to 50
million. A 2016 law allows children below the age of 14 to engage in
“home-based work,” as well as other occupations between the ages of 14 and
18. Children are not permitted to work in potentially hazardous industries,
though the rule is routinely flouted. There have been reports of complicity
by law enforcement officials in human trafficking. 2017 Findings on
the Worst Forms of Child Labor Office of Child
Labor, Forced Labor, and Human Trafficking, Bureau of International Labor
Affairs, US Dept of Labor, 2018 www.dol.gov/sites/default/files/documents/ilab/ChildLaborReport_Book.pdf [accessed 18 April
2019] www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/ILAB/child_labor_reports/tda2017/ChildLaborReportBook.pdf [accessed 28 April
2020] Note:: Also check out this country’s report in the more recent edition DOL
Worst Forms of Child Labor [page 516] Within India,
children are trafficked for commercial sexual exploitation and for forced
labor in domestic service. (97; 95; 75) Children are also forced to work as
bonded laborers in brick kilns and stone quarries to pay off family debts
owed to moneylenders and employers. (2; 101) Children from India’s rural
areas migrate or are trafficked for employment in industries, such as
spinning mills and cottonseed production, in which they are forced to work in
hazardous environments for little or no pay. (73; 25) In addition, armed
Maoist groups reportedly recruited children to serve as soldiers in the
states of Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Odisha, and West
Bengal. (99; 75) Child victims of
commercial sexual exploitation, forced labor, and human trafficking are more
likely to be children from marginalized groups, such as low-caste Hindus,
members of tribal communities, and religious minorities. (75) Children from
marginalized groups also face barriers to accessing education. These children
are sometimes subjected to discrimination and harassment from their teachers.
(102; 103; 104). India: Freeing the
Small Hands of the Silk Industry Ranjitha Balasubramanyam,
World in Progress, Deutsche Welle DW-World.DE,
01.09.2007 www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,1114659,00.html [accessed 12 February
2011] TINY HANDS AT WORK - In the glow of
apparent prosperity, what went unnoticed for the most part were tiny hands
that pulled, twisted and separated the yarn, so the fiber could become strong
enough for weaving into cloth -- tiny hands that often bled from cuts and
sometimes suffered permanent damage at the unrelenting machines in front of
them. They belonged to children as young as 6 or 8, who stood all day on
tired feet, laboring away at the twisting machines. These children
worked in the midst of ear-splitting noise all day long, in many cases for up
to 14 hours a day. Those were the average working conditions for the children
of Magadi. No one in their town had heard of
children’s rights, let alone of the United Nations Convention on the Rights
of the Child. Child labourers speak out Ayanjit Sen, BBC News,
Delhi, 8 September, 2003 news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3091676.stm [accessed 12
February 2011] BEATEN UP - For 11-year-old Mansoor, life was hellish. "I used to work 15 hours a day and
earn about 20 rupees (less than $0.5) per week," he said. Mansoor, who is
from Muzaffarpur district in Bihar, said he used
sleep hungry in a small dingy room on most days after work. He has been
working for the past nine months.
"My parents came into contact with a middleman who had promised
good money for working in Delhi," he said. SOLD THREE TIMES - Narayani, in her 50s, said she had been sold three times
during the last three decades by her employers. "I was working with my husband and
three children in the northern state of Haryana in a factory, and all that we
used to get as salary was food," said Narayani. Never too young to
be sold Sreyashi Dastidar,
The Telegraph, October 16, 2007 www.telegraphindia.com/1071016/asp/opinion/story_8436850.asp [accessed 10
February 2011] One wishes the circumstances were the same, but they seldom are. How does one equate a girl lured away from a village in Meghalaya to a brothel in Delhi with the one pushed into beedi-binding by her own parents just so there is enough money to feed all the mouths in the family? Or a boy thrown into the laps of paedophiliac foreign tourists in Goa with one who runs away from starvation and poverty at home, to be picked up and employed by a brick-kiln owner who gives him a paltry daily wage and lunch? Which arm of the State — women and child development, labour, police, or home affairs if there is border-crossing — has failed to do its job in each of these cases, and which is responsible for ensuring that the trafficked person gets a livelihood and a respectable life? This is why
trafficking is such a tricky crime in developing countries with their many
areas of darkness. In Haryana, for instance, where it is acceptable to
destroy female foetuses and kill baby girls, young
women are trafficked from Bengal and the Northeast and forced into marriage
to keep the family line going. How does one, in the absence of a complaint
from the girl or her family, initiate criminal proceedings against those who
claim the girl as their daughter-in-law? Police rescue
trafficking suspect from mob fury KalingaTimes Correspondent, Kendrapara (Orissa), July 17, 2007 www.kalingatimes.com/orissa_news/news/20070717_Police_rescue_trafficking_suspect.htm [access date
unavailable] Police on Tuesday rescued a former employee of a Bhubaneswar-based placement agency facing charges of trafficking youths from this region to Malaysia from a frenzied mob in Nikiraia village, 15 km from here. The villagers gave vent to their anger as about four youths from the area reportedly enslaved in Malaysia since their departure three months back. The mob badly beat up Sunil Das and held him captive in the village. The irate mob pounced on him demanding the refund of money that the Malaysia bound youths had paid to the placement agency, police said. A Dalit youth from this part of the state had undergone a two-month-long nightmarish ordeal in Malaysia and escaped from the clutches of a well-knit human trafficking racket, bringing to the fore the harrowing plight of a number of unemployed local youths still stranded in Malaysia in their quest for greener pastures. The Enslavement Of
Dalit And Indigenous Communities In India, Nepal And Pakistan Through Debt
Bondage
[PDF] UN Sub-Commission on
the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights, February 2001 At one time this
article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 6
September 2011] www.antislavery.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/goonesekere.pdf [accessed 6 March
2018] SUMMARY - This paper describes the gross and continuing violation of the rights of millions of people in India, Pakistan and Nepal, who are trapped in debt bondage and forced to work to repay loans. Their designation as persons belonging outside the Hindu caste system is a major determining factor of their enslavement. Evidence from all three countries shows that the vast majority (80%-98%) of bonded labourers are from communities designated as “untouchable”, to whom certain occupations are assigned, or from indigenous communities. In the same way that caste status is inherited, so debts are passed on to the succeeding generations. Maid's story of
torture shines light on India slave labour Agence France-Presse AFP, New Delhi, 18 October 2013 dawn.com/news/1050159/maids-story-of-torture-shines-light-on-india-slave-labour [accessed 19 Oct 2013] Sitting on a
hospital bed with a thick bandage around her head, an Indian teenager
recounts what she says was four months of horrific torture at the hands of
her employer. “She would pull my
hair out, violently hit me over the head... most of the times she got angry
out of the blue,” the 18-year-old told AFP, as she recovered in a New Delhi
hospital. The girl says she
was beaten with belts, brooms and chains while locked in the home where she
was hired to work as a maid in an upscale neighbourhood
in the capital. “She wouldn't give
me any money, make any phone calls, interact with
anyone. She ripped all my papers that had phone numbers (of her relatives)
into bits,” said the girl, whose left cheek and chest are covered in scars. Her story made
headlines this month after she was rescued by police and social rights
campaigners who said she had been slashed with knives and bitten by dogs. The case is far
from unique in a country home to almost half of the world's slave population.
A report released this week called the Global Slavery Index found an
estimated 13.95 million people in India are victims of forced labour. Hyd woman offered
salesgirl job in UAE, sold to sheikh, returns home Asian Age,
Hyderabad, 7 April 2018 [accessed 10 April
2018] The woman narrated that
the job of a saleswoman in a Dubai supermarket came to her through an agent
in Hyderabad. However, the agent sent
her to Sharjah in United Arab Emirates on March 18, where she was initially
confined in an office. "Later a
Sheikh bought me and took me to Bahrain. From there I was taken to Oman and
kept as a domestic help," she said.
She also added that she was not given adequate food, was tortured and
made to work excessively. Somehow, she was
able to reach out to her mother and informed her about the situation, after
which the family reached out to the Indian embassy in Muscat. The foreign ministry was also alerted after
which they intervened and rescued the woman. Giving flesh trade
survivors a life of dignity Dilnaz Boga, Daily News
& Analysis DNA, Mumbai, 11 June
2012 www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report_giving-flesh-trade-survivors-a-life-of-dignity_1700697 [accessed 11 June
2012] Like the 140 others
like her, Reema was trained by experts handpicked
by SCI for starting a new life post-rescue from a brothel. “Apart from rescuing
girls from brothels, we give vocational training to the freed girls ending up
in state homes, like the two at Deonar, between
10am and 5pm,” says SCI CEO Dr Subhadra Anand. At a time a batch of 20 to 25 girls are brought to
Sahas Kendra, the rehabilitation centre at Bandra-Kurla complex,
and imparted training hospitality, computer graphics, tailoring, nursing and
housekeeping, to name a few, says legal consultant Nandini
Thakkar, also a programme manager at SCI. After working as a
trainee in the hospitality sector, Reema went on to
become a trainer of supervisors within four years. “Her success story, like
many others’ here, was all about empowerment and independence,” says Thakkar.
