After a violent tantrum, 7-year-old Ana revealed why she hits her head against the wall and shout nasty things in anger. Holding the hand of her older sister, she recounted how, at age 3, she was dragged outside their makeshift house one evening by drug addicts and gang-raped in a bushy park. After the incident, the siblings decided to live on the streets as doing so felt safer than living in their house. Traffic enforcers brought them to the Laura Vicuna Center, Manila, a home for abused girls.
The Philippines faces the serious and alarming problem of some 60,000 to 100,000 sexually exploited and trafficked girls. More and more children are not safe even in their own homes, and victims of abuse are increasing in number and getting younger. Girls are particularly vulnerable and at risk of experiencing sexual abuse, sexual assault and incest, unwanted pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases and human trafficking. Sexual abuse remains the most concealed and under reported.
The project will provide survivors of sexual abuse, exploitation and trafficking with a therapeutic environment and opportunities to help them recover from their traumatic experiences, regain their self-worth and dignity, achieve psychosocial-spiritual empowerment, claim control over their lives, draw a network of support system to prevent re-victimization, empower them to be healthy survivors and rebuild their lives by charting their life path and gaining productive skills toward self-reliance.
The 30 girl survivors have: 1) regain their inner strength and resilience; 2) assert their personal boundaries and rights in order to overcome further trauma and re-victimization; 3) establish positive and meaningful relationships; 4) gain productive and life skills towards economic empowerment through employment or entrepreneurship; 5) become contributing members of their family, community and society; 6) be a resource to help abused children and women at-risk
