Human trafficking greatest human tragedy, says CJI Misra

NEW DELHI: Terming human trafficking as "the greatest human tragedy", Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dipak Misra today said that the menace was on the rise and people involved in it considered human beings as commodity.

Justice Misra, addressing an 'International Conference on Human Trafficking' here, said the younger generation has to be the torchbearers against human trafficking.

"Human trafficking is the greatest human tragedy that has fallen upon us. It has to be avoided and the younger generation has to be the torchbearers against it. Human trafficking is a great menace to the present and the future generation," he said.

He said slavery was the human trafficking of the past and it exists even today in a different manner.

"Slavery is human trafficking of the past which existed and exist in a different way today. The people who are involved in human trafficking, think that human beings are commodities. I would like to say the commoditisation of human beings has become an industry in itself. It's a different kind of syndicate," the CJI said.

The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation in Law (SAARCLAW), along with Justice and Care, a multi-disciplinary organisation fighting human trafficking, organised the event and conducted a panel discussion on 'Legal and Technological Perspectives for Solutions within South Asia'.

Nepal Supreme Court judge Justice Sapana Pradhan Malla, in her special address, said that technology has created market for human trafficking and made the victims more vulnerable.

"Technology has become a strong tool in the hands of perpetrators. It has made the victim more vulnerable, it is high time we discuss how to control and use technology to fight human trafficking.

She said cyber space is not the exclusive domain of the perpetrators but rather a powerful tool in the hands of authorities.

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