After three months, we identify the survivor’s skills and conduct a career
test, which helps in deciding her vocation. “Following this, we start
training and counselling them for placements later. A year down the line, the
girls don’t need us anymore,” explains Thakkar. Testimony of Anita Anita Sharma Bhattarai, Polaris Project Action Center -- Special
Thanks to: Protection Project zh-cn.connect.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=149013918476023 [accessed 10
February 2011] [accessed 30 January
2018] I felt very scared
that evening and I refused to eat anything. I soon noticed that many men were
coming in and out of the house and I realized it was a brothel. I began
howling and shouting. I said that I wanted to leave. Renu
Lama told me that I was ignorant. She said that I did not just come easily
and I could not go easily. She said that I had been bought and I would have
to work as a prostitute in order to pay them back. On the fourth day
that I was in the brothel, my first client came to me. I refused to have sex
with him. He had already paid so he grabbed me and tried to rape me. I fought
him off. He had managed to get my clothes off but he was very frustrated
because I was resisting him so much. He stormed out and asked for his money
back. A couple of the brothel owners (voluntary prostitutes) came in and beat
me. When they were done, the same man came back in. Some of my
associates overheard the owners saying that they were also planning to sell
me to a brothel in Sarat because I was too much
trouble. I decided that I could not wait until the boy returned from Nepal. I
had to try again to run away. I asked some of the other girls to run with me,
but they were too afraid. We had been told that we would be killed if we
tried to run away. But I had determined that I would rather die than stay in
the brothel. The other girls pooled their money together and came up with two
hundred rupees. In exchange for the 200 rupees, I promised that if I made it
out alive, I would get help for them. Bangla aiding NE
human trafficking The Assam Tribune,
Guwahati, March 27, 2009 www.assamtribune.com/scripts/details.asp?id=mar2809/at09 [accessed 10
February 2011] The Director
General of Assam Police GM Srivastava today stated that neighbouring
countries, especially Bangladesh, continue to fuel the growth of human
trafficking cases in the Northeast, particularly Assam. “There have been many
instances where we have seen that professional human traffickers from
Bangladesh after marrying a girl from a remote area in the State elopes back
home and after keeping her in the neighbouring
country for some time, finally sells her to brothels in metros of India,”
said Srivastava, adding that the number of duped girls, who are being duped
by this racket of human traffickers, is increasing in the State. Attributing the
rise of human trafficking cases in the region to poverty and the simplicity
of the people here, the Assam Police chief stressed on the need for an
attitudinal change amongst the people to wipe out the menace from the
society. Indian workers'
struggle shines light on human trafficking, slave labor Sunil Freeman, Party
for Socialism and Liberation (PSLweb.org), July 4, 2008 www.pslweb.org/site/News2?JServSessionIdr009=v29yt8h827.app5b&page=NewsArticle&id=9509&news_iv_ctrl=1261 [accessed 10
February 2011] www.liberationnews.org/08-07-04-indian-workers-struggle-shines-html/ [accessed 30 January
2018] The plight of
immigrant Indian workers who were deceived into virtual slavery has brought
attention to the vile practice of human trafficking. Indian workers protest slave-like
conditions before the Department of Justice, Washington, D.C., June 11. The workers took jobs with Signal
International to work on the U.S. Gulf Coast following the devastation of
Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The Indian workers were told they would receive
"green cards," allowing them permanent legal residence in the United
States. Many who left their families behind in search of better wages had
been told they would be able to bring their relatives. The promises were all lies. Instead of
receiving permanent legal status, the workers—who had paid fees of up to
$20,000 to Signal—received 10-month H-2B temporary worker visas. The workers were essentially trapped, and
their employers knew it. Their documents were stolen and wages were withheld.
For all practical purposes, slavery had returned to Louisiana. Prostitution is
killing childhood in northeast, says study Maitreyee Boruah, Indo-Asian
News Service IANS, Guwahati, May 31 2008 www.thaindian.com/newsportal/uncategorized/prostitution-is-killing-childhood-in-northeast-says-study_10054950.html [accessed 10
February 2011] www.dnaindia.com/india/report-prostitution-is-killing-childhood-in-northeast-study-1167633 [accessed 10
February 2019] All is not well
with children in India's northeast. A study conducted by a Guwahati-based NGO
along with the police has revealed that a shocking 20 percent involved in
prostitution in the region are aged between 11 and 17 years. In addition, the
report also states that most of the children are victims of acute physical
torture. "They are initially raped and flogged almost to death to take
up the profession," the report said.
Almost half of the child prostitutes were from Assam, followed by
Meghalaya, Manipur, Tripura, Nagaland, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh, said Sarma. Some of the victims were also sold to brothels in
Mumbai, Pune and Ahmedabad. "We
have reports that sheikhs from the Middle East are also buying northeastern
girls from these brothels. Also, trafficking gangs from Southeast Asian
countries are taking a keen interest in the girls because of their Mongoloid
features," Sarma said. CBI goes after
foster parents in child racket K Praveen Kumar,
Times News Network (The Times of India) TNN, Chennai, May 14, 2008 [accessed 10 February
2011] The case had
originated on the basis of complaints from parents about missing children.
One of them, the child of Kathiravel and Nagamani, pavement-dwellers in Pulianthope,
had been allegedly kidnapped and sold to a Dutch couple. Similarly, the four-year-old child of
Sylvia, a woman from Otteri, was kidnapped from an
auto and sold to a couple in Australia. Another couple from the city had lost
their one-and-a-half-year old child, who was traced to the US. The racket was
busted in the city in the first week of May 2005 after the Otteri police received specific information about
kidnapping of children in and around Otteri. The police team then started investigations
and arrested seven people identified as Varadharajan,
Sheikh Dawood, Navjeen, Sabeera,
Manoharan, Salima and
K.T. Dawood. They subsequently traced the racket to an illegal adoption
agency, Malaysian Social Service, which had kidnapped street children and
sold them to foreigners after forging certificates. The case was subsequently
transferred to the Crime Branch. – htsc Child trafficking
could become rampant in state unless tackled urgently, feels activist KanglaOnline, Imphal, Apr 8, 2008 -- Source:
www.kanglaonline.com/index.php?template=headline&newsid=41695&typeid=1 www.antitraf.net/home.php?mode=more&id=29&lang=en [accessed 10
February 2011] Every
year thousands are trafficked across India for a variety of reasons including
sexual exploitation, bonded labour, organ
transplantation, adoption, coerced marriage etc. Women and children are
particularly vulnerable to human trafficking and in Manipur child trafficking
appears to be a growing epidemic. Though the number of cases are rising, the
state government has failed to take any measures Anee
Mangsatabam, the chairman of Child Welfare
Committee told IFP. Various
NGOs and organisations of the state who are working
to prevent human trafficking in the state, have said that due to lack of
funds and other reasons they were unable to take any action against the
traffickers. Assam human
trafficking: A startling revelation! Jogesh Doley,
merinews.com, Apr 06, 2008 www.merinews.com/article/assam-human-trafficking-a-startling-revelation/131876.shtml [accessed 10 February
2011] cabt.empowerpeople.org.in/2010/11/assam-human-trafficking-startling.html [accessed 28 April
2020] Every year
thousands of tea tribe girls are lured by people and taken to different parts
of India, to work as slave and in most of the cases they lands up in
brothels. Those who are forced into sex work, or who are vulnerable to sexual
exploitation as domestic labourers, are
particularly at risk of sexually transmitted infections, including HIV, and
unwanted pregnancy. The plight of the
women from this community has remained unheard and unattended, since ages and
they are have no other options but to migrate and to follow the people who
lure them and assure them good jobs out side the
state.
- htcp Punjab girls' NRI
dream turns nightmare Vikram Chowdhary,
NDTV, Chandigarh, March 26, 2008 www.ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv/story.aspx?id=NEWEN20080045064&ch=3/26/2008%202:56:00%20PM [accessed 10
February 2011] cabt.empowerpeople.org.in/2010/11/punjab-girls-nri-dream-turns-nightmare.html [accessed 30 January
2018] Every year
thousands of Punjabis fly to foreign lands for employment and better future.
