An Insight on History and Causes of Girls Trafficking in Nepal

Abstract

Every year a large number of Nepalese girls born in poverty and hardship, these sectors of the population are vulnerable of being trafficked to India and other parts of the World. The history of girls trafficking in Nepal predates modern borders and international laws. The tradition of sending young girls to work in other places has existed for centuries. Historical records indicate that traffickers have taken advantage of the open border between Nepal and India, facilitating the movement of thousands of girls into the sex trade. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted with key informants from Maiti Nepal, Shakti Shamuha, and Nava Jyoti. Data are gathered from structured and unstructured questionnaires, utilizing Purposive sampling to align with the research goals of exploring the history of girl Trafficking in Nepal, identifying laws made to tackle it and its root causes and assessing the social stigma and discrimination against the trafficked girls in the society. The study found some major aspects of it. The major causes of girls' trafficking were found to be poverty, unemployment with low level of education, and bad culture/tradition. The open border between Nepal and India and the lack of implementation of laws were also found some of the causes. Although efforts were made to tackle the problem of trafficking, most victims from the rescue centers were found to have suffered from social stigma, religious factors, discrimination, psychological stress, and physical and sexual abuse in their society.