THE HINDU
Flesh trade racket busted
Friday, Jun 25, 2010
Staff Reporter 17 sex workers, including 2 foreigners, rescued
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Raided places include Fortune Katriya and Kens hotels at Punjagutta and Srinagar Colony
Rescued sex workers hail from Mumbai, Pune, Kolkata and rural Andhra Pradesh
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
HYDERABAD: The city police on Thursday cracked the whip on flesh trade being organised by procuring sex workers from different parts of the country and abroad and raided different places in the city.
While 16 alleged pimps were arrested, 17 sex workers - including two foreigners - were rescued during the raids conducted by the Commissioner's Task Force officials. The raids revealed that flesh trade was being organised in rented flats, independent houses and even reputed hotels. Among the raided places were Fortune Katriya and Kens hotels at Punjagutta and Srinagar Colony, respectively, the police said. One of the pimps brought a sex worker from Morocco and was allegedly arranging meetings at Fortune Katriya hotel. Another brothel operator brought a noted model from Kolkata to city and provided accommodation to her in Kens hotel.
In other cases, it was found that brothel operators hired flats or independent houses in posh localities of west, north and central zones in the city offering high rents to the house owners through rental agencies.
The rescued hailed from Mumbai, Pune, Kolkata, and Bheemavaram, Vizianagaram, Anantapur, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam and Karimnagar in Andhra Pradesh.
Friday, June 25, 2010
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
TV9 video on closure of brothels in Peddapuram of east Godavari district
18 RCC buildings used for Commercial and sexual exploitation are closed by Sub Divisional Magistrates in East, West Godavari & Krishna District based on Police report for 1 year along with eviction of offenders.
Friday, June 18, 2010
How an Andhra cop became a global anti-trafficking hero
How an Andhra cop became a global anti-trafficking hero
Bombay News.Net
Friday 18th June, 2010 (IANS)
An Andhra Pradesh policeman, who has just been named by the US among nine anti-trafficking heroes worldwide, says a victim-centric approach, roping in NGOs and strict implementation of laws, are behind his success.
'We adopted a victim-centric approach which helped us secure the convictions of 85 traffickers during the last one and a half years. They were sentenced to four to 14 years in jail. This is a benchmark set by Andhra Pradesh. Nowhere in India was such a high conviction rate achieved,' Inspector General of Police Sattaru Umapathi, 57, told IANS in an exclusive interview.
The Hyderabad-based anti-human trafficking nodal officer of the state who led numerous operations across India to rescue victims of human trafficking was named in the Trafficking in Persons Report 2010 released in Washington Monday.
Umapathi is the first Indian government official to get this honour for going beyond the state's borders to rescue victims as per the anti-trafficking protocols of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
He was the first to take the initiative in 2005 when he was in the Andhra Pradesh Police Academy. He held a workshop to create awareness and train 5,000 officers in anti-trafficking.
'Treating a victim as a victim and not as an accused was the biggest attitudinal change brought about during the training. Earlier, we were filing chargesheets against the victims, making them accused,' he said.
'Judicial colloquium, public interactions were held and public prosecutors were also trained. We achieved a synergy. Everybody understood his role. Police, prosecution, judiciary, women and child welfare department and NGOs worked together,' he said.
'Implementation of stringent laws was another key measure. Since a minor can't give her consent, we booked the accused for gang rape in addition to various sections of Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act,' he said.
He said they took their exercise to other parts of the country, something which had never happened earlier.
'We started inter-state rescues under the UNODC protocols. The whole exercise was victim-centric and aimed at seeing that the trafficker was punished,' he said.
'We also developed nodal NGO concept. In cities like Pune, Mumbai, Delhi and other places, we took the help of local NGOs in raids and in conducting trials. The NGOs also helped us in segregation of victims from the accused, counselling the victims and in their rehabilitation,' he said.
'We conduct raids after talking to the victims. The victim is supported from raid to the trial and at the post-trial stage. The NGOs take care of the victim's needs and court processes. Then there is government support. The women and child welfare department is paying Rs.10,000 towards interim relief for each victim after rescue,' explained the officer.
Since 2007, about 2,000 victims, including 200 minors, were rescued during raids in Andhra Pradesh and other parts in India. About 4,000 traffickers and other exploiters were arrested.
'I have been the nodal officer for anti-trafficking since May 2006. A long tenure is also important because if you start something and go back, others may not take it up that vigorously. But now the whole process is institutionalised. We officially have anti-human trafficking units. Whoever comes and sits here has to do it,' he said.