But for some, this dream turns sour as they are cheated by travel agents and
given false assurances. It was the last
thing her father, Gurdev Singh, expected to
hear. He had sold land and took loans
to pay Rs eight lakh to a travel agent for her job
in London. But she ended up in Ukraine where she was forced into
prostitution. "We ran away
and sought help from a lady in Ukraine and narrated my entire story and told
her that my travel agent took away my passport and travel documents. With her
help, I was able to contact my family," added Manjit
Kaur. The scourge of
human trafficking in India Sandhya Nigam,
merinews.com, Mar 17, 2008 www.merinews.com/article/the-scourge-of-human-trafficking-in-india/131079.shtml [accessed 10
February 2011] cabt.empowerpeople.org.in/2010/11/scourge-of-human-trafficking-in-india.html?m=0 [accessed 28 April
2020] When Mona was 13
years, her mother died and her father remarried. The stepmother was
uncomfortable with Mona and wanted to send her away for some job, where she
would be able to look after herself. Along came a ”contractor” who arranged
jobs for youngsters as domestic help, etc. He paid a certain sum of money to
the stepmother and took Mona to a town far away. He got her a job in a
massage parlour as a ‘receptionist’. Even before
Mona got to know the work profile, she realized that she had been trapped
into sexual exploitation. She had become a sexual slave to the
‘customers’ who frequented the place for full-body massage. Ravi promises
support to Indian trafficking victims in US NDTV, Indo-Asian
News Service IANS, March 09, 2008 www.ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv/story.aspx?id=NEWEN20080043556&ch=3/9/2008%2010:55:00%20PM [accessed 10
February 2011] indiannewsfornris2.blogspot.com/2008/03/ravi-promises-support-to-indian.html [accessed 30 January
2018] About 100 Indian
victims of human trafficking in the US have found support from Overseas
Indian Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi who has
promised all help. The workers, who
Wednesday quit working for Signal International at Pascagoula shipyard in
Mississippi, met in New Orleans, Louisiana, Saturday to discuss their course
of action, said Stephen Boykewich, a media
spokesperson for the New Orleans Workers' Centre for Racial Justice that is
helping them. The workers were
recruited by Dewan Consultants of Mumbai, and brought by Signal, a marine
construction company, to the US over a year ago and made to live and work in
abysmal conditions. 'Dr Kidney' arrest exposes Indian organ traffic Sandhya Srinivasan,
Inter Press Service News Agency IPS, Mumbai, Feb 22, 2008 www.traffickingproject.org/2008/02/dr-kidney-arrest-exposes-indian-organ.html [accessed 26 January
2016] www.ipsnews.net/2008/02/health-south-asia-hub-for-global-organ-trade/ [accessed 28 April
2020] The arrest of
"Doctor Kidney" Amit Kumar for running a sizeable racket in live
kidneys has highlighted the role that South Asia plays as the hub of an
international trade in human organs. A
sophisticated but unregulated healthcare industry, a "donor pool"
of desperately poor people ready to sell a kidney, and a corrupt monitoring
system have combined to create a special brand of "medical tourism"
in the region, especially in India and neighboring Pakistan. Kumar is accused of
luring poor laborers to his "hospital" in the New Delhi suburb of
Gurgaon with promises of job offers or large sums of money. Typically, they
were promised 300,000 rupees (US$7,500) but paid only 30,000 ($750) after the
surgery, police said. He is alleged to
have conducted more than 500 transplants over an unspecified period, charging
up to $50,000 dollars for each operation. Investigators say his patients came
from Britain, the United States, Turkey, Nepal, Dubai, Syria and Saudi
Arabia. Four child labourers freed Times News Network
(The Times of India) TNN, Nagpur, Feb 19, 2008 timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Nagpur/Four_child_labourers_freed/articleshow/2793754.cms [accessed 10
February 2011] Saddam said, "Our parents face severe hardships in making both ends meet due to abject poverty. Sagir took advantage of this and one day he came to our house and offered to 'help' the family by ensuring education for us. Gaining our parents' confidence and consent, Sagir brought us to Nagpur." He added, "When we arrived in the city, Sagir took us to his zari embroidery unit in Farooq Nagar, near Teka Naka. He forced us to work in the embroidery unit. We used to work right from 8 am to 2 am, and he (Sagir) used to pay us a very meagre Rs 15 to Rs 20 per week." New cases on human
trafficking Chandra Bhushan Pandey, Times News Network (The Times of India)
TNN, Motihari, Feb 10, 2008 timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/Patna/New_cases_on_human_trafficking/articleshow/2770488.cms [accessed 10
February 2011] Trafficking of poor
girls by unscrupulous persons or gangs along the Indo-Nepal border here is
common, but local people were shocked to know that a father sold his daughter
and a husband sold his young wife for money. West Bengals sex
workers remarkable fight against HIV Soma Mitra, ANI-News, Kolkata, Dec 30, 2007 www.thaindian.com/newsportal/india-news/west-bengals-sex-workers-remarkable-fight-against-hiv_10010751.html [accessed 10
February 2011] To stop human
trafficking in sex trade, a self-regulatory board has been established by the
sex workers. The board works as a
filter and it checks whether the new girl joining the trade is an adult or a
minor. This board also tries to find out if any new girl joining the profession
is under any pressure to do so. This
has been very successful way to check human trafficking, police raids have
also reduced considerably, said Swapna Gayen, who too is a sex worker in Sonagachi
for over two decades. Is Christmas really
Merry for Indian Children? Shishir Srivastava,
merinews.com, Dec 25, 2007 www.merinews.com/article/is-christmas-really-merry-for-indian-children/128809.shtml [accessed 10
February 2011] The much-hyped
policy against child labour has shown little
results. In Shahpur village in Vaishali
district in Bihar, children were being used as beasts of burden. But the
mindset of people was such that, none of them wanted to help those children.
The boys were being used instead of bullocks for ploughing the land and the
land under question belongs to the minister for rural development Raghuvansh Prasad’s brother Raghuraj
Singh. Child labour right under the nose of the
ministry! Children under the
age of 14 are forced to work in glass, fireworks, and most commonly,
carpet-making factories. India has the largest number of uneducated children
in the world. We boast of abysmal numbers, with 75 million children suffering
from malnutrition and more than a 100 million being uneducated. The Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, the Mid Day meal scheme have not shown the
desirous results yet, with 70 per cent dropout rate of children before the
10th standard. Trafficking victim
awaits permanent home Moyna, Expressindia, Gurgaon, Dec 09, 2007 expressindia.indianexpress.com/story_print.php?storyId=248285 [accessed 14 August
2014] BOOK:: Enakshi Ganguly
Thukral, Still Out of Focus: Status of India's
Children, 2008 [Long
URL] [accessed 28 April
2020] Abandoned at the
Gurgaon bus stand on Thursday, a 14-year-old victim of human trafficking is
left in the lurch with no one willing to offer her a solution, or a long-term
shelter. Neither the local police stations nor NGOs are ready to take care of
her. A resident of Gopalganj in Bihar, the victim was married off to a
45-year-old man (one Pramod) as her father could
not repay money he had borrowed, the victim has said. The marriage took place
in Bihar on March 10, and she was brought to Rohtak
a couple of months ago, the victim said. Trading flesh,
selling souls Deccan Herald,
December 8, 2007 At one time this
article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 6
September 2011] According to the
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), between two to three
million people are trafficked annually in and out of India. Most
disturbingly, a large number of people, especially girls and women, from
states such as Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Orissa and
the north-eastern region, are trafficked to the metros such as Delhi and
Mumbai. People from these
states are trafficked to work in brothels, dance bars, pubs, restaurants,
friendship clubs, massage parlours and for domestic
chores, says Dr P M Nair, a senior police official
and co-author of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) study entitled
'Trafficking in Women and Children in India'. Human trafficking
burst in Chhattisgarh, 400 villagers rescued Press Trust of India
PTI, Nov 16, 2007 [accessed 14 August
2014] Over 400 villagers
from Mahasamund district have been rescued by the
Chhattisgarh government officials when they were being transported outside
the state, a senior official said on Friday. "All the
villagers were put inside the containers which did not have have sufficient ventilation or light and were being
transported like animals," she said. Women emerge as
primary victims in trafficking Nava Thakuria, Law Resource India, October 28, 2007 --
National Network of Lawyers for Rights and Justice NNLRJ indialawyers.wordpress.com/2007/10/28/women-emerge-as-primary-victims-in-trafficking/ [accessed 10
February 2011] Porous borders with economically
poorer Bangladesh and Nepal (from where none need visa to visit India)
aggravate the problem of cross-border trafficking. Bangladesh remained a
source country for women and children for a quite a long time, traffickers
target their preys in the poverty stricken rural areas. On the other hand, Nepal is identified as a
source country in the region. Fair looking Nepali young women are the primary
victims of the trafficking, though new trend emerges with attraction for boys
too. Unconfirmed statistics reveal that in average 12,000 Nepali women with minors
are trafficked every year for sexual exploitation in outer countries. Most of
the trafficked women from Nepal were later found infected with HIV/AIDS and
also tuberculosis. Addressing the conference, the minister Ms Chowdhury also argued that trafficking is by and large a gendered phenomenon. The trafficking in India is primarily for the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation. There are nearly three million sex workers in India and 40 per cent of them are children or adolescent girls. Statistics reveal that children below the age of 10 years are also found in the brothel of Indian cities like Mumbai and Delhi now a day, the minister disclosed. "Many believe that having sex with young and virgin girls would cure them of diseases. It is nonsense," Ms Chowdhury uttered. She emphasized on reducing the demand for prostitutes, engagement of children in workplaces, use of forced labour and empowering all collaborative efforts of governments, NGOs and other institutions to deal with the situation. - htcp 25 arrested for
human trafficking; 200 labourers rescued in Indian
state Nam News Network NNN
& Press Trust of India PTI, Bolangir (Orissa),
21 October 2007 www.twocircles.net/2007oct20/25_arrested_human_trafficking_200_labourers_rescued_indian_state.html [accessed 10
February 2011] At least 200
persons, including women and children, were rescued from forced labour and 25 middlemen were arrested in this regard,
police said Friday. The rescued include
70 persons, who were confined for three days in a forest in the jurisdiction
of Turekela police station area and 30 others, who
were rescued from Titilagarh railway station. UN seeks end to human
trafficking Sanjoy Majumder,
BBC News, Delhi, 10 October 2007 news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7037154.stm [accessed 11
February 2011] GOALS - Every day in
South Asia children and young women are lured or taken from their homes with
promises of a job, marriage or a place in the entertainment industry. Instead, they end up in the sex trade or as
forced labour.
