GENEVA: Two UN experts expressed their apprehensiveness over the introduction of a Bill on trafficking in persons in Parliament as they believe that the new Bill does not adhere to international human rights law.

"We are gravely concerned about the Bill as presented by the Government to the Indian Parliament on 18 July. Its focus on addressing trafficking from a criminal law perspective is not sufficiently complemented by a human-rights based and victim-centred approach, and this risks further harming already vulnerable individuals," the UN experts said in a press release by UN Human Rights .

The experts opined that some of the provisions of the new Bill are "over-broad and vague nature" and "could lead to blanket criminalisation of activities that do not necessarily relate to trafficking," the statement said.

"The proposed Bill seems to promote ‘rescue raids’ by the police, and the institutionalisation of victims in the name of rehabilitation, rather than applying appropriate screening methods and standard operating procedures for the identification and referral of victims or potential victims of trafficking and social integration programs which are respectful of their rights," the experts added.

The experts also fear that the new Bill does not concur with the Palermi Protocol definition as its provision fails to draw a distinct boundary between sex work and trafficking.

The new Bill, the experts said, is also likely to have an impact on migrants.

This may lead to the criminalisation of all irregular migrants, including victims or potential victims of trafficking, who, because of a lack of safe, orderly and regular migration channels, are forced into the hands of smugglers or traffickers,” the experts stressed.

