Trafficking of girls and women on the rise

A report in The Daily Star on June 3 highlighted the harrowing experiences of three trafficked victims who were lured to India under false promises of getting well-paying decent jobs. In reality, they were lured by members of a sex trafficking ring, sexually abused and forced into prostitution. Thousands of women and girls have already been trafficked from Bangladesh to India and other countries, and the trend seems to be increasing with the traffickers finding new ways to prey on vulnerable girls and women.

One of the victims, a 16-year-old girl, has filed a case against 12 suspected sex traffickers under the Prevention and Suppression of Human Trafficking Act, 2012. She was able to do so only after fleeing with two other women from Bangalore, India, where they had been forced into sex work for 77 days. It's a relief that three of the 12 suspects have already been apprehended. The Deputy Commissioner of Tejgaon zone of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) said that another five suspects are inside Bangladesh right now. We hope that they will be arrested and brought to justice soon.

Among the three alleged culprits currently behind bars, two have already confessed. According to these statements, one of them trafficked 1,000 women to India in eight years, while another helped to traffic at least 500 women to India by crossing the border. Incidentally, the first arrests of this kind were made by the Indian police. A video clip of torture and sexual assault that had gone viral prompted the Indian police to arrest six Bangladeshis involved with this crime. On the other hand, Bangladeshi law enforcers have found information about an international human trafficking racket which consists of some Bangladeshi personnel. The good news is that Bangladesh Police has arrested four members of this racket, one of whom is the leader of this group, and placed them on a five-day remand.

We urge the government to strictly implement the human trafficking prevention act and also the courts to mete out exemplary punishment to the traffickers. The government deserves kudos for establishing seven special tribunals to ensure the trial of human trafficking cases proceeds in a speedy manner. All the investigative branches of the police now have to remain alert so that no more trafficking takes place, while the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) has to remain vigilant on a continuous basis to prevent this crime. There is, moreover, a crying need for more support for those who are rescued from the grips of these traffickers so that they can return to their families and communities and be treated with compassion and dignity. Rehabilitation programmes for the trafficking victims have to be prioritised.