KATHMANDU: Nepal police reported they had arrested an under-age girl who had used a fake passport to go to Kuwait to work. It comes as the Nepal government has put a moratorium on women working in the Gulf Arab region after reports of misconduct and abuse from employers have sparked worries over the safety of Nepali citizens. The Central Investigation Bureau of Nepal Police reportedly arrested the girl from Raksirang-8, Makwanpur, after she returned to Kathmandu from Kuwait on Saturday, The Himalayan Times reported. “Lured into temptation and backed by the forgers and human traffickers, the girl had flown to Kuwait two months ago to work as a housemaid at the age of 16,” the report said. Under Nepal's labor laws, nobody under 21-years-old is permitted to travel to the Gulf for work, but the young girl forged a passport that listed her age as over 21. The Nepali Embassy in Kuwait said that it had sent the young girl back home after discovering her fake passport. During interrogation, she reportedly told the CIB that her relative Bhim Bahadur Moktan had kept her in Kalanki-based Laligunras Guest House for 10 days and arranged the passport and visa. She had paid Rs 25,000 for the forged passport, the local Nepal report said. Human rights workers in Nepal told Bikyamasr.com on condition of anonymity that they hope the government helps assist young people in the country in boosting work prospects in order to avoid similar situations in the future. “The situation facing young people, especially women in Nepal, is difficult and we need more action to stem this situation with the Gulf and other countries where Nepalis go,” said the worker.