India is the hub of this
trade, with organised crime syndicates trafficking
women and children both within the country and from across the border in
Nepal or Bangladesh. Sarpanch held for human trafficking [PDF] Express News Service
India, 6 Oct 2007 www.rsis.edu.sg/nts/resources/nts-alert/oct%202007-1.pdf [accessed 30 August
2012] [page 8] On a tipoff, Patnagarh
police, led by DSP (crime) N C Dandsena, rescued
the 40 labourers when they were being taken to a
nearby railway station to work in a brick kiln unit. Police said the Sarpanch
had given some money to the labourers in advance
and forced them to go to Hyderabad. They were to work in the brick kiln for
five months. Over 650 Indian trafficking victims rescued: UNODC [PDF] Press Trust of
India, 3 Oct 2007 www.nts-pd.org/admin/affix/1193046531.pdf [accessed 11
February 2011] [page 7] ANTI-TRAFFICKING EFFORTS BEARING FRUITS - Over 650
Indians, including 138 minors, who were victims to human trafficking, were
rescued during the first six months of this year, an United Nations agency
said here today. He claimed the
average age of girls being trafficked in South Asia was dropping. "While in 1980, the average age of
trafficked girls was 14 to 16 years, it dropped to 10-14 years in 1994. The
figure in 2006 has decreased," he said. Human trafficking
has become a billion-dollar business: UN report Luit Neil Don,
merinews.com, Sep 26, 2007 www.merinews.com/article/human-trafficking-has-become-a-billion-dollar-business-un-report/126623.shtml [accessed 11
February 2011] The United Nations
report also said, that girls and women from West Bengal and Assam are being
increasingly trafficked to Punjab and Haryana, where they are sexually
exploited until they bear a male child. “(There is an)
emerging pattern of trafficking in girls from West Bengal and Assam to the
more prosperous states of Punjab and Haryana, where the gender gap is most
acute…The woman is either abandoned or passed onto another man after the
birth of the male child,” the study said. Human trafficking
helps spread HIV/AIDS in Asia: UN Ranga Sirilal,
Reuters, Colombo, Aug 22, 2007 www.reuters.com/article/idUSL22325220070822 [accessed 11
February 2011] "Trafficking
... contributes to the spread of HIV by significantly increasing the vulnerability
of trafficked persons to infection," said Caitlin Wiesen-Antin,
HIV/AIDS regional coordinator, Asia and Pacific, for the United Nations
Development Programme (UNDP). "Both human trafficking and HIV
greatly threaten human development and security." Major human
trafficking routes run between Nepal and India
and between Thailand and neighbors like Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar. Many of
the victims are young teenage girls who end up in prostitution. "The link between human trafficking
and HIV/AIDS has only been identified fairly recently," Wiesen-Antin told the International Congress on AIDS in
Asia and the Pacific. Church organizes
struggle against human trafficking Union of Catholic
Asian UCA News, Guwahati, 6/4/2007 www.ucanews.com/story-archive/?post_name=/2007/06/04/church-organizes-struggle-against-human-trafficking-in-northeast-india&post_id=5841 [accessed 14 August
2014] Many girls from the
region are also taken to Indian cities with promises of jobs, said Shimray, a native of Manipur state. Shimray said many
women are taken from their homes after being promised jobs as domestic maids.
The educated ones are promised jobs in hotels and city firms, she added. In
many cases, those who entrap the women are members of their own families,
relatives or people close to them. In the period, the
state recorded 3,718 missing female adults. Among them, 1,837 are still
untraceable. During the same period 4,259 girls went missing and only 1,918
were traced, Borah said. Guard Against Human
Trafficking Manu Aiyappa, Times News Network (The Times of India) TNN, Hubli, May 4, 2007 timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/Bangalore/Guard_Against_Human_Trafficking/articleshow/1999535.cms [accessed 11
February 2011] These marriage
offers come for a consideration ranging between Rs
5,000 and Rs 1 lakh,which
are ascertained on the basis of her beauty. In some situations, poor family
members sell children hoping that they will get a good life, job or
education. However, most of them end up in a brothel or simply they are
forced to have sex with clientele." Traffickers often
use local people (sub-agents) in a community or village to find young women
and children, and target families who are poor and vulnerable. "One of
the major problems with making arrests is that the victim's family does not
complain as it does not want to be used as witnesses against the agents or
gangs involved in trafficking," an officer said. Slavery In India Author/Publisher
unknown - Apr 26, 2008 www.orkut.com/Main#CommMsgs?tid=2596748312649411734&cmm=48174284&hl=en [accessed 14 July
2013] The increase in human
trafficking cases in the last couple of years is worrying NGOs and exposes
the government’s apathy towards the social evil. Figures say that more than 60 girls from
Karnataka, who fell prey to human trafficking, have been rescued from
brothels and red light areas in Mumbai, Kolkata and Delhi. These rescued girls, in the age-group of 12
to 20 years, are mostly from the northern districts of Bijapur,
Bagalkot, Shimoga,
Mysore, Mandya and Chamrajnagar. They fall easy prey to the agents who
assure them of jobs and attractive earnings, but they land up in brothels. State unaware of
child abuse situation, projecting deflated figues newindpress, Bhubaneswar
Orissa, April 12 2007 At one time this
article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 6
September 2011] The pilgrim town of
Puri is a haven for child prostitution and rampant paedophilia. A recent study conducted by the Institute of
Socio Economic Development with support from United Nations Development Fund
for Women says that Puri is the heart of child
trafficking and accounts for over 43 percent of the cases. But the State Administration
and Police make no attempt to move because the holy town also happens to be a
tourist hotspot. But the real cause
of concern lies elsewhere. Domestic abuse continues unabated and even in the
face of newer and stringent legislation. Having children as domestic helps is
a common practice and they are the major victims of abuse. The sensational
incident of child torture by royals of Khariar in
2004 had amply revealed the magnitude of the problem. The Crime Branch of
Orissa Police arrested the former royal BP Singh Deo
and his wife Pushpalata Singh Deo
who allegedly branded their 8-year-old domestic help. The new and
stringent legislation has not been able to rein in the menace. Children are
not only afraid of reporting the abuse in fear of retribution, loss of
livelihood also deters them to disclose. How to change the
world - The role of the social entreprenuer Nikhil Mustaffa, The Daily Mirror, March 15, 2007 At one time this
article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 6
September 2011] As Childline expanded to new cities, the call-tracking
system also emerged as an important source of child protection information.
