Description
Trafficking is a major part of the social and economic structure of Nepal. Currently, very high numbers of young girls are taken from Nepal into India as trafficked sex workers. It is estimated that 5,000 to 7,000 girls are trafficked to India each year (Poudel & Carryer, 2000). There are many factors contributing to the continued practice of sex trafficking in Nepal, including poverty, migration (due to both high levels of poverty in rural areas and the Maoist insurgency), and the low status of women in Nepali society. The current research is focused on the status of women as a contributing factor to trafficking. Nepali women are encouraged to accept their submissive position in life without complaint and are discouraged from trying to control men. Even though 50 percent of rural Nepali children are enrolled in primary school, only 23 percent of girls attend secondary school. Girls are often sent off to find work to supplement family income, denying them a chance to receive a full education. Even today, an educated Nepali woman is seen as a potential threat to her husband (Asian Development Bank, 2003).
Sex for sale: an investigation into the status of Nepali women as a root cause of sex trafficking
Trafficking is a major part of the social and economic structure of Nepal. Currently, very high numbers of young girls are taken from Nepal into India as trafficked sex workers. It is estimated that 5,000 to 7,000 girls are trafficked to India each year (Poudel & Carryer, 2000). There are many factors contributing to the continued practice of sex trafficking in Nepal, including poverty, migration (due to both high levels of poverty in rural areas and the Maoist insurgency), and the low status of women in Nepali society. The current research is focused on the status of women as a contributing factor to trafficking. Nepali women are encouraged to accept their submissive position in life without complaint and are discouraged from trying to control men. Even though 50 percent of rural Nepali children are enrolled in primary school, only 23 percent of girls attend secondary school. Girls are often sent off to find work to supplement family income, denying them a chance to receive a full education. Even today, an educated Nepali woman is seen as a potential threat to her husband (Asian Development Bank, 2003).