New Sewing Center Facility Opens Welcoming Growth at Ashagram
IPP’s first sewing center, Ashagram, has expanded into a brand new facility on the beautiful campus outside of Mumbai, India! This facility allows the thriving sewing center to move from cramped temporary quarters into a more spacious facility. There will now be plenty of room for the IPP seamstresses to measure fabric, create patterns and craft Punjammies™. Each step in the process is a part of re-building the self-worth of young women one stitch at a time.
Together with our partner in Mumbai and the generous contributions of IPP supporters, we were honored to be a part of the opening of this fabulous center in August. The new facility increases capacity to teach even more women the trade of sewing, a high-quality, sustainable skill. The space allows for better quality control, more organized processes, and ultimately a better education for the women who learn and grow there.
Posted on Sep 13, 2008
Human Trafficking and Forced Prostitution
TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS
27 million people around the world are estimated to be victims of slavery, for forced prostitution, labor, domestic work, and other forms of exploitation, with approximately 50% of victims being under the age of 18. UNICEF estimates that one million children will be forced into prostitution this year.
Victims of human trafficking are subject to gross human rights violations including rape, torture, beatings, starvation, dehumanization, and threats of murdering family members. In the case of traffficking for sexual exploitation, girls often have their virginity sold first, followed by multiple gang rape to break down their resistance. Since the bodies of young girls are not ready for sexual intercourse, this often results in abrasions, making the girls susceptible to HIV/AIDS and other diseases.
INDIA
In India, there are over 2 million women and children working as prostitutes (1), 100,000 in Mumbai (Bombay) alone (2). 35% of these women working as prostitutes enter the sex trade before the age of 18 (3). Every day, about 200 girls and women enter prostitution, 80% of them against their will (4). In Mumbai, India lies Kamathipura; the largest concentrated red-light district in the world.
The women and children who are a part of the sex trade in India are caught in a vicious cycle of poverty, illiteracy and disease. The chance for escape from the sex trade is slim. Unlike the U.S. where government programs exist to help those who are destitute and want to make a change for the better in their lives, India has no financial aid for women who want to get out of the profession. The social stigma attached to children of commercial sex workers (the term used in India) bars them from entering public school, virtually forcing them into the same life that their mothers endure.
At least 80 indigenous organizations are working to rescue and provide after-care for women forced into this life-style (5). The capacity of these quality after-care homes is limited by the organization's dependence on charitable donations and their ability to provide the women tools and skills to help them make a successful transition back into society. Successful transition requires a sustainable skill that provides a viable lifestyle to a woman extremely vulnerable to re-victimization.
(1) BBC Report on Number of Sex Workers in India
(2) Robert I. Freidman, "India's Shame: Sexual Slavery and Political Corruption Are Leading to An AIDS Catastrophe," The Nation, 8 April 1996
(3) Dr KK Mukherjee NGO report on prostitution
(4) CEDPA and PRIDE, 1997
(5) India Human Rights Report, Trafficking in Persons
Posted on Sep 13, 2008
Indian Journal of Sexually Transmitted Diseases
A scholarly India journal, read the report Prostitution in India and its role in the spread of HIV infection.
Click here.
Posted on Sep 04, 2008
The World Bank
The World Bank is working to reduce global poverty, and has excellent information on HIV/AIDS country specific information. Read their report on HIV/AIDS in India here: Click here.
Posted on Sep 04, 2008
Emancipation Network
A like-minded organization working to develop income generating programs for survivors of slavery and human trafficking, check out the Emancipation Network.
http://www.emancipationnetwork.org
Posted on Sep 04, 2008
Harvest India
Working with the poorest of the poor in Andrah Pradesh, India, IPP is honored to partner with Harvest India in their work with women formerly enslaved in prostitution.
http://www.harvestindia.org
Posted on Sep 04, 2008
International Justice Mission
International Justice Mission is working for justice all across the globe. Their Stats and Fact Sheets are a great resource for information about injustice, sex tourism and forced labor.
http://www.ijm.org
IJM Statistics and Fact Sheets
http://www.ijm.org/statistics&factsheets/viewcategory
Posted on Sep 04, 2008
BBC News reports on prostitution in India
The number of prostitutes in India has risen by 50% in less than a decade, according to a new survey.
Read more in this BBC News report Prostitution Increases in India.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/5140526.stm
Posted on Sep 04, 2008
