Students spread message against human trafficking, migrant smuggling

"People are not for sale." Although the sentence is short, it carries a powerful message. Using this simple phrase, Nusrat Jahan, a ninth-grade student from Narayanganj, wrote an essay and message on human trafficking and migrant smuggling.

Just like Nusrat, 870 students from across the country submitted essays expressing their thoughts and proposed solutions on human trafficking and migrant smuggling. Among them, 31 finalists received awards and certificates, while six students emerged as winners across two competition categories.

Literary researcher and essayist Professor Syed Azizul Haque and National Book Centre director Afsana Begum presented the awards to the winners at a ceremony held at the BRAC Centre in Mohakhali today, Thursday (23 July), reports a press release.

The competition was judged by writer, researcher and migration expert Afsan Chowdhury, journalist Rajib Noor, and fiction writer Kizzy Tahnin.

As part of a public awareness campaign to prevent human trafficking and migrant smuggling, the BRAC Migration Programme conducted awareness activities at educational institutions across the country. Students, teachers and parents attended the event, jointly organised by the Australian Border Force and the BRAC Migration Programme.

The essay competition aimed to help school, college and university students identify the signs of human trafficking and migrant smuggling, raise awareness of the dangers of irregular migration by sea, and highlight the importance of safe, regular and legal migration.

The competition was held in two categories: Class Eight to college level and university level.

In the senior category, Niloy Biswas of Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology was crowned champion, while Mohammad Fahad Hossain Fahim of Bangladesh Agricultural University was named runner-up.

In the junior category, Nadhratun Nayeem Taqwa, a ninth-grade student of Khurushkul High School in Cox's Bazar, won the championship. The joint first runners-up were Sadia Salma, a tenth-grade student of Shaheed Azizul Haque Girls' Madrasa in Teknaf, and Arafat Shaheen Kamal, a tenth-grade student of Sabrang High School in Teknaf.

Sejuti Akter Ayesha, a ninth-grade student of Pirujali Adarsha Bidyalaya in Gazipur, secured third place in this category.

Speaking as the chief guest at the prize-giving ceremony, Professor Syed Azizul Haque said, “Traffickers succeed in this country because our poverty in education is far greater than our poverty in income.”

“Those who fall victim to trafficking and endure unimaginable suffering are not the only ones affected; it is an issue concerning the entire nation. Preventing trafficking is everyone's responsibility. The messages conveyed through participants in this essay competition can help raise awareness across society,” he added.

Special guest Afsana Begum reflected on the hardships she witnessed among many Bangladeshis during her time living in Malaysia, saying that greater public awareness could protect many people from falling into danger.

Safi Rahman Khan, director of BRAC's Education, Skills Development and Migration Programme, said the fight against human trafficking and migrant smuggling is fundamentally about ensuring people's right to safe and dignified migration.

“We have been working with students for many years and have seen that wherever they become involved, positive change follows. This essay competition was organised to raise awareness of these issues among young people,” he said.

Shariful Islam Hasan, associate director of BRAC, said, “Bangladesh is the world's sixth-largest source of migrant workers. Yet those who go abroad are often referred to as kamlas (manual labourers), even though the country's economy relies heavily on their labour.”

“Their lives and struggles are absent from our textbooks. We wanted to hear students' perspectives on this issue and involve them in the discussion. This was about much more than a competition or prizes; our goal was to make students think seriously about this important issue,” he added.

Junior category runner-up Arafat Shaheen, a tenth-grade student from Teknaf, spoke about the widespread problem of human trafficking in his area.

“In Teknaf, human trafficking and abduction have become alarmingly common. People are kidnapped for ransom, trafficked and tortured. Videos of the abuse are sent to their families to extort money. Families often end up selling their property to pay the ransom. These crimes have become almost normal in Teknaf. Finding a solution is urgent,” he said.

Mobasshira Anjum, a student of YWCA Higher Secondary Girls' School in Dhaka and one of the competition participants, said, “While gathering information and researching for my essay, I realised for the first time just how widespread human trafficking and migrant smuggling are, and how devastating their consequences can be.”

At the event, Mannan Chhaiyal, who recently returned from a cyber scam centre in Cambodia, and Ong Ong Jewel, a survivor of human trafficking from Cox's Bazar, shared their harrowing experiences and urged the public to remain vigilant against human trafficking and migrant smuggling.