The Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) has decided to prepare a municipal work procedure to monitor and curb the activities relating to human trafficking in the city area. The work procedure would be based on the regulation the government prepared earlier. It is for the implementation with coordination at local levels.
The government had brought the Act against Human Trafficking, 2064; Regulation, 2065; and Work Procedure, 2070. The top leadership for it is Secretary at the federal level and Chief District Officer at the respective district. Similarly, at the local level, there is a chief of municipality/sub-metropolis/metropolis to implement the work procedure against human trafficking.
During a meeting with the stakeholders on Thursday, KMC Deputy Mayor Hari Prabha Khadgi Shrestha said as the form of human trafficking has changed over time, strong collaboration among various sides was essential. Even the social networking sites were used as a medium to lure people for human trafficking, he added.
On the occasion, an officer at Shanti Foundation, Shanta Dhakal, referred to a study that many unemployed youths were unknowingly falling victims to social networking sites, thereby getting exploited. "Although the youths are attracted quickly to enter the entertainment sector, it is difficult for them to ensure regular income and development of professional skills," she said, reminding that many of such youths finally resort to sex works after they face severe financial problems.
Other speakers at the program also said the nature of the crime of human trafficking was changed with a changed context. The restaurants, foreign employment, and entertainment sectors could be risky areas in the city in terms of human trafficking.
