Glacial pace
Inside the repatriation process for trafficking survivors between India and Bangladesh.
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Nov 30, 2022
Bangladesh
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Glacial pace
Illustration courtesy: Asad Ali.
As per India’s official criminal records, of 4680 victims of human trafficking rescued in India in 2020, 24 were from Bangladesh.
The procedure for the repatriation of human trafficking survivors between Bangladesh and India is a complex and layered system and involves multiple stakeholders.
There is extensive information sharing, documentation, and communication between the Department of Women and Child Development (DWCD), Foreign Regional Registration Offices (FRROs), state police, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and the Bangladesh Deputy High Commission (BDHC). The BDHC then also has a protocol involving its foreign affairs department, the state’s home department and the police there. The identity and address verification of the survivors is the most time-consuming stage in the process.
In this video, we trace the journey of Mira and Pari (names changed), two minor girls and human trafficking survivors from Bangladesh who are stranded in India, to understand the complex bureaucratic system that is the repatriation process between India and Bangladesh.
Reporter/Edit: Pawanjot Kaur
Graphics: Asad Ali, Pawanjot Kaur
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Pawanjot Kaur is a freelance journalist and producer. You can watch and read some of her work at www.streetandshutter.com.