National data showed that the biggest killer of street children was
tuberculosis, but regional call patterns revealed a variety of local
problems. In Jaipur, for example, childline received
reports of abuse in the garment and jewelry industries. In Varanasi, there
were reports of children being abducted to work in the sari industry. In
Delhi, many calls came from middle-class children. In Nagpur, a transit hub,
there were frequent reports of children abandoned in train stations. In Goa,
a beach resort, a major problem was the sexual abuse of children by foreign
tourists. Panel Draws
Attention to Human Trafficking The Blue & Gray,
Georgetown University, March 12, 2007 At one time this
article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 6
September 2011] Thirty families
living in a village in the Tiruvallur district of
India all have one thing in common: They are now free after spending years in
bonded labor at a nearby brick kiln, said Gayatri
Patel, who visited the village in 2006. "The people I
met with told me the owner of the brick kiln who had practically enslaved
these people had been arrested, but he was only sentenced to one night in
prison," Patel recently told a Georgetown audience. "The next
morning when he left, he just went back to his brick kiln, rounded up another
100 bonded laborers and put them to work." NGO worker involved
in human trafficking arrested Manisha Sharma, HindustanTimes, Lucknow, March 9, 2007 soc.culture.indian.marathi.free-usenet.eu/Human-Trafficking/Prostitution-Sid-Harth_T24253265_S1 [accessed 14 July
2013] Arrest of an
activist working for a non-government organisation
(NGO) for his alleged involvement in human trafficking of 13 Nepalese women
in Maharajganj district on Thursday has put a
question mark over the very genuineness of such agencies involved in the
eradication of the menace. This
worker, arrested along with a policeman, was working for the NGO Manav Sewa Sansthan. March denounces
child trafficking BBC News, 25
February 2007 news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6395649.stm [accessed 11
February 2011] LURED BY SWEETS - Kailash
Satyarthi, chairman of the Global March Against Child Labour,
says South Asia is a major source, destination and transit area for child
trafficking of all forms. “Children
are being taken for forced labour and bonded labour," he says. "Children are
being used for child marriages. Child prostitution is of course there, then a
lot of children are taken as camel jockeys." Thousands of children work in roadside food
stalls Some children, he
says, are kidnapped and sold so their organs can be harvested for transplant
operations. One of the young
marchers is a boy of 13 who says he was lured from his village in Bihar by a
man with sweets, kidnapped, and taken to Punjab where he was made to work 12
hours a day, every day. Human trafficking
is a $32 bn worldwide business Sujoy Dhar, Indo-Asian News Service IANS, West Bengal, February
24, 2007 bba.org.in/beta/childtrafficking/230207.html [accessed 14 August
2014] groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/soc.culture.indian.marathi/VdF4LtQURJA [accessed 28 April
2020] Afsana Khatun, a 15-year-old Muslim girl from Kolkata's Kidderpore area, has never met 13-year-old Rakesh who
works for 18 hours in a Punjab village like a slave after he was trafficked
from his native village in Bihar. But
on Sunday, Afsana will march with thousands of
others from Kolkata
so that Rakesh and other boys and girls of his age who are trafficked every
day are not enslaved in a stone quarry or a red light area forever. 'The objective of
this march is to build a mass movement against child trafficking and forced labour. There is no regional protocol to prohibit
trafficking. We would march to make the government answerable and people
aware,' he said. Four held for human
trafficking; three girls rescued Press Trust of India
PTI, Vijayawada, Jan 30, 2007 http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_four-held-for-human-trafficking-three-girls-rescued_1077030 [Last accessed 14
August 2014] Three young women
aged 18 to 20 years were rescued from being trafficked and four persons
arrested in this connection here on Tuesday, police said. The girls
belonging to Vijayawada city were lured on the promise of jobs in Hyderabad. Child Trafficking Tribune, 8 April
2004 At one time this
article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 6
September 2011] [scroll down] TRAFFICKING AND
CHILD MARRIAGE
- Due to a demographic imbalance in Haryana (850 girls/1000 boys), men find
it difficult to find a bride. The easy way out has been through a network of
touts who help men, young old and widowed men to find wives from West Bengal,
Assam and Bihar. An estimated 5000 girls were sold in the Mewat
region of Haryana. Of Serious Concern Editorial, The
Rising Nepal, 2007-1-13 At one time this
article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 6
September 2011] www.realrestoration.org/nepal.html [accessed 28 April
2020] Incidents of human
trafficking are on the rise in the country despite the presence of a number
of organisations, both in the private and
government sectors, and the powerful media that makes each incident of human
trafficking public. The latest case of human trafficking was revealed in Nepalgunj the other day when a suspected trafficker was
arrested while trying to traffic four boys and five girls across the border.
Thanks to Maiti Nepal, an NGO working for the
well-being of helpless girls, the police arrested the suspected trafficker.
Though there is no official record regarding the number of Nepalese girls
trafficked to Indian brothels, thousands of Nepalese girls are said to live
lives of untold misery in the Indian brothels. Four arrested for
human trafficking [access information
unavailable] CID Crime Branch
sleuths on Saturday said they’ve arrested four persons who are involved in
trafficking two girls allegedly for the purpose of trafficking. On interrogation,
police found that the girls were brought from outside the state and were
being supplied by a couple to a middleman in Goa, who in turn sent girls to
prospective customers. 4 held for human
trafficking, inter-state racket busted Express News
Service, New Delhi, November 13, 2006 cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=209544 [accessed 11
February 2011] At one time this
article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] Samir went the to urinal while the announcement was being made but when
he returned, both his daughter-in-law and the man, identified as Ramesh, were
missing, said police. During
investigations, police found that Ramesh, who stays in Usmanpur
Pusta, northwest Delhi, had gone to Roorkee in Uttaranchal and followed him. At Roorkee bus stop, Ramesh and one Sandhya Devi were
arrested while they were settling a deal of Rs
20,000 for the victim, police said. Police raided Sandhya's house in Roorkee and rescued a 15-year-old girl, who was kidnapped
from Old Delhi Railway Station earlier. Pak one of the key
sources of women trafficking in world: UN report Bureau Report, Zee
News, Washington DC, September 12, 2006 www.zeenews.com/news322023.html [accessed 11
February 2011] A UN report has
described Pakistan as the “one of the key sources of women trafficking” in
the world. It said that India had also lately emerged as a
key destination and transit point for global trafficking of women and girls. Bombay HC Lambasts
Police Inaction in Curbing Human Trafficking United News &
Information UNI, September 12, 2006 n-cat.blogspot.com/2006/09/bombay-hc-lambasts-police-inaction-in.html [accessed 11
February 2011] The court was
hearing a petition filed by a non-government organisation
"Prerna" which has sought reinvestigation
into the case wherein nine girls, who had been rescued from a brothel in
2002, had gone missing. The court was told
that the number of minor girls rescued from brothels during the last three
years was shocking. As many as 26 girls were rescued in 2003, twelve in 2004,
31 girls were rescued in 2005 and 27 during the current year, the court was
told. Human trafficking from Nepal on rise [PDF] Mohan Budhair, Kathmandu Post, Paliya
India, 8 September 2006 www.ipcs.org/pdf_file/news_archive/sep_06_sanepal.pdf [accessed 6
September 2011] [page 22] Trafficking of
Nepalese women and children into India, especially from the western
districts, has increased significantly in recent days due to lax security at
border checkpoints. A large number of
women and children are being trafficked into India from checkpoints west of Butwal,
representatives of several Indian and Nepalese non-governmental organizations
(NGOs) and security officials stated during an interaction on 'controlling
cross-border human trafficking'. Woman held for
human trafficking The Hindu, New
Delhi, Aug 22, 2006 www.hindu.com/2006/08/22/stories/2006082222330300.htm [accessed 11
February 2011] [accessed 6 June
2017] A middle-aged woman
allegedly engaged in trafficking of humans was caught at New Delhi railway
station on Monday after a woman she had sold to a brothel-owner on G.B. Road
here eight years ago identified her. The accused had come to the Capital to
sell another young woman from Latur in Maharashtra
to flesh traders. Nodal cell in Home
Ministry to deal with human trafficking Bureau Report, Zee
News, New Delhi, August 13, 2006 www.zeenews.com/news315248.html [accessed 11
February 2011] The centre has directed state governments to deal with such
crimes in a holistic manner and to evolve an effective and comprehensive
strategy encompassing rescue, relief and rehabilitation of victims besides
deterrent action against violators. Govt push to drive
against human trafficking Express News
Service, Mumbai, August 12, 2006 mediacoalition.wordpress.com/2006/08/13/govt-push-to-drive-against-human-trafficking/ [accessed 12
February 2011] A total of 8900
cases of trafficking were registered in 2004-2005. 13,300 persons were
arrested, 93% of them women and minors. 85% of them were convicted, IPS
officer P Nair, currently on deputation to the United Nations Office on Drugs
and Crime (UNODC), quotes these figures to illustrate how the justice system
is criminalising victims, but not traffickers. The boy racer Amelia Gentleman,
Observer Sport Monthly, 30 July 2006 www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2006/jul/30/features.sport9 [accessed 12
February 2011] www.theguardian.com/sport/2006/jul/30/features.sport9 [accessed 30 January
2018] Budhia Singh was sold as
a baby by his illiterate and impoverished mother. Now, aged five, he is
India's most improbable young sports star, famed for his astonishing feats of
endurance running. India to fight
human trafficking at grassroots Reuters, New Delhi,
June 23, 2006 www.financialexpress.com/old/latest_full_story.php?content_id=131564 [accessed 12
February 2011] Village heads
across impoverished rural India will be asked to help fight human trafficking
by keeping a register of people who leave in search of work. The United Nations Development Project
(UNDP) is also asking village chiefs to watch out for traffickers who lure
villagers with promises of well-paid jobs but force them into the sex trade. India is transit
hub for human trafficking Indo-Asian News
Service IANS, New Delhi, June 22, 2006 [accessed 21 April
2012] The study said 72
percent of human trafficking is for commercial sex, 80.26 percent of
trafficking of women takes place in Bihar - most of it happening during
migration for labour - and 12.36 percent of the
total trafficking is due to family traditions. Human trafficking
turning into organised crime in India Bureau Report, Zee
News, New Delhi, June 21, 2006 www.zeenews.com/news303996.html [accessed 12
February 2011] "Trafficking
can be disguised as migration, commercial sex or marriage. But what begins as
a voluntary decision often ends up as trafficking as victims find themselves
in unfamiliar destinations, subjected to unexpected work," said E Rajarethinam of GCT. Pointing out that
trafficking is deeply related to deprivation, Jill Shirey,
a consultant at American Centre for International Labour
Solidarity (ACILS) said that people are "forced into accepting unknown
jobs due to lack of options." India rejects U. S.
criticism for inability to control human trafficking Media Release, Jun.
