1. Human Trafficking
in Nepal
Public Release of Human
Trafficking Assessment Tool
Report for Nepal

2. ROLL-OUT EVENT IN WASHINGTON, DC
In June 2012, ABA ROLI
released its HTAT Report
for Nepal, funded by
Humanity United.
Following the release,
experts from Free the
Slaves, Global Centurion
Foundation, GoodWeave
USA, Solidarity Center,
U.S. Department of Labor,
and U.S. Department of
State, discussed effective
and innovative methods of
combating human
trafficking in South Asia
and confronting the
demand for child slaves.
The event took place at
GWU Law School.

3. HUMAN TRAFFICKING ASSESSMENT TOOL
The HTAT is a mechanism for assessing countries’
compliance with pertinent international legal standards,
particularly the UN Trafficking Protocol
De Jure Is the legal system is sufficiently strong
Analysis to combat trafficking in persons?
Has the State committed appropriate resources
De Facto and taken concrete steps to prevent
Analysis human trafficking, prosecute the traffickers,
and protect the victims?

4. HTAT REPORT FOR NEPAL
Partnership
with local CSO
Publication Desk review of
pertinent
and roll out
legislation
De Jure
Analysis
Internal and Interviews with
in-country 60 stakeholders
De Facto peer review and survivors
Analysis

5. NEPAL BACKGROUND
Country in South Underdeveloped:
Asia landlocked 25% of population
between lives below
India and China poverty line
Low literacy rate:
Population:
Adult females: 35%
29.8 million
Adult males: 63%
Multi-cultural, Impacts of 10-year
multi-lingual, civil conflict between
multi-ethic, the Maoists and
multi-religious Government

6. ASSESSMENT JOURNEY:
KATHMANDU VALLEY, MAKWANPUR, MORANG & KANCHANPUR

7. KATHMANDU
In Nepal’s capital,
respondents focused
on anti-human
trafficking laws,
policies, and four
forms of trafficking in
persons: internal and
transnational sex
trafficking,
exploitation of Nepali
migrant workers
abroad, worst forms of
child labor within
Nepal, and illicit
transplantation of
organs.

8. MAKWANPUR
Central
Development
Region
Interviewees in
Makwanpur
discussed in detail
the phenomenon
of trafficking in
Nepali children
to Indian circuses

9. MORANG
Eastern
Development
Region
Morang is
primarily
a transit point for
victims trafficked
to India
or through India to
other destinations,
particularly
Malaysia and the
Gulf States

10. KANCHANPUR
Far-Western
Development
Region
In Kanchanpur,
interviewees
talked extensively
about bonded
labor and other
forms of servitude

11. INDO-NEPAL BORDER
The Indo-Nepal
border is open and
very porous.
2,000 Nepalis leave
the country every
day to destinations
other than India.
Many fall victim to
debt bondage and
labor and sexual
exploitation.
The Selling of Innocents

12. RESPONSE TO TRAFFICKING
IN PERSONS IN NEPAL
HTAT REPORT – CORE FINDINGS
Legal
Prevention Protection
Framework
International
Prosecution
Cooperation

13. LEGAL FRAMEWORK
• All forms of trafficking in persons are prohibited and
Positive punishable under the law
Developments • Nepal has a National Plan of Action against
Trafficking in Persons
• No clause rendering consent of victim irrelevant
• Law does not address prevention, witness protection,
repatriation, immigration status of foreign victims,
Gaps international cooperation or border measures
& Challenges • Lower sanctions for labor trafficking than sex trafficking
• Compensation provision is flawed and unevenly applied
• No liability of legal persons

14. Prevention
• Many NGOs implement prevention programs, including
radio spots, community awareness raising and door-to-
Positive door education and counseling
Developments • Growing number of governmental and non-
governmental projects focus on safe migration and
foreign employment
• Critical lack of conceptual clarity about human
trafficking
Gaps • No sufficient effort to involve media in prevention
• Governmental prevention programs are largely invisible
& Challenges
• Informal migration sector is flourishing
• Insufficient efforts addressing demand and root causes
of trafficking

15. Protection
• Law protects the trafficking victims’ privacy; provides for
the establishment of rehabilitation centers and a
rehabilitation fund; prescribes in camera court proceedings
Positive • Increasing number of victims receive legal assistance from
Developments non-governmental organizations and bar associations
• Police and diplomatic missions provide assistance to NGOs
which conduct rescue and repatriation operations
• Comprehensive, well-functioning witness protection
mechanism for victims and witnesses of human trafficking
is non-existent
• Many victims are arrested and charged for indecent
Gaps behavior under Some Public Crime Act
& Challenges • With the exception of subsidizing seven rehabilitation
centers, the government’s actions aimed at protecting and
assisting trafficking victims are minimal
• Victims encounter multiple barriers to access to justice
• Compensation is almost never recovered from traffickers

16. Prosecution
• Human trafficking is considered one of the gravest crimes
Positive • Government plans to form a specialized human trafficking
investigative unit within the Central Investigation Bureau
Developments • Many NGOs offer anti-human trafficking trainings for law
enforcement and justice sector officials
• Burden of proof lies on the defendant
• Cross-border trafficking for the purpose of labor
exploitation is often wrongfully charged under the Foreign
Employment Act as a labor violation
Gaps • Investigation of human trafficking is viewed as ineffective,
highly politicized, and prone to corruption
& Challenges • Evidence in most cases is circumstantial and weak
• Conviction rates in human trafficking cases are lower than
in other criminal cases
• Obstruction of justice is commonplace and remains
unpunished

17. International Cooperation
• Nepal has a standalone legislation regulating the
extradition procedure and is finalizing its first mutual
legal assistance legislation
Positive
• Nepali and Indian law enforcement officers collaborate
Developments in an informal manner at the local level
• Mutual legal assistance agreement and new extradition
treaty with India are underway
• Nepal does not have an institutionalized mechanism for
mutual legal assistance in criminal matters or bilateral
law enforcement cooperation
Gaps • Formal extradition mechanisms are almost never
utilized to extradite alleged or convicted traffickers
& Challenges • No written procedure or official timeframe for
repatriation of trafficking victims or verification of
travel and identity documents issued in the name of the
government

18. To access the HTAT Report for Nepal
and learn more about ABA ROLI’s efforts to combat trafficking
in persons worldwide,
please visit our website at:
www.abarol.org