I NEVER THOUGHT I WOULD EVER COME BACK..

 

 

“I WAS BEATEN BLACK AND BLUE, AND LEFT TO STARVE FOR DAYS …”

Jacintha, a woman from Mangalore, Karnataka, was a nurse who had three children at home to care of. She was offered a better nursing job in one of the gulf countries called Qatar, by a local agent. A job offer for 25,000 was hard to decline and accepted the same. Instead of the mentioned place, she was taken to Saudi and forced into slavery.

Her life was bound for misery after the trafficking. She was slapped, kicked, burned, and forced to do service for the family. She was sold in the black market and was bought by the family for 5lakhs rupees mentioned by the family.

She was deprived of food, water, and any type of communication. One day she was lucky enough to get hold of a phone and reach out to her children. Her children reached out to the police, people, and family but in vain, they couldn’t find any help.

They were found by the HUMAN RIGHT PROTECTION FOUNDATION, Udupi and Dr. Ravindranath Shanbhag was the first person to take action. With all the support and work from the HRPF and the government, Jacinatha was back in India.  

The above-mentioned real-life based incident is a case of human trafficking. Yes, as we all know human trafficking means the illegal abduction of people and selling them for various ignominious jobs. Some people escape from this vicious loop but many fall prey to this and are never seen.

Trafficked people are tortured, slaved, raped, and many more that we can’t even think of. It is happening in society, and many agents indulge in these acts. The number of reported human trafficking in the year 2021 was three thousand but the unreported ones are unmeasured. Innocent people are captured and the Indian government is hand tied.

People question why can’t the Indian government help us and why Indian law can’t save us. Indian law has extra-territorial jurisdiction, but these laws can’t protect people with fake passports and visas.

There are laws, there is jurisdiction, there is prevention and there is penalization but it is not only about that. This blog is about the pain and suffering of a person in a totally different country, whom we can’t even see and communicate with every day. A person who is so far that we need resources and time just to see that person if they are okay.

But there are NGOs and various foundations who can be reached out for help. As a citizen, we can also help in raising awareness. Check on your relatives, family, friends, and society. Keep in touch with people who are living abroad and always be aware of such job offers.

 

Help available: humanrights.udupi@gmail.com