Exploitation of Nepalese women and girls in the entertainment industry — #takeaction podcast interview with Binita Lamichhane
Binita Lamichhane, a Nepalese folk singer, has experience working in WOFOWON (Women forum for women in Nepal), an NGO, continuously working to ensure the rights of women working in informal and entertainment sectors in Nepal.
Exploitation of women and girls is a serious problem in Nepal. According to the Freedom Fund report 9/2018
“ — there is a general lack of awareness about the hidden pressures that constrain girls’ choices. Interviewees often equated exploitation with force. They argued that if girls are not being forced to engage in sexual activities, then they are not being exploited. Because the AES workers could choose which customers to entertain, the transactions were perceived as being consensual. When the encounters seem to be consensual, it is easier for customers to feel like they aren’t doing anything wrong.”
Listen the podcast with Binita:
Women Forum for Women in Nepal
WOFOWON is the first non-governmental organization in Nepal working to ensure the rights of women in the informal and entertainment sectors. Registered in 2008, WOFOWON has been working for ensuring human rights, freedom, and dignity of women, young girls, and girl children working in the informal sectors that are migrated from rural areas or trafficked internally due to various reasons. WOFOWON works against all kinds of discrimination, injustices, labor exploitation, physical and sexual harassment to women in the informal and entertainment sector. WOFOWON is not only an organization but also a network and not only a structure but also a strength of women workers. Because the rights of women workers in the fields of informal and entertainment sectors have been violated due to the different reasons, to ensure their rights, WOFOWON has been launching various campaigns since its establishment. The main activities include awareness-raising campaigns on safe migration, human trafficking, women’s health, and violence against women, capacity building, and advocacy. WOFOWON is working to unite women workers and empower them collectively to raise voice for their rights through forming a trade unions and women’s groups.