6, 2006 At one time this
article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 6
September 2011] The Indian ministry
statement said India and the United States have an ongoing dialogue on the
trafficking in persons, and the annual report "certainly is not helpful
to furthering our dialogue." Rep. Christopher
Smith, a Republican author of the 2000 law that established the annual
trafficking reports, said in Washington that the Bush administration went too
easy on India by placing it on the watch list instead of among the dozen
worst offenders. Microsoft Teams
with CAP to Train Victims of Human Trafficking in IT IT News Online, 31
May 2006 -- Source:
www.itnewsonline.com/showstory.php?storyid=4119&scatid=8&contid=1 [accessed 12
February 2011] Microsoft Corp.
India Private Limited, under its Project Jyoti
program, has announced a grant of around Rs. 2.2
crore to CAP (Child and Police project), a Hyderabad-based NGO, to provide IT
skills training to victims of human trafficking as well as vulnerable
communities at risk of trafficking. Human trafficking
in the northeast fuelling HIV/AIDS UN Integrated
Regional Information Networks IRIN/PlusNews, Kokrajhar, 17 May 2006 www.irinnews.org/report/34306/india-human-trafficking-in-the-northeast-fuelling-hiv-aids-report [accessed 14 July
2013] We visited 25
relief camps of internally displaced persons [IDPs] in Kokrajhar
in Bodoland Territorial Council, Assam [state]. Nearly 200,000 people are
living in these camps without proper food. Traffickers carry out recruitment
drives in such relief camps. They make false promises of jobs as domestic
help in big cities. Bangladesh busts
human trafficking ring: 34 rescued Deutsche Presse-Agentur (German Press Agency) DPA, Dhaka, 5 May
2006 At one time this article
had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 6
September 2011] The women and
children, some as young as five-years-old, were brought by the traffickers
from four neighbourhood districts with false
promises of lucrative jobs in India. But they are mostly
forced into prostitution as they illegally enter India, said Adhikar, a local non-government charity for children from
poor families. Need to rid Gujarat
of human trafficking Times News Network
(The Times of India) TNN, Ahmedabad, May 1, 2006 timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1511528.cms [accessed 12
February 2011] Last August, the
city police had raided several embroidery units in Rakhial
and rescued 84 child labourers from Bihar and Uttar
Pradesh. The boys, aged between seven and 17 years, had come to Gujarat in
search of employment. Subsequent raids by juvenile remand home officials and
cops on jewellery production units revealed that
child labourers from West Bengal and Orissa were
working in sub-human conditions for some money to send back home. Indo-Pak girls
forced into prostitution Asian News
International ANI, Lahore, February 6, 2006 At one time this
article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 6
September 2011] In a startling case
of organised women trafficking that has come to light,
Pakistani and Indian girls aged between 11 and 13 are being smuggled to the
Middle East countries for being forced into prostitution there. The girls,
who are shown as aged between 20 and 22 on their passports, are brought to
these countries on the pretext of getting them attracting jobs. Caritas India
Campaign against Hunger and Disease, 2005 Caritas India, New
Delhi, 2005 At one time this
article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 6
September 2011] THE TRAFFICKED VICTIM IS SUBJECTED TO WORST FORM OF HUMAN RIGHT ABUSES - Mona, (not her real name) a girl from Jharkhand, aged 14 years, had been trafficked to Delhi for domestic work. Her father sold her to an agent for Rupees 18, 000. In Delhi, the agent told her employers that they should pay her salary directly to him, so that he can forward the money to her poor parents. But in reality, no money reached Mona’s parents. Prostitution of
Nepalese girls rampant in Indian brothel Kolkata, Nov 20,
2005 – Source: news.webindia123.com/news/showdetails.asp?id=167534&cat=India [accessed 21
April 2012] ''Young girls are
trafficked from Nepal to brothels in Mumbai
and Kolkata at an average age of
twelve. They are trapped into the vicious cycle of prostitution, debt and
slavery. By the time they are in their mid-twenties, they are at the dead end
or 'cul-de-sac','' the study noted. US accuses NGO of
'trafficking' Rema Nagarajan, Hindustan Times, Washington DC, September 29,
2005 At one time this
article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 6
September 2011] US government is getting tough on the issue of trafficking of human beings. Indicating its seriousness on the issue, the US government-funding agency USAID terminated funding to the NGO Sampada Grameen Mahila Sanstha (SANGRAM) for reportedly supporting brothel owners and obstructing the rescue of minor girls from red light areas. Northeast girls in
metros forced into prostitution Indo-Asian News
Service IANS, Guwahati, September 15, 2005 www.karmayog.org/library/libartdis.asp?r=152&libid=302 [accessed 12
February 2011] Gullible young girls
from the northeast are being forced into prostitution in the metropolises
after being lured by organized syndicates promising them glamorous careers
and lucrative jobs, a rights group has said. "The situation is extremely
serious with smart operators flooding the northeast hunting for good looking
young girls for modeling assignments or jobs in call centers with good
salaries," said Hasina Kharbih, chairperson of
Impulse NGO Network. "But in
reality, many of these women were pushed into the notorious world of
prostitution." Stopping the
traffic Malvika Kaul,
Womens Feature Service, May 29, 2005 www.boloji.com/wfs3/wfs390.htm [accessed 12
February 2011] www.boloji.com/articles/5887/stopping-the-traffic [accessed 10
February 2019] Slavery is not dead
in India. Fuelled by trafficking, it is spreading
far and wide. Thousands of Indians, especially women and children, are
trafficked everyday to some destination or the
other and are forced to lead lives of bondage. They survive in brothels,
factories, guesthouses, dance bars, farms and even in the homes of well-off
Indians, with no control over their bodies and lives. Women and children are
also being trafficked for illegal adoptions, organ transplants, the circus
and the entertainment industry. Police rescue 24
girls from red light area Express News
Service, Pune, August 18, 2005 cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=144500 At one time this
article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 12
February 2011] Police said the
rescued girls had been whisked away from various places in Nepal, West
Bengal, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra. Some of them had been
restrained at the brothels for as long as two years. Teen escapes sex
trade The Telegraph, Krishnagar, August 10, 2005 www.telegraphindia.com/1050810/asp/bengal/story_5096435.asp [accessed 12
February 2011] Tasmina Khatun agreed to elope with Muku
Mondal, a man she loved, not knowing the nightmare
she was inviting. Police yesterday
rescued the 15-year-old girl from the Sunderbans
when she was about to be taken to Kashmir to be sold off to flesh traders. Bangla prostitution
racket busted in Goa Herald (page 1), 15
July 2005 www.worldsexguide.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-12336.html [accessed 12
February 2011] lists.goanet.org/pipermail/goanet-goanet.org/2005-July/033319.html [accessed 30 January
2018] The minor girl, Mallika, hailing from a poverty stricken family, was approached by a 'sympathetic-looking' Bangladeshi woman, who offered to take the girl to Mumbai with the promise that the family would see a change in their fortunes. At Apna Ghar, Mallika narrated her woeful tale of being bought in from Bangladesh and being forced into the prostitution trade, to the counselor appointed by the government. Speaking out for
the `nameless' S. Anil Radhakrishnan, The Hindu, May 31, 2005 www.hindu.com/lf/2005/05/31/stories/2005053100690200.htm [accessed 12
February 2011] "Anamika" (the nameless) is a documentary on
trafficking of women and children from Andhra Pradesh to various parts of the
country. It narrates how young girls
are deceived, forced or coerced to enter the trade every year. Little Hands of Slavery netGuruIndia At one time this
article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 6
September 2011] In the tender age
of five or six these children are made to work up to fifteen hours a day in
stone quarries, fields, picking rags on city streets or as domestic servants.
