Imphal, Oct 10 : Manipur emerged as a source and transit for human trafficking in the past few years, the Manipur State Commission for Women (MSCW) said here on Friday.

The MSCW said that the concept of human trafficking deals with an act of recruiting, transporting, transferring, harbouring or receiving a person through coercion, deception or abuse of vulnerability for exploitation. Anyone can fall victim to human trafficking.

The most vulnerable people in the context of human trafficking are those minority tribes and communities with little social and legal protection. The majority of the trafficked victims are girls and women, the women's panel body said.

In view of the growing threat of human trafficking, the MSCW, under the sponsorship of the National Commission for Women, organised an awareness programme on 'Anti Human Trafficking' in Jiribam Municipality Hall in Manipur on Friday. While speaking at the event, MSCW Chairperson Tiningpham Monsang mentioned that human trafficking is different in Manipur from human trafficking in any other state.

'Manipur emerged as a source and transit for human trafficking in the past few years. Most of the trafficked women reveal that hundreds of the victims, especially tribal girls and women with traumatic experiences, are often silenced and disregarded with shame and stigma,' she said.

Monsang further mentioned that the program aims to give awareness to the women and girls of Jiribam, educate the public on recognising the signs of human trafficking, empower communities to report suspicious activity, and foster a collaborative effort to end this form of modern slavery so that they are well informed about the trafficking knowledge and can combat it easily.

The awareness programme was organised to identify the traffickers, raise awareness of the community, strengthen prevention efforts, strengthen collaboration among stakeholders, including government, NGOs, Law enforcement agencies, enhance prevention efforts through education and training and policy advocacy for stronger legal frameworks and protective measures against traffickers.

During the technical session, four resource persons spoke on different topics. Over 150 participants, comprising vulnerable populations facing the most risk, such as migrants and internally displaced persons, rural and tribal communities, children and youth, law enforcement, health care workers, prosecutors, lawyers, NGOs and social workers, attended the program as participants.

The MSCW also organised a one-day sensitisation programme on 'Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013' at the Conference Hall of the Deputy Commissioner's Office in Jiribam in collaboration with the District Administration.

MSCW Chairperson Monsang, in her speech, highlighted the commission's role in ensuring the welfare of women and addressing issues concerning their rights and safety.

She maintained that a workplace should be a safe and secure environment for women employees, and urged them to familiarise themselves with the Act, which empowers them and to prevent and address harassment at the workplace.

A technical session on the topic 'Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013' was conducted by Mordecai Kamei, Advocate, as part of the programme.

/IANS