With Nepal to the west, China and Bhutan to the north, Bangladesh to the south and Burma to the east, large numbers of people are constantly moving through North East India.

Hearing stories of children as young as eight who had been tricked into slave labour and forced prostitution is heartbreaking. Many communities in North East India also suffer from the effects of extreme poverty. As a result, children who are poor and vulnerable too often become victims of human traffickers for slave labour.

The story of a young girl Noha* brings to the fore the reality of this human rights abuse.

At just ten years of age, Noha was forced to drop out of school because her family were unable to pay her fees. She had to work and contribute money to the household.

When a wealthy family from a city in North Bengal sent a scout to look for a domestic cleaner, and promised good pay and treatment to Noha, together with shelter and sufficient food, she accepted the job. She was filled with a sense of responsibility to earn money for her family. But the reality was so far from this.

For the next two years, she was rarely allowed to make contact with her parents. She toiled seven days a week, from the crack of dawn until late at night. Her body gradually grew weaker as she was made to wash heavy clothes and linen by hand. For this thankless and backbreaking task, she earned less than $0.50 a day.

The day Noha refused a task due to exhaustion, she was beaten beyond recognition. After hospitalisation, she was sent home with nothing more than the clothes on her back.

The Anti-Trafficking Program, which operates in partnership with the Church of North India, seeks to give hope to boys and girls just like Noha who are too often trafficked into prostitution and slave labour.

Through your support, the program is building community awareness about the dangers of slave labour and prostitution.

As the program expands it will provide enhanced counselling and support to survivors and help many more to get back on their feet and teach them vocational skills through livelihood and education programs.

*Noha’s name has been changed to protect her identity.

Child trafficking FACTS:

• 2.8 million sex workers in India
• 35 % of sex workers enter the trade before the age of 18
• 40% of prostitutes in a Mumbai brothel precinct originated in Nepal

Source: http://www.cwmission.org/features/all-work-no-play