Annual Report - National Human Rights Commission

Annexure 12
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
○
conformity with the human rights of the survivor/victim. They should also specify the
accountability of the agencies concerned in providing services. These guidelines should not be
confined to law enforcement and justice delivery, but also extend to prescribing minimum standards
with respect to prevention, rehabilitation, counselling, providing livelihood options, economic
and social empowerment, etc. These are grey areas in which many stakeholders find it difficult
to function effectively for want of appropriate orientation. For example, the girls rescued in
2002 in Delhi were from different states in India. The government officials of NCT Delhi did try
their best to network with the officials of the concerned state governments. Though many states
cooperated, some did not. However, after the High Court intervened, things moved in a positive
direction. Perhaps appropriate guidelines on such issues would have made the situation easier
and facilitated in the protection of rights of all concerned. Considering the fact that this is an area
where the central government and all state governments are involved, it would be appropriate to
prepare these guidelines of minimum standards of care under the aegis of NHRC and thereupon,
the state governments could incorporate them in the rules to be issued under ITPA and the
Government of India could incorporate them in the NPA.
Multidisciplinary Approach in Combating Trafficking
The Constitution of India, under Article 23, explicitly prohibits trafficking for any type of
exploitation, including commercial sexual exploitation, labour and servitude. Research has shown
that issues relating to trafficking in women and children cut across departments, agencies and all
such boundaries, but the response from governmental and other agencies has been sectarian,
segmented and, usually, unidimensional. Anti-trafficking activities should, therefore, be integrated
into polices, programmes and projects of all ministries and departments which have any bearing
on the issues concerned with or related not only to trafficked persons but also to the persons who
are vulnerable to trafficking. It calls for a multidisciplinary integrated approach by all the concerned
government agencies.
National Nodal Agency
The research has brought out the wide gap between the various government agencies at the
centre and in the states in addressing the problems related to trafficking. A national nodal agency
to counter human trafficking needs to be set up, by integrating the anti-trafficking activities of
the central government and state governments, especially involving the departments of women
and child, labour, social justice, health, home, tourism, railways, information and broadcasting,
law and justice, and agencies like NACO and CBI. An MOU among these agencies, perhaps
taking cue from the Thailand MOU, may be required for effective coordination. Since an
amendment of the ITPA is in the pipeline, this nodal agency could be built into the Act itself.
Considering the fact that this involves the central government and all state governments, it would
be appropriate if this is set up by DWCD under the aegis of the NHRC. The state governments,
as advised by the NHRC during this research, have already earmarked two nodal officers in
each state (one representing the police and the other representing the welfare/women and child
development departments). Integrating them into the proposed national nodal agency could
National Human Rights Commission Annual Report - 2004-2005
271
AR-Chapter-1-19-10-6-06.p65
291
7/17/06, 6:31 PM