Trafficking Problem in Nepal

Due to special and disastrous circumstances, Nepal is a major and growing source of girls trafficked into the brothels of India. The International Labour Organization estimates that 10,000 Nepalese girls and young women are sold annually into sexual slavery in India, and approximately 100,000 currently are being held there.

All of the major societal and economic causes of female trafficking exist in Nepal and are exacerbated by: (1) a 1,000 mile "open" border with India allowing free access; (2) a widespread Maoist insurgency which has diverted the attention and resources of law and governmental officials; and, (3) strong demand for Nepali girls who are viewed by brothel customers as "exotic."

In addition, Nepal faces a growing health crisis as returning victims of trafficking spread a variety of diseases in a country with extremely limited public health resources. Official estimates are that 70% of returning victims are HIV/AIDS positive. Nepal, one of the poorest nations in the world, shares with India a human rights and public health disaster. Within a short distance of the Indian border 3,000,000 Nepalese girls and women
between the ages of 8 to 20 remain at high risk.

Where do the girls come from?
Nepal is a small landlocked country lying between India and Tibet. In the hills and valleys of Nepal, in small villages isolated from contact with the outside world, live 24 million of the poorest people in the world. A high percentage of the rural population speak only local tribal languages, not even Nepali, the lingua franca of their country. Educational or medical facilities are extemely limited or non-existant, and there is a high level of malnutrition, especially among children. The population, as in most developing countries, is growing rapidly. One half of the population is under 23 years of age

The place of women in Nepali society
In Nepal, women are social and legally treated as second class citizens. Young girls are a financial liability to families who must often pay a dowry to marry their daughters.The basic literacy rate among rural women is approximately 25%. The female population between the ages of 12 and 18 is approximately 2,000,000 girls and young women- most of them are at risk to trafficking. An estimated 10,000 Nepalese girls were trafficked into brothels in India last year and the number is increasing rapidly.

How families are deceived into allowing their young daughters to leave home
Poor families are deceived by the fraudulent promise of an arranged marriage, or by promises of legitimate employment for their daughters in Kathmandu or India In addition, many girls are taken from their home under false pretences by an unscrupulous relative or so-called friend who was trusted by the family.

What happens once the girls are taken from their homes?
Traffickers take small groups of girls across the open border with India, and sell them to brothel owners in major Indian cities. Once sold, most girls are tort u red, beaten and raped until submission. They are forced to accept a quota of a least 20 clients a day. When the young women have a health examination, the price of the consultation is taken out of their allowance. They are checked for AIDS, venereal diseases and must submit to abortion. Once diagnosed as HIV positive they are rounded up and taken by truck to the mountainous Nepalese border and abandoned there without food or shelter. Many returned girls are suffering from AIDS, hepatitis and other sexually transmitted diseases. The damage, both physical and psychological, is incalculable, and the human suffering is unspeakable.

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