Shakti Samua (Free the Slaves Foundation)
In 1996, 500 girls and women were rescued from slavery in Indian brothels during widespread police raids. Among these were 148 Nepalese girls and women. All these girls were then locked away in remand homes in India, where conditions were as bad - if not worse - than in prison. Meanwhile, the Nepalese government was reluctant to bring the victims back to Nepal. Instead, some non-governmental organizations took the lead in returning and rehabilitating the girls. But even in these rehabilitation centers, the girls’ treatment did not help to restore their self-esteem and basic human rights. Some of the girls felt it was time to claim their rights themselves, so they set up Shakti Samuha. Shakti Samuha translates as “an empowered group”.
| Shakti Samuha knows that only a small percentage of girls are actually rescued from slavery. So their emphasis is on prevention. |
Shakti Samuha is different from other groups that help trafficking survivors: It places the highest value on self-empowerment. Its aim is to give a stronger voice to women who have been violently exploited and are now in danger of being rejected by their own communities.
Since the mid-90s, the need for Shakti Samuha’s work has grown because trafficking has turned into a major export industry from Nepal to India and other countries. Traffickers prey on the desperation of young people to get out of Nepalese villages that are beset with hunger, their economies paralyzed by fighting between Maoists and government forces. Once in India, women are bought from the traffickers by brothel owners, and they are expected to pay back this purchase price out of their earnings.