Rescuing Girls Sexual Exploitation in India Nepal

I had recently visited our project in Maharashtra that aims to rescue girls from forced prostitution. For this project, we work with our local partner Freedom Firm. I met with the rescue team and had the opportunity to discuss in detail their work method and the complexities of the problem of forced prostitution of girls in their communities.

The rescue team explained that they conduct investigative and undercover work in order to identify minor girls that are enslaved in brothels. Once they find the girls, the rescue team provides them with counselling in the brothels. Following this, the rescue team documents the crime and then reports this information to the police. The rescue team, along with the police, liberate the girls and arrest the brothel keepers and traffickers.

Executing rescue raids come with a long list of challenges. Most importantly, finding the right people with whom to work! Between local law enforcement officials, the inefficiencies of a broken criminal justice system and even unreliable medical centres for age test results – it becomes a very complex operation.

It was great to see that during my visit to the project, there had just been a girl rescued the day before. The local police had actually identified the victim and then requested the rescue team for assistance. It was good to see this collaboration – after all we have to work together to combat this horrific crime.

Following the rescue, the girls are temporarily placed in government shelter homes, and they are assisted by the legal team to file criminal complaints against their oppressors. In the shelters, the girls are supported as part of the aftercare programme. I found the work of the aftercare team to be very impressive. In total there are around 100 to 120 girls in the aftercare programme. The staff members keep in touch with the girls through shelter visits, home visits and phone calls long after they were rescued and rehabilitated. The aftercare team work in partnership with shelter homes across India, to provide rescued girls with counselling, job training, and education. It’s very special how the aftercare team stays connected with the rescued girls and how this bond and trust deepens as time goes by. They watch as the girls transform into young, independent women over the years.

Another part of the strategy is to prevent girls from becoming victims of forced prostitution or being re-trafficked after they’ve been rescued. The idea is to break harmful and discriminatory social traditions and beliefs that may lead to girls falling into forced prostitution. This involves informing and educating communities and villages about trafficking and forced prostitution as well as the rights of girls and women.

I’m extremely optimistic about the work that we and our local partners do in India but there is still so much to be done!