iv just read an overwhelming story about a lady, Somaly Mam.
(from dec09 reader’s digest)
Currently, Somaly leads AFESIP (Acting For Women in Distressing Situation, French Acronym),
and Somaly Mam is in Time magazine’s 2009 list of the world’s 100 most influential People.
Somaly was awarded $1.4million by Munich-based Roland Berger Foundation,
for her work against child sex slavery.
“I dont want to change the world.
I just want to change the destiny of one girl.
Then another. And another.” somaly said.
Estimated 2-4 million of young women and children will be sold,
into prostitution within the coming year!
Feel sucks when think of men sexual desire, which has caused the suffering of the children, even as young as 5…
My heart always ache, when saw the news about rape cases.
I seriously think the rapist is nothing much different than the beasts!
Somaly had been sold into prostitution when she was 16.
Her first client ordered her to take off the clothes,
she refused, and was being locked up in a dark room,punished by pouring snakes crawling over her.
Some young girls were beaten,
and shocked with cables from car battery..
omg!!
Virgins can be sold for higher prices,
hence the girls would be sewn up (hymenoplasty) and be sold again.
It’s digusting, when i read that in a room there may have as many as 20 men,
waiting a girl to ’serve’ them! Somaly is one of the victims.
What these men are doing to a helpless young girl for maybe 15min? 30min?…
feel like want to throw out!
Even untill now, Somaly has nightmares, and hardly get sleep at a stretch for whole night.
She even cannot return to the same Phnom Penh brothel,
that she had been imprisoned in before!
At the age of 21, which is less valuable to brothel owners,
she had more freedom to move around,
and eventually married to a Frenchman.
Somaly started her work with distributing condoms and AIDS info to the prostitutes.
one of the girls pleaded her,
“Dont just give me a condom, if you want to help me, take me out of here.”
One by one,
she saved the girl from the brothel, they sneaked out.
AFESIP has rescued, and educated more than 5000 children.
But because of her life threatening work against the gangsters,
she has to hire bodyguards.
But her effort pays off.
Some girls are independant, surviving by their own small business.
Some girls get married, leading a new life..
Some girls, rarely, accepted back by their own villagers.
“I am so happy to see them be children again. I want them to have the childhood I didn’t have.”
Now, throughout Cambodia, there are 3 shelters for 200+ girls,
and 106 staffs.
All the girls have the opportunity to study in local school,
and learn English, sewing and other trades.
i like what she said,
“Sometimes when you are talking, you can say something that is not true. But the heart talking is always true.”
“a real hero and tireless fighter for children.” ~ Joseph Mussomeli, Former USA Ambassador to Cambodia.
“The fact that she escaped makes her unique,
but what makes her truly extraordinary is that she went back.” ~Angelina Jolie.
Cambodia: 100,000 prostitutes (40% under 16, tht’s mean 40,000!)
“Profit from sex slavery are estimated 7-12billions US per year.” United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime.
do visit some of Somaly Mam’s website:
www.somaly.org
http://www.rolandbergerstiftung.org/en/the-roland-berger-human-dignity-award/award-winners/award-winner-2008.html
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