A couple of days ago we chaired a coordination meeting of international agencies that are working against trafficking. The topic under discussion was the growing problem of internal trafficking to the domestic sex trade in Nepal and the recent development of larger numbers of minors being abused in bars, massage parlours and so-called "cabin restaurants". Nepal has traditionally been a very conservative country and Kathmandu has no red light district. It's a long way off being like Bangkok but those who hold to that comfort of that knowledge and feel there is no need to do anything are wrong. It's just a matter of time and it is probably already be too late to put the genie of the Nepal sex trade back into the bottle.
One of my rather conservative Nepali friends attended the lecture and was taken aback by some of the revelations. Facts like sex being on sale right across the country - large towns, small towns, by the roadside. Facts like minors as young as 10 being abused and that the paedophiles who are doing this are not "dirty foreigners". In the main they are Indian and Nepali men who are seeking out younger and younger children.
We now have to work out what to do about this problem. The sad reality is this is just about impossible given a financial triad that we have to contend with. The first element of the triad is the large amount of money that is involved in these crimes, sums that offer potentially substantial kick-backs to corrupt and indifferent police and poliiticians. The second is the pathetic financial circumstances of the communities and families that provide the girls and the third our very limited resources as development organisations. As the lecturer, Helen Sherpa, pointed out the girls come to Kathmandu and earn money, are given nice clothes, make up and a mobile. If rescued and returned to their villages they end up scouring the hillsides for firewood in a life of unremitting drudgery. And if they come to us many organisations offer training that leads to menial work. Even my girls - who are earning really good salaries making mosaics - have an income that cannot compete with a girl in a Kathmandu massage parlour.
The whole subject is bleak and depressing. My gut feeling is that because of the triad there is nothing that can be done to prevent the slip that is seeing Kathmandu and its girls losing their innocence. The best that can be done is to intervene on behalf of the children who are being abused and we'll give that a try.