They do not go to school, and throughout their lifetime they possibly
wouldn’t even have the barest skills of literacy. The most important
fact that one has to keep in mind is that labor for these children is not
just for a means of living but often a compulsion for mere existence. These
children belong to extremely poor families where if they do not earn then the
family does not get to eat. At times in our society riddled with cruel
obligations, child labor comes to be a natural expectation for his or her
cast. The major factor
that contributes to the continuing problem of bonded child labor, is the
employers' desire for cheap labor. Fierce competition draws factory owners to
the plentiful supply of inexpensive, malleable, easily exploited child
laborers. Couple Arrested For
Human Trafficking Mumbai Newsline, Indian Express Newspapers (Mumbai) Ltd.,
January 26, 2005 [accessed 21 April
2012] Sunil Dayalkar alias Sanjay More and wife Kushi
alias Nishikant Biswas allegedly bought Asha (name
changed) from one Sanjay Dutt for Rs 65,000 and then forced her into prostitution. Asha finally escaped and approached the
SSB, who raided the Dayalkar’s house and arrested
the couple under the Prevention of Immoral Trafficking Act This Will Force Us
To Clean Up Our Act The Times of India,
Mar 28, 2005 timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/opinion/edit-page/VIEW-This-will-force-us-to-clean-up-our-act/articleshow/1063699.cms [accessed 12
February 2011] [accessed 30 January
2018] NGOs estimate that
at least 7,000 girls are trafficked into India from Nepal every year. They
mostly end up in brothels in metros, condemned to a life of deprivation and
torture. Children who are trafficked end up either in the flesh trade or
become child labor. 17,000 Nepal Women
Forced Into Prostitution In India Xinhua News Agency,
March 26, 2005 english.people.com.cn/200503/26/eng20050326_178321.html [accessed 12
February 2011] According to the
study, the investigators talked personally to the Nepali women in the brothels
of India in course of doing research.
Most of them fall prey to the avarice of family members. Local brokers
come second in the line of the process of selling them there. The Saving of
Innocents - The Satya Interview with Ruchira Gupta Satya, January 2005 www.satyamag.com/jan05/gupta.html [accessed 12
February 2011] An uncle or a family friend pays the parent something like $30. There is the middleman in a packed city, the border guard who takes a payoff, and the agent who takes the girls across the border to the people who then transport them to Bombay and on to the brothel madam, who buys the girls for $50 to $100. Human Trafficking
Situation In India Grim Times News Network
(The Times of India) TNN, Mumbai, Feb 4, 2005 timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1012186.cms [accessed 12
February 2011] "The Government of India has shown little progress in addressing anti-trafficking in persons concerns since May... In Mumbai, convictions for trafficking-related offences increased from three in 2003 to 11 thus far in 2004 but remain grossly unrepresentative in a city of over 18 million inhabitants." Slavery Today |
Introduction Auriana Ojeda. "Introduction." At Issue: Slavery
Today. Ed. Auriana Ojeda. San Diego: Greenhaven
Press, 2003. August 2004 www.enotes.com/slavery-today-article/ [accessed 12
February 2011] www.demes.teimes.gr/spoudastirio/E-NOTES/S/Slavery_Today_Viewpoints.pdf [accessed 30 January
2018] INTRODUCTION -- The most common
form of slavery today is debt bondage or bonded labor. A person enters into
debt bondage when his or her labor is demanded as a way to pay back a loan.
In India, for example, debts running from $14 to $214 are usually incurred
for basic necessities, such as food, medical emergencies, marriage dowries (a
long-standing cultural tradition), or funeral expenses. Taking into account
the outrageous interest rates, often in excess of 60 percent, and the
debtors’ meager wages, these loans are difficult, if not impossible, to
repay. Moreover, inaccurate bookkeeping on the part of the moneylender
ensures that the debtor never pays off the loan. Individuals are then forced
to repay loans by working for the moneylender for the rest of their lives and
often pass the same debt on to their children and grandchildren. Human rights
groups estimate that there are approximately 20 million bonded laborers
throughout the world. India could lead
the fight against human trafficking Vinay Kumar, The
Hindu, New Delhi, Feb 01, 2004 www.hindu.com/2004/02/01/stories/2004020114221000.htm [accessed 12
February 2011] In a bid to combat
the menace, the U.S. would like to expand its dialogue with India, including
its law enforcement agencies. Talking to The Hindu here, the visiting U.S.
Assistant Attorney-General, R. Alexander Acosta, said that India faced a
handicap in the fight against such crimes due to the lack of a federal law
enforcement agency. During the past
three years, the Vajpayee Government has tried to push the idea. But several
States have expressed doubts that it would usurp the rights of their police organisations. Lauding the shift
in India's approach to nab the traffickers, rather than the victims, Mr.
Acosta hoped that the trend would continue. The three Ps — prosecution,
prevention and protection — played a crucial role in checking trafficking. Probe into Iraq
trafficking claims CNN State Department
Producer Elise Labott, Washington DC, May 5, 2004 edition.cnn.com/2004/US/05/05/iraq.india.trafficking/ [accessed 12
February 2011] Indian press
reports said that Indian nationals in Jordan and Kuwait were recruited for
jobs in U.S. military camps in Iraq as cooks, butchers, laundry workers and
handymen. Some of the Indians charge
they signed up through Indian employment companies to work in Kuwait, but
ended up in Iraq working for low pay and were refused permission to leave the
country. Pulling the Rug out
from Under Us - A Report on Debt Bondage, Carpet-Marking, and Child Slavery Swathi Mehta, Tufts
University, American Anti-Slavery Group At one time this
article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 6
September 2011] Ironically, India,
the world’s largest democracy, is also home to more slaves than all the other
countries of the world combined.1
With roughly one billion inhabitants, India supports over 15% of the world’s
population.2
And with more than half of India’s population living below the income poverty
line3,
nearly 40% of the population cannot afford a sufficient diet.4
As inadequate government expenditure on education, health, and welfare
increases the high vulnerability of much of India’s vast population,
exploitation – even enslavement – are everyday realities for many Indians. Unresolved Crisis Sanjaya Dhakal,
Nepal News, VOL. 23, NO. 37, APR 02 -
APR 08 2004 ( CHAITRA 20, 2060
) At one time this
article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 6
September 2011] A recent study by
International Labor Organization (ILO) showed that around 12000 Nepalese
women and children are trafficked every year. They are mostly trafficked
across the border to India for the purpose of prostitution. Although Nepal has been suffering from this
problem for long, there are still no comprehensive data regarding the actual
situation of trafficking. “An analysis of
information from print media, case studies and surveys on trafficked
survivors shows the age groups, 11-18 years for girls and 6-12 years for boys
to be more vulnerable to trafficking. The percentage of trafficking is the
highest among hill ethnic groups, followed by Brahmin, Chhetri
and occupational castes. There is a great variation in data relating to the
educational level of trafficked persons. Nevertheless various reports show
that illiterate persons are more vulnerable than literate persons are,”
states the book. Child Prostitution
in Nepal/India Plan-UK At one time this
article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 6
September 2011] Every year,
thousands of Nepalese girls, some as young as 11 are sent to or procured for
brothels in the big Indian cities, like Bombay or Calcutta. They are often the
daughters of poor farming families, where everyone must help with the family
income. Girls have little or no earning potential, and if they are to marry
need substantial dowries. So, when the middleman arrives in the village, and
promises parents cash in return for taking the girls to work in India, or
perhaps in "the circus", and that they will be fed, housed and
cared for, the offer is hard to resist. In reality, many of
these girls are taken to work in Indian brothels, where new, young girls are
much sought after, and their families may never hear from them again. Anti
Trafficking -Save Our Sisters Movement (SOS) Robert I. Freidman,
"India's Shame" Sexual Slavery and Political Corruption Are Leading
to an AIDS Catastrophe," - The Nation, 8 April 1996 At one time this
article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 6
September 2011] EVERY HOUR, FOUR
WOMEN AND GIRLS IN INDIA ENTER PROSTITUTION, THREE OF THEM AGAINST THEIR WILL - 13-year-old Mira
of Nepal was offered a job as a domestic worker in Mumbai, India. Instead she
arrived at a brothel on Mumbai's Falkland Road, where tens of thousands of
young women are displayed in row after row of zoo-like animal cages. Her
father had been duped into giving her to a trafficker. When she refused to
have sex, she was dragged into a torture chamber in a dark alley used for
'breaking-in' new girls. She was locked in a narrow, windowless room without
food or water. On the fourth day, one of the madam's goondas (thug) wrestled
her to the floor and banged her head against the concrete until she passed
out. When she awoke, she was naked; a "rattan" cane smeared with
pureed red chilli peppers shoved into her vagina.
Later she was raped by the goonda. Afterwards, she complied with their
demands. The madam told Mira that she had been sold to the brothel for 50,000
rupees (about US$ 1,700), that she had to work until she paid off her debt.
Mira was sold to a client who became her pimp.' Young flesh in the
trade Malvika Kaul,
Women's Feature Service WFS, New Delhi, October 2004 indiatogether.org/2004/oct/hrt-traffic.htm [accessed 12
February 2011] Every year, an
average of 22,480 women and 44,476 children are reported missing in India.
