Laws that lacked teeth to take stringent action against culprits have been encouraging human trafficking, Justice (retired) K.G. Balakrishnan, the chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission, has said.
He was speaking after inaugurating an international seminar on ‘Measures to combat Human Trafficking: International and National Perspectives’ organised by the Paralegal Training and Institutional Centre in association with the Government Law College, Thrissur, here on Thursday.
“Human trafficking and child labour are becoming rampant even though there are many human rights organisations and NGOs functioning here. (As many as) 12.66 million children are working in hazardous sectors. About 2.8 million women are subjected to commercial sex exploitation,” he said.
Increase in mobility and growth of industries were the main factors promoting human trafficking, Mr. Balakrishnan said. Coal mines, textile and food sectors were the major sectors where child labour was rampant, he added.
Delivering the keynote address, Roza Pati, professor and director of Human Trafficking Academy, St. Thomas University School of Law, Miami, USA, said people’s vulnerability was the main reason for the increase in the rate of trafficking. Quoting statistics from the International Labour Organisation, she said 20.9 million people suffered under modern day slavery. More than 98 per cent of the victims of trafficking entered sex trade. There should be a system for prevention of trafficking, prosecution of traffickers and protection of victims, she said.
D.J. Ravindran, advisor, Asian Institute for Human Rights, Bangkok; and Maria, a lawyer and social activist, spoke on ‘Trafficking women for commercial sexual exploitation’. S.S. Giri Sankar, faculty, Government Law College, Ernakulam; and S. Anuja, faculty, National Law School of Indian University, Bangalore spoke on ‘Trafficking for Labour: Modern Forms of Slavery’.
The two-day workshop will conclude on Friday.
