Though law has prohibited the practice of bonded labour, thousands of Harawa and Charuwa (bonded laborers) are dwelling in the eastern and central Terai districts including Saptari, Siraha and Dhanusha districts of Nepal. They are trapped in the generational indebtedness with exorbitant interest rate of the landlord to whom they are caught both by custom and by debts. More than 75 percent of Harawa-Charuwa are from Dalit community. Holding the government more accountable to guarantee the human rights of Harawa-Charuwa, and to strengthen the local partner organizations, local government officials and law enforcement agencies, including police, is imperative for effective implementation of relevant provisions and services. J4A has carried out a project on strengthening local organizations by providing legal service technical assistance to ensure legal rights of Harwa/Charuwa in Dhanusa, Siraha and Saptari districts of Nepal. The following main activities of the project were carried out during this project period from 1st January, 2016 to 31st March, 2017

a) Provide legal assistance to local partner organizations and Harawa-Charuwa families.
b) Development and publication the Legal Awareness Toolkit and Standard Operational Procedure (SOP) to strengthen the capacity of local partner organizations.
c) Prepare an Advocacy Action Plan for the protection and promotion of rights of Harawa-Charuwa.
d) Provide advisory services for complex cases, which are being monitored by Freedom Fund’s partner organizations.
e) Develop case monitoring tools.
f) Conduct customized trainings on relevant laws and procedures for local organizations.
g) Conduct a workshop for district-level authorities on international and national laws against slavery and trafficking.
h) Provide training to VDC secretaries on existing policies and laws prohibiting bonded labor.
i) Educate staff of partner organizations to increase primary stakeholders’ access to justice.
j) Conduct a three days training on case monitoring and evaluating for local partner organizations
k) Publication and dissemination of the Toolkit and SOP