Rescued sex workers dream again, work to turn them real

Many survivors of sex trafficking are on the path to recovery thanks to Rescue Foundation, which is involved in rescuing, rehabilitating, repatriating and reintegrating trafficked women from different parts of India, Nepal and Bangladesh.

The Free Press Journal spoke to two women who have been rescued by the foundation and given a new lease of life.

Priya (name changed) was rescued from Budhwar Peth area in Pune in 2011. Priya was a minor at the time she was rescued.

According to Triveni Acharya, president and cofounder of Rescue Foundation, “Since Priya was a minor, the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) passed an order that she should be kept at the home. She was very happy after being rescued and did not want to return to her native place in Agra.”

Speaking about her experience, Priya said, “I wanted to study, so I was shifted from the foundation’s Pune home to their Boisar one. After completing my education, I stayed at the foundation home for two years. In 2014, I enrolled myself in hotel management course. I am now employed in the laundry department at a five-star hotel in Mumbai.” Priya earns Rs 16,000 per month and has applied under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana through which she is entitled to her own house by 2019.

54-year-old Farheen (name changed) is a unique case of re-rescue. She was re-rescued from Kamathipura in 2012. After she was rescued the first time by from Kamathipura, she had to go back to collect her belongings from the brothel and was forced backed into sex trade.

Farheen presently works as an attendant at the foundation’s Kandivali centre. She works with children and also manages the kitchen. She is now a married woman with four children. Her 20-year-old girl who was born through the trade has completed her SSC this year. Farheen said, “Since my daughter was studying in Mumbai, I did not wish to go back to my family at my native place at Azamgarh in UP. I am happy here at the foundation and don’t wish to leave.”