State vulnerable to human trafficking

Staff Reporter DIMAPUR, OCTOBER 7 The demand for child domestic helpers is promoting human trafficking, and in Nagaland there is a huge demand for child domestic helpers, according to Prodigals Home Director K. Ela. She was addressing a seminar on the theme ‘Human Trafficking from the local context’ organized by Miqlat Ministry here today. K Ela said the figures of children trafficked in Nagaland are never known. She is of the view that craving for attractive jobs among the Nagas puts every individual at risk. She said night clubs are places where professional traffickers harvest the vulnerable people. According to Ela, Dimapur is a hotbed for prostitution and Nagaland is a breeding ground for illegal adoptions. She lamented that human beings are sold and bought like animals. Ela said ignorance of the local community on the issue is one factor where people indulging in human trafficking take advantage. She attributed poverty as another factor for the problem and opined that lack of political will leads to increase in human trafficking. The Prodigals Home Director suggested that the government should have the zeal and interest to tackle the matter. She further stressed that the state Education department should improve the quality of education so that poverty stricken parents need not send their children elsewhere for free education and make their children victims of human trafficking. Also speaking on the occasion, Gracy Aye, State co-coordinator, State Resource Centre for Women (SRCW), said Goa is a hub for Northeast women who are trafficked into various trades with false promises. American Baptist International Ministries Global consultant Rev. Dr. Lauran Bethell focusing on ‘Human Trafficking from Global Perspective’ said in India statistics on human trafficking are not available. “Human trafficking is the exploitation of vulnerability,” said Rev. Dr. Lauran Bethell and called upon the right thinking individuals to refrain from using the word ‘choice’ for victims of prostitution. She also held pornography responsible for encouraging human trafficking. Dr Bethell said the United Nations statistics on human trafficking estimated that 7 to 40 lakh women and children are being trafficked around the world every year. She stated that Sweden is be the only country where number of cases of human trafficking has declined in the past decade chiefly due to the ‘Nordic law’ where the victims of prostitution are not criminalized but the clients are fixed by the authority. Rev. Kabi Gangmei, executive director of Asia Pacific Baptist Federation Aid, stressed on the concerns and challenges of the church pertaining to human trafficking. He said human trafficking is a complex issue which cannot be solved only through the police point of view or law enforcement. The collective coordination of every individual can thwart the problem, according to Rev Kabi Gangmei. Additional SP of Dimapur Wati Chuchang Jamir while speaking on the issue said there are many stories on human trafficking in the State to be recorded and this has become a threat to the Naga society. He also said the growing demand for cheap labour and sex slaves in Dimapur has opened doors for professional human traffickers to take advantage. Harping on the challenges faced by police personnel, the police officer lamented that less importance is given to the issue and this has become a problem for policemen to trace the missing persons. He rued that many of the police officers have become lethargic.