Today as Diya* stitches gowns with her sewing machine, she marvels that she now uses her hands for tailoring instead of shielding herself from predators – a once impossible dream. A survivor of child sex trafficking, she is determined to not let her present be overshadowed by her past. An aspiring tailor, she is working hard to pursue a future free of mental and physical exploitation.

Recently, after a long wait, she was awarded survivor compensation of 5 Lacs INR ($6,200 USD) from the government to help with her recovery. With the support of social workers, she was able to deposit a significant portion of it in an investment account. Now, she is determined to put a roof over her family’s head with the rest of the compensation. 

In 2019 Diya was rescued from a brothel in Murshidabad, West Bengal along with three other minors who were trafficked and forced into prostitution. In Diya’s case, it was her brother-in-law who deceived her and pushed her into exploitation. At the brothel, she faced overwhelming mental, verbal and sexual abuse and had no way to escape. Hope came to her when one of JVI’s Justice Hub partners collaborated with local authorities to conduct a rescue and free Diya and the others. 

Immediately after the rescue, the perpetrators were arrested and she was placed in an aftercare home along with the other survivors where they received rehabilitation assistance. Diya chose to be vocationally trained through a tailoring course. After a month-long course, she purchased a sewing machine and picked up a few orders from her neighborhood. Together with her mother, she has also ventured into livestock rearing to support herself and her family. 

Diya continues on her journey of justice and healing with support from JVI partners. With this support system in her life, she is pursuing hopes she didn’t even have the courage to a few years back.

*name changed to protect confidentiality