Kathmandu, October 17

The Central Investigation Bureau of Nepal Police has busted a human trafficking racket operating under the cloak of manpower and travel agencies.

CIB swooped on the racket after 16 persons recently rescued and sent home by International Organisation for Migration and United Arab Emirates-based Non-Resident Nepali Association National Coordination Committee filed a complaint with the law enforcement agency against the alleged racketeers.

The suspects of human trafficking ring nabbed by CIB are Ishwor Bhandari, 38, of Baglung, Birghaman Gurung, 27, of Gorkha; Raju Ghale, 31, of Gorkha and Bhanu Dhakal, 31, of Kailali. SP Jeevan Shrestha, CIB spokesperson, said the manpower and travel agents trafficked the victims to UEA on tourist visa with the assurance of a lucrative job there.

The IOM and NRN NCC-UAE in association with Abudhabi-based Embassy of Nepal had rescued the victims and sent them home recently. “Upon their return, they lodged a complaint with CIB against the suspects for legal action. The rackeeters had collected Rs 200,000 to Rs 500,000 each from the victims with the promise of an attractive job in Dubai,” SP Shrestha said.

“No foreign citizen is allowed to hold any job in UAE without obtaining work permit and thus the victims were deemed to be illegal. When the UAE authorities were preparing to initiate legal action against them, the embassy, IOM and NRNA NCC-UAE came to their rescue,” he added.

Kathmandu District Court has remanded the alleged human trafficking agents to seven-day judicial custody. Human traffickers have been using tourist visa to send migrant workers abroad before leaving them in the lurch.

International Relations and Labour Committee of the Parliament had recently released a report, saying racketeers were working in collusion with customs officials at Tribhuvan International Airport to traffic Nepalis to Gulf countries.

“Nepal is turning into a source country of human trafficking due to inaction by Department of Immigration and diplomatic missions abroad,” it read. The committee also observed that Nepali migrant workers were not given jobs as promised before leaving country and manpower agent were cheating them.

Nepali women and girls trafficked by organised crime syndicates used to end up in Indian cities like New Delhi and Mumbai. Now trafficking is not limited to neighbouring countries. The web of trafficking has gradually spread to the Gulf, Middle East, Africa and Latin America.

Lack of extradition treaty with the new destination countries has posed a serious challenge to Nepal Police’s efforts to bring home many accused of human trafficking, said security officials.