Mass awareness teams unaware

In 2012, the government formed more than 5,000 committees in efforts to fight human trafficking. That was about three years before the horrific extent of people-smuggling from Bangladesh and Myanmar into Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia came to light, particularly in the last one month.     

But the move has come to naught, as the committees exist only on paper and have done nothing at all in the last three years.

The committees -- one each in all the 64 districts, 482 upazilas and around 4,500 unions -- involve more than 1 lakh people, including members of parliament, deputy commissioners, Upazila Nirbahi Officers, upazila and union chairmen and law enforcers.

Last week, The Daily Star spoke to six DCs, six UNOs, six upazila chairmen, six union chairmen and two MPs to know what they have done to prevent human trafficking.

Shockingly, none of them except for one UNO is aware that the committees even exist, leave alone the fact that they were their members.

Among other activities, the committees were to hold rallies, meetings and campaigns at local levels to create mass awareness against human trafficking and also take necessary measures to fight the menace.

The committees' ineffectiveness seems to have served as a blessing for the middlemen and people smugglers.

In the wake of the recent developments over the South Asian migrant crisis, the home ministry has made fresh moves to make the committees functional.

EVERYBODY'S IN THE DARK

The home ministry is the key player in coordinating and supervising the functions of all the committees formed under the National Plan of Action (NPA) 2012-14.

Each of the 5,000 committees has 19 to 29 members while MPs and upazila chairmen were made advisers.

According to a 2012 gazette notification, each committee was supposed to meet every month to discuss ways to create public awareness about human trafficking and to take measures to disrupt the smuggling rings.

But not a single meeting has been held, said sources in the home ministry.

"There is no human trafficking prevention committee in my district," said Mohammad Ali Hossain, deputy commissioner of Cox's Bazar, a major human trafficking route from Bangladesh.

The DCs of Natore, Kurigram, Jhenidah and Patuakhali are also in the dark.

"I know there is no committee called human trafficking prevention committee. But you are saying there is…. I have never heard about it," said Natore DC Mashiur Rahman.

"What are you saying? I have been in the service for long. I have never heard that such an important committee exists," insisted Shafiqul Islam, deputy commissioner of Jhenidah.

Chairmen of Chowfaldhandi union parishad of Cox's Bazar Sadar upazila, Kachchhopia union of Ramu upazila and Ratnapalong union of Ukhia upazila were surprised to learn about the committees.

The fact is they are supposed to be chiefs of the committees in their unions.

Likewise, Sirajganj-2 lawmaker Habibe Millat and Sirajganj-3 lawmaker MM Amzad, expressed their ignorance.

Millat added he even once asked the DC and the UNO of his area to inform him about his role in various district committees. "But none of them told me about the human trafficking prevention committee."

The sole official who could confirm the existence of the committee is Sandwip Kumar Sarker, UNO of Shailokupa upazila of Jhenidah.

"This committee was formed more than two years ago. But no meeting has been held yet," he said.

SHIFTING THE BLAME

Yesterday, this newspaper called the then home minister Muhiuddin Khan Alamgir, whose office was responsible for informing the committee members about their roles and activities.

Muhiuddin, who left office in September 2013, claimed his office issued a circular to all the district administrations, upazila parishads and union parishads in this regard.

Asked why then nobody knew about the committees, he said he could not answer that. He also claimed to have verbally instructed the DCs of some "vulnerable" districts to take steps to fight human trafficking.

By "vulnerable" districts he meant the areas where and through which most human trafficking take place.

Abu Hena Md Rahmatul Muneem, an additional secretary of the home ministry, said, "It seems the committees are not working."

But he added the ministry took initiatives to make the committees functional as there was no alternative way to prevent people smuggling.

Already, the ministry has instructed all the DCs to keep the human trafficking issue on their monthly meeting agenda.

NPA EXPIRED

Tenure of the 2012-14 NPA for prevention of human trafficking expired in December last year.

The government has prepared the new NPA for 2015-17 outlining various measures to be implemented to fight human trafficking.

It is likely to be launched next month, sources in the home ministry said.

[Our correspondents in Cox's Bazar, Natore, Jhenidah, Kurigram and Patuakhali contributed to this report].