Out of these, every year, an average of 5,452 women and 11,008 children are
not traced. A recent report, Action Research on Trafficking in Women and
Children in India - 2002-2003 indicates that many of the missing persons are
not really missing but are instead trafficked. Take the story of
Parvathi Vinayak, a young girl in Maharashtra who
was reported missing. She was abused and sexually exploited in a beer bar,
according to the report. Even when it was confirmed that PV had been
trafficked, the police records still had her name listed in the 'missing'
list. Similarly, Suhasini Lakshmi, a Class 9
student in Karnataka, was brought to Mumbai by her neighbour
for a job. While her parents complained to the police that she was missing,
SL was sold to a brothel-owner in Mumbai and was rescued after 20 days when
the brothel was raided by the police. - htcp Combating
Trafficking Of Women And Children In South Asia - Regional Synthesis Paper
for Bangladesh, India, and Nepal [PDF] This book was
prepared by staff and consultants of the Asian Development Bank, April 2003 www.adb.org/Documents/Books/Combating_Trafficking/Regional_Synthesis_Paper.pdf [accessed 12
February 2011] www.adb.org/sites/default/files/publication/30364/combating-trafficking-south-asia-paper.pdf [accessed 10
February 2019] At one time this article
had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] FOREWORD - Every year,
millions of Asian men, women, and even children, venture to new pastures—from
the village to the city and sometimes to another country. They are driven by
poverty, social exclusion or civil unrest. Their goal is to survive and earn
money for their families. For many—disproportionately women and
children—these journeys end tragically, as they fall into the hands of
traffickers. Modern Slavery Ricco Villanueva Siasoco, infoplease, April 18,
2001 www.infoplease.com/spot/slavery1.html [accessed 12
February 2011] CHILD "CARPET
SLAVES" IN INDIA
- Kidnapped from their villages when they are as young as five years old,
between 200,000 and 300,000 children are held captive in locked rooms and
forced to weave on looms for food. In India—as well in other countries—the
issue of slavery is exacerbated by a rigid caste system. The Dark Side of
Football - Child and adult labour in India's
football industry and the role of FIFA India Committee of
the Netherlands, June 8, 2000 At one time this
article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 6
September 2011] EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - The NLI report
estimates the average daily earning of an adult male in the sports goods
industry to be around Rs.20 (less than half a US dollar) which is about one
third of the present minimum wage of Rs.63 a day. Stitchers
are normally not aware of the concept of minimum wage and are not organized
by any trade union. Any protest or attempt to organize themselves can be
easily crushed as they are dependent on the contractors for work. The Small Hands of
Slavery - Bonded Child Labor in India Human Rights Watch,
September 1996, ISBN 1-56432-172-X, Library of Congress Catalog Card Number
96-77536 www.hrw.org/reports/1996/India3.htm [accessed 12
February 2011] SUMMARY - With credible
estimates ranging from 60 to 115 million, India has the largest number of
working children in the world. Whether they are sweating in the heat of stone
quarries, working in the fields sixteen hours a day, picking rags in city
streets, or hidden away as domestic servants, these children endure miserable
and difficult lives. They earn little and are abused much. They struggle to
make enough to eat and perhaps to help feed their families as well. They do
not go to school; more than half of them will never learn the barest skills
of literacy. Many of them have been working since the age of four or five,
and by the time they reach adulthood they may be irrevocably sick or
deformed-they will certainly be exhausted, old men and women by the age of forty,
likely to be dead by fifty. India/Nepal: Rape
for Profit Human Rights Watch,
New York, June 16, 1995 www.hrw.org/english/docs/1995/06/16/india4167.htm [accessed 12
February 2011] In a report released
today, Human Rights Watch, the New York-based human rights organization,
charged that women and girls trafficked from Nepal into India for the purpose
of prostitution are kept in conditions tantamount to slavery. Held in debt
bondage for years at a time, they are raped and subjected to severe beatings,
exposure to AIDS, and arbitrary imprisonment. Both the Indian and Nepali
governments are complicit in the abuses suffered by trafficking victims. Child Labour Persists Around The World: More Than 13 Percent Of
Children 10-14 Are Employed International Labour Organisation (ILO) News,
Geneva, 10 June 1996 www.ilo.org/global/about-the-ilo/press-and-media-centre/news/WCMS_008058/lang--en/index.htm [accessed 9
September 2011] www.scribd.com/document/366840945/Child-Labour-Persists-Around-the-World [accessed 30 January
2019] "Today's child
worker will be tomorrow's uneducated and untrained adult, forever trapped in
grinding poverty. No effort should be spared to break that vicious
circle", says ILO Director-General Michel Hansenne. Among the countries
with a high percentage of their children from 10-14 years in the work force
are: Mali, 54.5 percent; Burkina Faso, 51; Niger and Uganda, both 45; Kenya,
41.3; Senegal, 31.4; Bangladesh, 30.1; Nigeria, 25.8; Haiti, 25; Turkey, 24;
Côte d'Ivoire, 20.5; Pakistan, 17.7; Brazil, 16.1; India, 14.4; China, 11.6; and Egypt, 11.2. Concluding Observations
of the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) UN Convention on the
Rights of the Child, 26 February 2004 www1.umn.edu/humanrts/crc/india2004.html [accessed 10
February 2011] [74] The Committee
welcomes the ratification of the South Asian Association for Regional
Cooperation (SAARC) Convention on Preventing and Combating Trafficking in
Women and Children for Prostitution; the adoption of a plan of action to
combat trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation of women and children;
the initiative to undertake a study, inter alia, to collect data on the
number of children and women who become victims of sexual exploitation and
trafficking; and the Pilot Projects to Combat Trafficking of Children for
Commercial Sexual Exploitation in Destination and Source Areas, but remains
concerned that the Immoral Traffic Prevention Act, 1986 does not define
trafficking and limits its scope to sexual exploitation. In addition, the
Committee expresses its concern at the increasing number of child victims of
sexual exploitation, including prostitution and pornography. Concern is also
expressed at the insufficient programs for the physical and psychological
recovery and social reintegration of child victims of such abuse and
exploitation. ***
EARLIER EDITIONS OF SOME OF THE ABOVE *** Human Rights
Reports » 2005 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices U.S. Dept of State Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and
Labor, March 8, 2006 2009-2017.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/2005/61707.htm [accessed 9 February
2020] TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS – Within the country, women from economically depressed areas often moved to cities seeking greater economic opportunities, and once there they were often forced by traffickers into prostitution. In many cases, family members sold young girls into prostitution. Extreme poverty, combined with the low social status of women, often resulted in parents handing over their children to strangers for what they believed was employment or marriage. In some instances, parents received payments or the promise that their children would send wages back home. According to the Indian Center for Indigenous and Tribal Peoples, more than 40 thousand tribal women, mainly from Orissa and Bihar, were forced into economic and sexual exploitation; many came from tribes driven off their land by national park plans. A Haryana-based NGO revealed widespread trafficking of teenaged girls and young boys from poverty-stricken Assam to wealthier Haryana and Punjab for sexual slavery under the pretext of entering into arranged marriages or for forced labor. There was also significant trafficking for real marriages due to decades of large-scale and increasing female feticide. Boys, often as
young as age four were trafficked to the Middle East or the Persian Gulf as
jockeys in camel races, and many boys ended up as beggars in Saudi Arabia
during Hajj (pilgrimage). The majority of such children worked with the
knowledge of their parents, who received $200 (Rs.
9,300) for their child's labor. Many children were kidnapped for forced
labor, with kidnappers earning approximately $150 (Rs.
seven thousand) per month from the labor of each child. The child's names
were usually added to the passport of a Bangladeshi or female citizen who
already had a visa for the Gulf. Girls and women were trafficked to the
Persian Gulf states to work as domestic workers or for commercial sexual exploitation The Department of Labor’s 2004 Findings on
the Worst Forms of Child Labor U.S. Dept of Labor Bureau of International Labor Affairs, 2005 www.dol.gov/ilab/media/reports/iclp/tda2004/india.htm [accessed 10
February 2011] Note:: Also check out this country’s report in the more recent edition DOL
Worst Forms of Child Labor INCIDENCE
AND NATURE OF CHILD LABOR - Bonded or forced child labor is a problem and exists
in several industries. Recent reports
indicate that the practice exists in carpet manufacturing and silk weaving. India is a source,
destination, and transit country for trafficking of children for the purposes
of commercial sexual exploitation and other forms of exploitive labor.
Children are reported to be trafficked from India to the Middle East and
Western countries such as the United States and Europe; into India from
Bangladesh and Nepal; and through the country to Pakistan and the Middle
East. Mumbai, Calcutta and New Delhi are major destination cities for
young girls trafficked from Nepal and Bangladesh for the purpose of
commercial sexual exploitation. Children are also trafficked within India for
sexual exploitation and forced or bonded labor. Organized crime and police
corruption were common factors that contributed to the overall situation of
trafficking in India. An August 2004
study by the government estimated that almost half of the trafficked children
interviewed were between the ages of 11 to 14 years. All
material used herein reproduced under the fair use exception of 17 USC § 107
for noncommercial, nonprofit, and educational use. PLEASE RESPECT COPYRIGHTS OF COMPONENT
ARTICLES. Cite this webpage as: Patt,
Prof. Martin, "Human Trafficking & Modern-day Slavery - India",
http://gvnet.com/humantrafficking/India.htm, [accessed <date>] |
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