Gender Equality Cambodia Project #5863

Healing for Victims of Assault and Trafficking

by Lotus Outreach

Project Report | Oct 8, 2019
A Story of a Survivor

By Glenn Fawcett | Executive Director, Lotus Outreach

This is a story of vulnerability and prevention. Sometimes children are lucky and come into the care of agencies and those working on keeping children safe.

Raksmey is one of these.

She was taken into care at a confidential shelter due to the fact her main caregivers were absent and when her mother came back into the picture, planned to take her out of school and sent her to work in Thailand with all the vulnerabilities and dangers that come with that.

Fortunately, in her case, she had enough education and presence of mind to know something was terribly wrong and to make the police complaint that led to her getting the help she needed.

This is her story…

Raksmey, now 16 years old, was born in Ochrov district of Banteay Meanchey province, right on the Cambodian Thai border. When she was five years old, her parents divorced and went their own ways.

Raksmey was sent to live with a woman in another area of Cambodia. Soon after, her mother migrated to work in Thailand and her father never came to visit her. In a sense, she was orphaned.

Fortunately while staying with this woman, Raksmey was able to complete her studies through 10th grade. However when her benefactor began to face extreme financial difficulty and could no longer support her, this all changed.

Raksmey’s mother came to know about the situation and came back from Thailand to take Raksmey with her. At first her mother promised she would allow Raksmey to continue studying, but as soon as they arrived near the border town, her mother told her she would have to work with her in Thailand.

Raksmey implored her mother not to go to Thailand She wanted to continue her studies and graduated high school. Her mother could not agree to this so Raksmey decided to take action.

On 10 February 2019, while her mother was taking a nap, Raksmey ran away from home. She went straight to the police to report her story and seek their intervention.

The police took this young girls’ story seriously, demonsterating a keen familiarity with human trafficking and exploitation. After registering her case she was referred to the confidential shelter for support, counseling and her eventual reintegration into a safe situation where she could continue on a positive path.

The confidential shelter’s initial assessment of her case and state was that she was in a difficult situation and facing a high risk of being exploited -- by her very own mother.

Currently, Raksmey resides in the shelter. The shelter team identified some of her relatives living in the town nearby. They agreed to bring Raksmey to live with them and to support her living and her study. Being in the same town, the shelter staff will closely monitor Raksmey’s situation and additionally are helping to identify further study options for her.

It now looks like Raksmey will be able to complete her schooling and work toward reaching her full potential in life.

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Jul 11, 2019
Healing for Srey Tuich

By Glenn Fawcett | Executive Director, Lotus Outreach

Tuich with CTC head counselor at the shelter

Most victims of rape and trafficking referred to Consoling Through Counseling are children.

The past 10 years has seen a huge percentage-wise increase in arrests and convictions in the cases of rape and sexual abuse.

The importance of the Consoling through counseling program is underscored by the fact a large proportion of victims of trafficking and sexual abuse cases referred to the CTC program over the past few years have been children.

Over the past 10 years we have also seen a major shift for the better in the attitude of police and judiciary resulting in huge percentage wise increases in arrests and convictions in cases of rape and sexual abuse. The legal program run by Lotus Outreach’s CTC partner, Cambodian Women’s Crisis Centre, has played a very important part by pushing for reform and for action to reduce high pendency in cases of abuse against women and children.

Srey Tuich (name changed to protect her identity) now 15 years old, has recently completed a series of six court hearings culminating in conviction of the ringleader of a trafficking for begging ring in Bangkok. CTC program counselor Soknyi accompanied Tuich to each and every hearing, five times to the Thai border and for the final closing of the case in Bangkok.

Tuich is 4th in a family of seven siblings from the Cambodia province of Kompong Thom. Her biological father is in jail for raping his own daughter. Piling tragedy upon tragedy, her mother then separated and took another husband who beat the children regularly. Tuich has a hearing problem and physically seems to have the condition of dwarfism. Her mother, seeking to exploit her, contacted a person that managed a 10 children begging team in Bangkok and Tuich was taken to Thailand and left there to beg. She was not allowed to call mother, was beaten, tortured and forced to beg. She ran away one time and was caught so they tortured her after which she didn’t runaway again.

Thankfully, Thai Police finally arrested her and deported her to Cambodia and on September 7th, 2016 she entered the safe shelter and the CTC program. Police are still looking for the mother, as she was the instigator in trafficking of her daughter. Tuich continues to attend school while the program searches for an NGO to provide long term care for her.

Tuich's final court hearing in Bangkok

Links:

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Apr 15, 2019
Consoling Thru Counseling Update

By Glenn Fawcett | Executive Director, Lotus Outreach

Skills Training, Tailoring and Handicrafts--Ways to Wellness and Empowerment

We’ve often shared with supporters of this program the impact that care and counseling has on the young women and children that enter this program as victims of rape, trafficking and domestic violence. Our counselors are highly skilled and provide appropriate therapy on an individual basis. It takes a lot of time and infinite patience to reach a traumatised child and bring them back so they can relate to people and trust again.

Among the myriad of therapeutic approaches used to heal and rebuild trust in these young women and girls, we have employed a professional tailor to provide sewing and handicraft skills. Working on their own projects, together in a small group, allows young minds to heal at their own speed. Whether learning to cut and stitch a dress or making a fancy beaded bracelet, all the participants find joy learning how to create something with their own hands. Working together everyday without any pressure also provides opportunities to develop trust and a sense of ease with people again.

Skills training to support livelihood is another important element attached to the counseling program. The ability to make a living independent of others provides essential support for the successful reintegration back into the community and eventual re empowerment of the individual.

Every year we try to identify three or four young women in counseling for skills training scholarships. The type of skill provided depends on the preferences of the girls themselves. Beauty salon, hair and makeup is the preferred skill chosen by girls in the past few years and which makes sense as graduates are easily able to find a job in a salon or set up as successful small business, even in the remotest village.

Being educated and having a skill is so important to the development of their self-esteem. Those applying for the training award are over the moon to be receiving training they otherwise couldn’t afford and are very happy when working in the beauty salon environment.

The Empowerment of Srey Pich

Pich left school to help her mother with a small home based grocery business after completing only grade 5. At 13 she was lured into a relationship with an older boy. The boy was arrested and Pich ended up at the shelter filled with a sense she’d brought a great shame on her family. After several weeks of keeping to herself she gradually opened up to others assisted by regular personal counseling sessions. Pich enjoyed the sewing and handicraft sessions and eventually applied for Beauty Salon skills training. Even though only 13 years of age at the time, she was very enthusiastic which earned her the training award.

Pich was very skilled at salon work and began earning good money after 6 months of training! We recently visited her at her very own salon and where she can average $5 per day and double that in the marriage season where she can earn $20 for one marriage.

At the ripe age of just 15 years Pich tells us, “I am overcome with happiness…I love what I do and I can finally support myself with what I earn!

Happy to make a living using her new skills

Making bracelets and hairbands is therapeutic

Busy training

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