World Day Against Human Trafficking: 15,000 Nepalis Trafficked Per Year

Nepal observes World Day Against Human Trafficking in Persons along with the rest of the world on July 30, 2019. The Himalayan nation has been observing this day for the past 12 years.

The United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution in 2013 to celebrate July 30 as World Day Against Human Trafficking in Persons.

Nepal as an UN member state had enacted and implemented the Human Trafficking and Transportation Control  Act 2007 and Human Trafficking and Transportation Regulations 2008.

Much earlier in 2002, the erstwhile Nepal Legislature-Parliament endorsed the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Convention on Preventing and Combating the Trafficking in Women at the 11^th SAARC Summit.

World Human Trafficking Statistics and Scenario in Nepal

• According to a study conducted by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), more than 4 million people including men, women and children are trafficked per year, globally.
• As per statistics from human rights organizations, as many as 230,000 women and girls are trafficked for flesh trade every year.
• Human Traffickers target uneducated and innocent women and girls from South Asian countries. On an average 15,000 people are trafficked each year on the promise of providing lucrative jobs.
• According to a Nepal National Human Rights Commission report, 7,000 women and children are trafficked every year.
• Maiti Nepal, a non-profit organization against human trafficking has said that more than 5,000 women are trafficked to foreign nations via India.
• More than 40,000 women have been victims of human trafficking in the last 10 years. Nepal experts have attributed poverty as the main cause of human trafficking in the country.

The Nepal Government has to step up its measures against human trafficking as the crime continues to be rampant in many parts of the country. While there are already stringent efforts in place from Nepal NGOs and human rights organizations, a lot has to be taken care of to substantially reduce Nepal’s crime rate. (#HumanTrafficking #EndHumanTrafficking)