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STOP NGO held two Capacity-Building Workshops on the Prevention of Human Trafficking in the Manali and Solan regions of Himachal Pradesh on 13^th and 15^th of March 2023, respectively. In both the regions, the sessions began with the introduction of our STOP NGO, its history and journey, and the basic objective of the workshop, followed by the detailed explanation of the laws related to trafficking, child marriage, juvenile justice, etc., and a group discussion, ending with the written and verbal feedbacks of the respondents. The report is available in the Reports Section of this website.

On March 17^th, 2023, STOP organized a Community Awareness Programme in Aadarsh Senior Citizen Association, Tigri. An audience of about three hundred women, men and children were welcomed by our members of STOP. Dirk Sir, hailing from Holland and engaged in several social welfare activities, was invited as the special guest lecturer. The workshop commenced at three in the noon, with an introduction of both the topic, as well as panellists, by our Senior Project manager, Janki Gadhvi. Smritikana Ghosh Paul, our Senior Programme Manager, discussed about the various types, processes, ways and means of trafficking, and its spread in the global scenario being discussed in depth, with live interactions from the audience. The participants were as eager to gain knowledge about prevention against human trafficking, as were STOP’s members, to create awareness of this heinous crime, in them.

STOP had been invited to be a part of the Panel Discussions on Gender-Based Violence scheduled on Thursday, 16^th of March, 2023. The panelists were namely Smriti Shah Gambhir (Psychologist), Inspector Saroj Singh from Delhi Police, Aparna Bhat (lawyer and policy-developer), Gayatri Sharma from Women Power Connect, and Janki Gadhvi from STOP, respectively. The session was held in two phases; in the initial phase, panelists were introduced and each talked for about five minutes each. The talks included the resources each could provide, from giving courage, medico-legal aid and counselling, to filing an FIR and fighting in the court, remotely as well as physically. They especially focused on foreign nationals as victims and the international and national laws pertaining to giving them justice in the Indian courts. The second phase included interesting questions revolving around the victim’s consent to conduct an invasive medical examination, as well as how to deal with each specific case, using an ideal mix of non-verbal gestures and friendly verbal communication, at psychological, physical, medical, legal levels, with constant assistance from civil bodies like STOP NGO. The session concluded with a vote of thanks from High Commission of Canada, and a promise to save and assist as many victims as possible, without discriminating on the basis of gender, region, economic status and nationality.

STOP NGO held two Capacity-Building Workshops on laws and procedures related to anti-trafficking in the Nainital and Dehradun regions of Uttarakhand on 2nd and 4th of December 2022, respectively. Both the places housed 37 grassroots organizations eager to engage in this empowering workshop. The members were aware of certain recent legal changes related to the field of trafficking, and shared their own experiences as well.

Following is the summary of the above said event. To read the same, download the given link. To access the full report, please go to the Reports section of this website.

Name of the File	Downloadable link
Summary of the Uttarakhand Workshop 2022	Summary

As part of STOP’s commitment towards combatting and eradicating Human Trafficking, the organization is actively working to repatriate survivors of trafficking to their country of origin. A SOP developed by STOP and implemented in partnership with various embassies over two decades ago continues, the model continues to provide a comprehensive methodology for repatriating survivors of Trafficking. The model approaches repatriation with multi-lateral partnership between organizations, legal entities, and state. Currently, STOP’s team is working to repatriate survivors of Central Asian Countries, (earlier under Soviet Union) a geography that has emerged as one of the most common source areas.  Apart from that, STOP is directly assisting the survivor, by providing safe shelter, and care and support, and lodging her in the Caregiver Centre before repatriation.  In inclusion of the above said, the organization is also working on the repatriation of trafficked persons of neighboring countries who are lodged in different government homes. The organization is in process to work with embassy by proposing an embassy wide sensitization training and share best practices leading to protection and safe repatriation as well as minimizing scope of trafficking.

On 16^th  of January 2023, STOP Trafficking and Oppression of Children and Women organised a seminar on Strategy Consultation on Prevention of Human Trafficking in South Asia, at TERI Retreat Centre, Faridabad. The conclave was moderated by Ms. Shrinkhala Thapa from ECPAT International. The sessions were divided primarily into two phases; the first phase focused upon understanding gaps in prevention and intervention at the grassroot level, and the second phase concentrated on evolving a regional plan for the prevention of human trafficking in the whole of South Asia. The outcome of the event, “SACRNPT”, echoed a collaborative approach to tackle the discussed challenges and tools of exploitation through cooperation. All the participants signed a declaration promising to change the status quo of human trafficking in South Asia.

After a long haul, the Koshish team in back to bring delicious, hygienic, and nutritious food to people in this festive season.

Another victory for team of Koshish (self-help group by trafficking warriors). In a annual Autumn festival community celebration, Koshish was awarded second prize by people’s choice for bring popular delicacies. We wish congratulations to the team!