Umapathi is a professional trainer for Indian Police Service officers in India, having been trained in the leadership module by the Department for International Development in Britain in 2003. He also won the Indian police medal in 1996 and the president's police medal for distinguished services in 2008.
As the annual report of the US state department placed India on its tier-2 watch list for the seventh consecutive year, the officer feels 'for a big country like ours, more measures are required'.
'We have to perform a little better. It is a big nation and we are not able to come up to international standards,' he said.
Bombay News.Net
Friday 18th June, 2010 (IANS)
An Andhra Pradesh policeman, who has just been named by the US among nine anti-trafficking heroes worldwide, says a victim-centric approach, roping in NGOs and strict implementation of laws, are behind his success.
'We adopted a victim-centric approach which helped us secure the convictions of 85 traffickers during the last one and a half years. They were sentenced to four to 14 years in jail. This is a benchmark set by Andhra Pradesh. Nowhere in India was such a high conviction rate achieved,' Inspector General of Police Sattaru Umapathi, 57, told IANS in an exclusive interview.
The Hyderabad-based anti-human trafficking nodal officer of the state who led numerous operations across India to rescue victims of human trafficking was named in the Trafficking in Persons Report 2010 released in Washington Monday.
Umapathi is the first Indian government official to get this honour for going beyond the state's borders to rescue victims as per the anti-trafficking protocols of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
He was the first to take the initiative in 2005 when he was in the Andhra Pradesh Police Academy. He held a workshop to create awareness and train 5,000 officers in anti-trafficking.
'Treating a victim as a victim and not as an accused was the biggest attitudinal change brought about during the training. Earlier, we were filing chargesheets against the victims, making them accused,' he said.
'Judicial colloquium, public interactions were held and public prosecutors were also trained. We achieved a synergy. Everybody understood his role. Police, prosecution, judiciary, women and child welfare department and NGOs worked together,' he said.
'Implementation of stringent laws was another key measure. Since a minor can't give her consent, we booked the accused for gang rape in addition to various sections of Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act,' he said.
He said they took their exercise to other parts of the country, something which had never happened earlier.
'We started inter-state rescues under the UNODC protocols. The whole exercise was victim-centric and aimed at seeing that the trafficker was punished,' he said.
'We also developed nodal NGO concept. In cities like Pune, Mumbai, Delhi and other places, we took the help of local NGOs in raids and in conducting trials. The NGOs also helped us in segregation of victims from the accused, counselling the victims and in their rehabilitation,' he said.
'We conduct raids after talking to the victims. The victim is supported from raid to the trial and at the post-trial stage. The NGOs take care of the victim's needs and court processes. Then there is government support. The women and child welfare department is paying Rs.10,000 towards interim relief for each victim after rescue,' explained the officer.
Since 2007, about 2,000 victims, including 200 minors, were rescued during raids in Andhra Pradesh and other parts in India. About 4,000 traffickers and other exploiters were arrested.
'I have been the nodal officer for anti-trafficking since May 2006. A long tenure is also important because if you start something and go back, others may not take it up that vigorously. But now the whole process is institutionalised. We officially have anti-human trafficking units. Whoever comes and sits here has to do it,' he said.
Umapathi is a professional trainer for Indian Police Service officers in India, having been trained in the leadership module by the Department for International Development in Britain in 2003. He also won the Indian police medal in 1996 and the president's police medal for distinguished services in 2008.
As the annual report of the US state department placed India on its tier-2 watch list for the seventh consecutive year, the officer feels 'for a big country like ours, more measures are required'.
'We have to perform a little better. It is a big nation and we are not able to come up to international standards,' he said.
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Brothel owner held at Samalkot
Kakinada, Feb 12th: Two minor girls of the city escaped from a brothel at Samalkot on Friday. With the help of an auto-rickshaw driver, the girls reached Samalkot police station. The police took the brothel’s organiser into custody. According to the girls aged around 14 years, a few days ago, a woman Devi from Kattipudi in East Godavari approached the girls’ parents, residents of Kakinada II Town. Devi asked the parents to send the girls along with her and promised them that she would show some work to the girls somewhere in the district. The parents agreed and sent the girls with Devi who sold the girls to the brothel organiser, Vemagiri Missamma, who is living in a Rajiv Gruhakalpa house at Samalkot.
