Children as young as three years old are illegally trafficked and sexually abused in secret rooms of public brothels in major centers all across Thailand and Cambodia. They are offered several times per day to tourists and locals alike, and earn money for their abductors and keepers. These children have no one to go to for help, and thus endure horrific abuse for many years of their lives.
The vision of Not4Sale is to raise funds and to establish a series of safe-houses for children who are exploited in the sex industry in Thailand and Cambodia. Some safe-houses are already up and running in the area, providing long-term safe-havens and education to numerous young boys and girls, however many more are needed. The number of children exploited in the sex-trade industry is staggering, and the need for help is real and immediate.
While we hope that one day human trafficking will be abolished, we know that right now children can be rescued and restored in body, soul and spirit.
Everyone is invited to join this fight! Together with your help, we can reach more children.
Young and old hit the road to rescue and rehabilitate the children held captive in the brothels of Cambodia.
Not4Sale in Siem Reap
Cambodia Safe House Project Not4Sale is the first Anti-trafficking initiative for Victory Children’s Homes International Foundation. We are excited to be in Cambodia and are setting our roots down in Siem Reap, a major tourist area close to the famous “Angkor Watt” temples.
The first stage of this project was to survey the land and meet the people and the organizations that are playing a part in the abolition of trafficking and underage prostitution in Cambodia. Mission accomplished! We are now well connected into this land which has so amazingly opened the doors to us. We are ready to re-enter the country to complete what we have begun.
On our return November, 2011, we will hire more staff, train them and finalize the facility with leases and repairs which will allow us to securely house, counsel and be a healing center for the rescued little ones. It is time!
Statistics:
*35 percent of Cambodia's 15,000 prostitutes are children under the age of 16
*Pimps are reported to imprison young children who are virgins and not put them to work until they have been presented to a series of bidders
*Young girls working in brothels are in effect, sex slaves; they receive no money, only food, and armed guards stop them from running away.
*Children are held captive, beaten, and starved to force them into prostitution.
*Children as young as 5 years old are being sold as slaves for sex.
*Each year hundreds of thousands of girls and boys are bought, sold or kidnapped and then forced to have sex with grown men.
A Story of Hope: From Rescue to Restoration
During my first stay in Cambodia in the beginning of 2011, it was exciting to meet all the wonderful people who work in the many organizations in this war torn land. Each organization does their part of the long journey these little rescued girls take; from rescue, to assessment, to after care and hopefully back home.Each child when rescued begins a 3 year journey filled with fears and joys, doctors and courtrooms, counselling and education.
One April evening in Siem Reap in 2011 a huge storm rose up quickly with lightning and thunder and severe rains. Little did I know that about 1 mile down the road a large raid was taking place in one of the brothels. 80 women were detained by the police and 18 of these were girls under the age of 16. In the darkness of a blackout in the police station, with only the light that come from their cell phones, dedicated workers looked into the eyes of all 80 girls in order to estimate their ages and remove the underage, frightened children. With no personal ID and no addresses of their family, the children are taken from the police station into a High Security Assessment Center where they begin to receive the care they so desperately need.
The children were frightened … were they being taken to another brothel? Were they being sold again? It would take them several weeks to realize that were rescued and safe with good food and medical care, with people who would care for them; people they could trust for the first time.
I was invited to meet these children and see the facility where they were staying. I was handed forms to fill in and documents to read and to sign. A long list of does and don’ts were given to me on how to greet these children. Don’t touch their clothing, don’t pull them towards yourself, smile at all times and act gently and peacefully. After reading and signing these documents – no address was given but I was taken down a series of roads to a home with high walls and a huge gate. Putting my pass around my neck having been approved for the visit, I confronted the first guard who peeked out of the facility looking for the appropriate approval.
As we walked the next 50 feet to the building (more like a house), I noticed the child- like drawings taped to the walls and cut paper decorations hanging from the ceiling … like I was entering a daycare in Canada. As I was taken from room to room I was told their stories. One room had 5 children who were 5 and 6 years old … so small … playing with their house mom (a Cambodian lady trained to help these little ones). All were raped. All were going through court cases and taken from their families out of their village by the police to protect them.
Finally I was taken to the main room about 12 feet x 12 feet, where the newly rescued children were being oriented. Skilled workers were brought in from all over the country to help these little ones and quiet their fears. The regular workers were overwhelmed – it was the largest raid in this city. As I entered the room with a smile on my face, I looked at these little girls. The oldest were so small, could they be 15? Without the proper nutrition, without the proper care, these children remained tiny and weak looking. A good portion of the children rose to their feet and smiled and greeted me as they had been taught to do in the brothels to their impending customers. The others sat with fear across their faces, staring into my face with cold, terror filled eyes. Not knowing much of the language I bowed and greeted them and smiled until my face was tired of smiling. My desire was for them to be a peace with me.
Walking around the grounds I saw four armed guards standing in the hot sun, one at each corner of the high walls while 2 Cambodian women were cooking a healthy lunch in the chain fenced-in area inside the grounds.
The children were safe now and beginning their journey of healing. Each child would be assessed physically, mentally and emotionally. Their identity is determined and their families are contacted. These children spend 3 months in this assessment center and then are released to a High-Risk After- Care Facility (that is us). They stay with us for approximately 3 years where they are counselled, educated, and loved before being restored back into their community.
The journey is a long one but their life is changed forever. No longer beaten and raped daily, these little ones slowly learn to trust again and for the very first time experience real love, true joy and have hope for a bright future.
*None of the pictures on this site are of actual trafficked victims.
