Free A Child: Nepal


Free A Child: Nepal Program

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Trafficking in Nepal
Each year between 7,000 and 10,000 Nepalese children between the ages of 8 and 16 are tricked, bought, or kidnapped from their families to work as sex slaves in brothels in India. Thousands more are trafficked into domestic servitude, factory work, and other forced labor. Most of these children come from poor families, have little or no formal education, and live in rural areas. Dire poverty in the country coupled with an ongoing civil war has exacerbated the trafficking problem in Nepal.

Butterfly Project: Free A Child's Program in Nepal
Free A Child and its partner agency in Nepal, General Welfare Pratisthan (GWP), started the current version of the Butterfly Project in May 2001 with the goal of reducing the risk of child trafficking for prostitution and the subsequent spread of HIV/AIDS and other STIs in Nepal. Since its inception, the project has involved more than 350 girls living in highly trafficked areas in income generating projects and skills trainings and reached nearly 7,000 people with trafficking awareness messages. The Butterfly Project's strategy to prevent trafficking currently has four main components:

  • empowerment of at-risk girls through skills trainings and income generating projects;
  • community awareness raising campaigns;
  • identification and exposure of traffickers and trafficking networks; and
  • support and rehabilitation of trafficked girls who have returned to their homes in Nepal.

Empowerment
Free A Child believes self confidence to be the key to empowerment and, ultimately, trafficking prevention. To cultivate self worth among girls at risk for being trafficked, the Butterfly Project offers them opportunities to learn new vocational skills, start their own businesses or income generating projects, and make money for themselves and their families.The project also brings the girls together in groups to share experiences, learn about trafficking and related issues, and advocate for themselves. The project supports each group in the development of a group savings account which can be used for future group and individual income generating projects. Some examples of current girls' group activities include:

  • goat, chicken, pig, and buffalo farming
  • ginger and mushroom cultivation
  • tailoring and craft making classes
  • establishment of group-run tailoring shops

Raising Awareness
In addition to offering girls a means to make their own money, the Butterfly Project also encourages the girls to spread information to their peers and communities about trafficking, HIV/AIDS, and related issues. Each girls' group elects a group leader who receives formal training on trafficking issues and serves as an outreach educator in her community. The group leader organizes community discussions about trafficking and performs one-on-one "peer education" with other girls in her own and neighboring villages.

The Butterfly Project also uses street dramas to educate the larger community about trafficking. Girls involved in the girls' groups are invited to participate in the creation and performance of these dramas which portray common trafficking scenarios. In addition to bringing educational messages about trafficking to local populations, the dramas also support the Butterfly Project's goal of empowering girls. To date, the street dramas have been very well received by the communities. The girls have learned that they are capable of both writing and performing drama - two brand new activities for almost all of the girls involved.

Identifying and Penalizing Traffickers
Though the Butterfly Project primarily focuses on prevention of trafficking, Free A Child and GWP also recognize the importance of identifying and breaking down trafficking networks. This goal is especially challenging in Nepal. Much of the countryside is controlled by anti-government rebels and in areas still protected by the king's army and police, trafficking often receives very little attention. In order to identify traffickers and trafficking rings and bring them to justice, the Butterfly Project works with other agencies and organizations to collect and share information, maintain a database of trafficking stories and leads, and follow-up on trafficking reports. The Butterfly Project conducts trainings and shares information with local law enforcement bodies to better deal with trafficking situations and lobbies for more trafficking prevention resources on a local and national level.

Support and Rehabilitation
The final element of the Butterfly Project is to support girls and women who have returned to Nepal after being trafficked into brothels. Only a handful of the thousands of girls who are sold into prostitution each year ever make it out of the brothels. The HIV rate among those who do manage to escape is estimated as high as 80%. Because of the fear and stigma that continues to surround HIV/AIDS in Nepal, many of these returnees are shunned by their families and communities once they return home.

The Butterfly Project works to identify these returned girls, provide them with skills training and income generating activities, and, if necessary, manage their HIV infection through coordination with other HIV/AIDS-focused agencies. They are invited into the girls' clubs where they will be received with warmth and support.

General Welfare Pratisthan (GWP): FAC's Partner Agency in Nepal
Free A Child partners with local, grassroots organizations, like GWP, that know the culture and share the vision of social change through empowerment. GWP is a Nepalese organization that primarily focuses on HIV/AIDS/STD prevention and control in the country. Since 1993, GWP has been involved with HIV/AIDS awareness raising activities, education(including the Send Your Daughter to School Program), and other social welfare activities. GWP has been an FHI (Family Health International) implementing agency/partner of the AIDS Control and Prevention Project (AIDSCAP) since 1994.

Through years of grassroots level experience, GWP understands the fundamental importance of the involvement of the entire ommunity in order to bring about social change. By working at the grassroots level with Nepalese staff members who have innate knowledge of the particular region and communities as well as direct experience of the problem, a higher level of confidence and trust can be achieved within the communities. This is essential when dealing with an issue as sensitive and complex as child trafficking. GWP is recognized as a leader in HIV/AIDS prevention and is trusted by the communities in which it works. This reputation is extremely important for the success of the Butterfly Project.

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