Only recently, Mithu Das could trace her tormentors back in Gujarat where she was shuttled from town to town by her traffickers and raped by the so-called money-spinning clients. Thanks to her sharp memory, she could take the cops to raid the exact safe-houses where she was kept under lock and key by her offenders. She remembers every address of the mazy streets and dark dingy alleys that she was bundled in for days on end.
Consequently, a notorious chain of 10 men and women members of the inter-state child trafficking-and-prostitution ring was intercepted and brought to book. Unfortunately, not many turn out to be as lucky as this 13-year old doughty teenage girl who defies all dangers to get her perpetrators arrested and bring them behind bars. Most culprits of this reprehensible crime go scot-free, owing to the lack of evidence, first-hand witness and fear of social disgrace. The ill-fated victims remain doomed for life and nothing is really done to bring this distressed lot into the mainstream.
Records reveal that human trafficking is one of the three most profit-making ways in the world of illegal trade and business. Right after the illicit arms and drugs dealing, human trafficking alone does global business of about $32 billion every year. Statistics show that around one million people are trafficked annually across various international borders. Today, trafficking has become a gigantic global problem, putting at peril not only the issue of human rights but also human life on the whole.
It is a global menace — an organised racket that operates via a queue of middlemen and touts liaising with an unholy nexus. Like rest of the world, the state of West Bengal too falls within its reach and writhes in pain from its poisonous sting. The tentacles of human trafficking spread far and wide to sprout an area of grave concern that needs to be addressed with immediate actions.
In its bid to eradicate this vicious cycle of criminal offence, the government of West Bengal, along with the Unicef, have identified districts like the North and South 24 parganas, Murshidabad, Malda, Birbhum, Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri et al as the specific zones which are badly affected by the threat of rampant human trafficking, especially of women for flesh trade.
To monitor drug abuse and trafficking trends, the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), in a joint initiative with the Kolkata police and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), unveiled the Bengali version of an eight-minute anti-human trafficking documentary titled One Life No Price in Kolkata recently.
Originally written on a CD format, the CII has taken up the task of transforming the documentary into a film capsule. Besides, the issue-based audio-visual project incorporated a Bengali voiceover by noted elocutionist Satinath Mukhopadhyay for a pervasive reach of better awareness drives in the far-flung districts of West Bengal, where the crime is rife. Apart from this, the CII has also facilitated printing of 12,000 posters in Bengali for distribution at local police stations as well as panchayats in the earmarked districts of the province.
The film has been directed by Rajesh Touchdriver and, interestingly, includes crucial bites of Bollywood stars like Amitabh Bachchan, Preity Zinta and John Abraham. The stars condemn the crime and pitch in their urgent protests against human trafficking. The short-length docu-fiction, based on true-life incidents, also refers to places like Andhra Pradesh, Goa and Jhadkhand where the germ of trafficking against women, teenagers and minor boys and girls is widespread.
With a view to shed more light on this plaguing issue, a press meet was held recently, followed by the movie screening, in Kolkata. An eminent panel of dignitaries was present at the event who expressed their opinion on the social ill.
Addressing the gathering, the city police commissioner Goutam Mohan Chakraborty, raised a special wrinkle of worry hovering over the sex-based human trafficking. He declared legal complexities as one of the major hindrances to redress the crisis with tough arms. Another problem, he explained, was providing a decent and dignified life to the rescued victims. “It is up to the custodians of social law and order to prevent the released inmates to suffer in silence and survive in shambles. Why should they pay a penalty of something they haven’t committed in the first place? Instead, they should be motivated to spring back into action with renewed vigour and vengeance. It is not supposedly the end of the road for them, but to experience a new dawn ahead of their eyes,” he said. He further urged the business fraternity like the CII “to come forward and impart necessary training as well as employment opportunities to sustain the worst-hit victims in the near future”.
Dr Malini Bhattacharya, chairperson, West Bengal Commission for Women, opined that “awareness against human trafficking should not be restricted only within the social sectors that are adversely affected but also spread out to other segments” of the civil society, who though not being necessarily victimised by this punishable act, have the potential to intervene. “This is a social stigma and a shame on the face of a modern-day civilised society. Such atrocities against women and children should be routed with an exemplary punishment. After all, it’s a culpable offence,” she said. Stressing on the importance of earning one’s livelihood in the process of rehabilitation, she, however, urged that any sort of rehabilitation work for these traumatised victims should be adopted with a sensitive approach rather than a harsh, mechanical dealing.
Referring to human trafficking as an organised crime, Cristina Albertin, regional representative, UNODC, south-east Asia said that it is a gross violation of human rights and dignity, thereby spurting violence and exploitation on numerous counts. In her speech, she talked about the International Convention of 3 Ps — Penalisation of traffickers, Prevention of trafficking and Protection of the victims. In this context, she hailed the film One Life No Price as “a very meaningful and significant endeavour to generate social consciousness among the local population.”
“Poverty is the primary reason behind this epidemic pestilence called human trafficking throughout the world,” said Prof. Bharati Roy, former pro-vice-chancellor, University of Calcutta. Nonetheless, she emphasised that while necessary steps are to be taken to control this social malady right at the root of the supply levels by spreading awareness through education, significant measures should also be taken at the demand side where law-enforcers have a key role to play. She reiterated that “publicising the issue in this area will call for little investment in comparison to reaping huge benefits from the same. Or else, it would be really difficult to stop this heinous crime from spreading.”
In his welcome address, Ram Agarwal, chairman, CII, West Bengal State Council, said that a core committee had already been organised to forge a partnership contract between the corporate houses with law-enforcement agencies and civil society partners, alongwith the UNODC, to resolve matters related to human trafficking and that CII has been entrusted with the responsibility of being the nodal point for all future activities. In this regard, the CII team has been doing a detailed profiling of the employable victims alongwith distribution of awareness posters to panchayats and police stations in several districts of the state. In reference to the film, Agarwal said that “the documentary will be showcased in different malls, cinema halls and multiplexes, Metro stations and regional television channels.”