For the last six days, Missamma started pestering the girls to join her work with a person in Hyderabad. The girls refused to do so. On Friday morning, the girls escaped from the house and met an auto-rickshaw driver, G Veeranna. With his help, the girls met the district Congress secretary, Mr U. John Moses, who took them to the police station. Police immediately raided the house and took two women, P. Lakshmi and Devi into custody initially and launched an investigation. Speaking to reporters, the girls said that Missamma was planning to send them to Chennai and Hyderabad for sex work.
For the last six days, Missamma started pestering the girls to join her work with a person in Hyderabad. The girls refused to do so. On Friday morning, the girls escaped from the house and met an auto-rickshaw driver, G Veeranna. With his help, the girls met the district Congress secretary, Mr U. John Moses, who took them to the police station. Police immediately raided the house and took two women, P. Lakshmi and Devi into custody initially and launched an investigation. Speaking to reporters, the girls said that Missamma was planning to send them to Chennai and Hyderabad for sex work.
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Fund for victims of trafficking urged
THE HINDU
Date:12/06/2010
Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad
HYDERABAD: We need a ‘victim support fund' to protect victims of trafficking and encourage them to testify against traffickers, S. Umapathy, the State's Additional Anti-Trafficking Nodal Officer said on Friday. "The police have begun to heed victims of trafficking as victims rather than perpetrators,” he said.
“Those in law enforcement have realised that this is the last resort for the poor and helpless.” Mr. Umapathy was speaking at a national workshop on ‘Public Private Partnerships to combat Human Trafficking' by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM). “There all kinds of trafficking, from bonded labour to sex trade to using people as guinea pigs for medical experiments too,” he said. “Rescuing people, particularly young girls, is only part of the problem.
Rehabilitating them is the real challenge.” Given the acute shortage of counsellors, he said the victim's trauma often goes unaddressed.
Alternate job opportunities formed an integral part of the discussions. “Every single person is employable and capable of learning a set of skills,” S.J. Amalan, Regional Director for Apprenticeship Training said.
“Only 7 per cent of our work force is well educated.
Date:12/06/2010
Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad
HYDERABAD: We need a ‘victim support fund' to protect victims of trafficking and encourage them to testify against traffickers, S. Umapathy, the State's Additional Anti-Trafficking Nodal Officer said on Friday. "The police have begun to heed victims of trafficking as victims rather than perpetrators,” he said.
“Those in law enforcement have realised that this is the last resort for the poor and helpless.” Mr. Umapathy was speaking at a national workshop on ‘Public Private Partnerships to combat Human Trafficking' by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM). “There all kinds of trafficking, from bonded labour to sex trade to using people as guinea pigs for medical experiments too,” he said. “Rescuing people, particularly young girls, is only part of the problem.
Rehabilitating them is the real challenge.” Given the acute shortage of counsellors, he said the victim's trauma often goes unaddressed.
Alternate job opportunities formed an integral part of the discussions. “Every single person is employable and capable of learning a set of skills,” S.J. Amalan, Regional Director for Apprenticeship Training said.
“Only 7 per cent of our work force is well educated.
Friday, June 11, 2010
9 Brothels closed and offenders evicted in Eluru range
Organizers were carrying out prostitution by luring innocent women for years together and faced raids by Police on these brothels but were reluctant to give up the profession. District administration and Women & Child development Department are taking care for rehabilitation of victims rescued from these brothels.
I appreciate Sub Divisional Magistrate / RDO Peddapuram Mr. K. Natarju, District Collector of East Godavari Mr. Ravi Chandra Muddada IAS, Sub Divisional Police Officer/DSP Peddapuram Mr.Ch. Harshvardhan Rao, Superintendent of Police of east Godavari Mr. G. Srinivas IPS for their sincere efforts.
This is 3rd initiative in last 2 months by Eluru Range Police. In the last Month RDO Kakinada closed down 2 Lodges for 1 year used for organized prostitution at Pithapuram of East Godavari District. On 27/4/2010 based on report of DSP Narsapur Mr.Ravi Varma, RDO Narsapur Sri. S. Venkata Subbaiah vide M.C. No.6/2010/A issued closure order for 6 months of a Brothel House located in heart of Bhimavaram Town of West Godavari District. Police & revenue Department together in synergy with other stake holders can definitely stop the human trafficking by working on the principle of 3R’s Rescue, Rehabilitation, Reintegration & 3P’s Prevention, Protection, Prosecution.
According to Provision of Section 18 (3) of ITP, Act 1986 orders issued by Executive Magistrate according to Section 18 (1) for closure of brothels & eviction of offenders from Premises shall not be subject to appeal and shall not be stayed or set aside by the order of any court, civil or criminal.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)