Cross-Border Trafficking in Nepal and India—Violating Women’s Rights

Citation:

Deane, Tameshnie. 2010. “Cross-Border Trafficking in Nepal and India—Violating Women’s Rights.” Human Rights Review 11 (4): 491-513.

Author: Tameshnie Deane

Abstract:

Human trafficking is both a human rights violation and the fastest growing criminal industry in the world. This article examines cross-border trafficking of girls and women in Nepal to India. It gives a brief explanation of what is meant by trafficking and then looks at the reasons behind trafficking. In Nepal, women and children are trafficked internally and to India and the Middle East for commercial sexual exploitation or forced marriage, as well as to India and within the country for involuntary servitude as child workers, domestic servants, circus entertainment, and factory workers. Nepal and India are both signatories to international conventions and bound by domestic law to combat trafficking, and yet, this scourge continues. There are many laws in place, both in Nepal and India, which regulate the trafficking and prostituting of girls and women. This article looks at how effective these laws and regulations actually are and will look at the reasons for the continuation of trafficking. Despite the formal recognition of girl trafficking as a major problem and the existence of laws to curtail it, trafficking continues. The major problem with Nepal’s and India’s domestic laws is in the lack of enforcement. Finally, this article will look at ways to fight trafficking and make the governments of India and Nepal more effective in their fight against trafficking.

Keywords: Trafficking, commercial sexual exploitation, slavery, sale of humans, human rights

Annotation:

• Article is mostly devoted to descriptive coverage of the specific international conventions, international and domestic (Nepal & India) laws, and protocols that relate to trafficking as well as penalties and the failures of the Indian and Nepalese governments to appropriately comply and implement international standards.

Topics: Corruption, Gender, Women, Girls, Governance, Rights, Human Rights, Sexual Violence, Sexual Slavery, Trafficking, Sex Trafficking Regions: Asia, South Asia Countries: India, Nepal

Year: 2010