raise issue at Saarc summit

They said a draft on the proposed bilateral agreement has already been prepared by Bangladesh National Women Lawyers' Association (BNWLA) after consultation with different legal and human rights organisations and government representatives of both Bangladesh and India, and it has been sent to the Prime Minister's Office for review.

The national workshop on 'Bilateral agreement: A cross-border perspective on prosecution of traffickers and smooth repatriation of trafficked victims' was organised by the BNWLA at Brac Centre Inn in the city.

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The speakers said as there are many incidents of trafficking between Bangladesh and India, an agreement on this issue should be signed between the two countries first. Later, the same type of agreements might be signed with other countries, they added.

Saarc Convention on Prevention and Combating Trafficking in Women and Children deals only with those who are trafficked for prostitution. But there are many other reasons for which they are trafficked, said BNWLA Executive Director Advocate Salma Ali.

She said due to lack of bilateral agreement, the traffickers remain out of touch. There are many examples that cases were filed against the traffickers and the court also convicted them, but the judgement could not be executed as the convicts remain out of touch.

The draft of the agreement suggests preventive measures, smooth repatriation for rehabilitation, and sharing of information between the concerned agencies of the two countries' said Advocate Shirin Nahar, deputy program manager of BNWLA .

A core group comprising the representatives of BNWLA, Ain O Salish Kendra, Incidin, Ubinig and Action Against Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation of Children has been formed to persuade the government in this respect.

The core group along with human rights activists from India and Pakistan will also hold a meeting on January 6 and 7 with a view to urge the government heads of the Saarc countries to sign and ratify the bilateral agreement.

Ubinig Executive Director Farida Akhter, ATSEC Bangladesh Executive Director Imranul Haque Chowdhury, Senior Assistant Judge of Narayanganj Badrul Alam Bhuiyan, also spoke.

BNWLA Programme Manager Manjura Aktar Chowdhury presented a keynote paper at the workshop.