Seek Out and Stop Child Trafficking (S.O.S.)

Fourteen-year-old Priya and her grandmother aren’t used to people visiting during the day. The visitors they are used to are strange men that come late at night in search of the illicit liquor that Priya’s grandmother brews and sells illegally.

Unfortunately for Priya – whose sister recently turned 16 and now spends her days working at a garment factory– life at home alone with grandma is not always enjoyable. Because of her grandmother's situation, this young girl is at tremendous risk.

Four years ago when Priya’s father died during a brutal civil war, Priya’s mother had no other option but to leave her two young daughters in the care of their grandmother while she went to find work abroad. Sadly, no one has heard from her ever since.

Situations like this are common in rural Sri Lankan countryside villages like Priya’s where war widows have been left with children to care for, with little or no financial support. Desperate, they often seek jobs as maidservants abroad, where more often than not, they end up becoming prostitutes or forced into slave labor once hired out to wealthy families.

Your gifts have been enabling World Concern staff to maintain a presence in Priya's village, promoting the Seek Out and Stop Initiative and educating the community about the dangers of trafficking, abuse, and exploitation.

As a result, concerned neighbors noticed that Priya and her sister weren’t going to school most days and were instead helping their grandmother brew illegal alcohol and then going out and selling it to men late at night.

Priya’s older sister, who is now old enough to work in a garment factory and earn around $2/day (which is given to her grandmother), takes the bus each morning to a garment factory in the nearest city an hour away where she sometimes works more than 14 hours a day. Some nights she doesn’t come home.

“We’ve heard similar cases about girls who supposedly work in garment factories,” a World Concern staff member explains, “but we found out they’re actually working as prostitutes…and this could be what is happening with Priya’s sister.”

Thanks to your compassionate gifts, Priya and her sister have renewed hope. Priya is being counselled, and we are now working closely with her grandmother in an effort to educate and put an end to Priya’s involvement in the illegal business. Thanks to your gifts, it is likely that Priya will return to school full-time. 

Thank you for your continued support in these remote and marginalized communities, and for reaching out and rescuing girls like Priya.