NGO Prerana is rehabilitating Kamathipura's sex workers by educating them about their rights against the backdrop of displacement and ensuring their children get good education against all odds.
Kamathipura Redevelopment: Will Govt Pay Heed To Sex Workers And Their Vulnerable Children?
For nearly four decades, Priti Patkar has been working with trafficked women in the sex trade and their children in Mumbai바카라s red-light area, Kamathipura.
For nearly four decades, Priti Patkar has been working with trafficked women in the sex trade and their children in Mumbai's red-light area, Kamathipura.
One image that remains etched in her memory, is that of a child, barely a few years old, sleeping on the lower bunk bed, while her mother 바카라services a client바카라 on the birth.
바카라When I asked how the child was fast asleep, they said she was fed something to remain sleeping so she won't bother her mother while she's at work,바카라 she says.
In 1986, Patkar established Prerana, a Mumbai-based NGO, to eliminate 바카라intergenerational prostitution바카라 by protecting women and children from the threat of human trafficking.
The organization started the first Night Care Center (NCC) to protect children in the evenings when they have to fend for themselves while their mothers pay undivided attention to the customers.
As a profession, prostitution is usually generational, passed down from one generation of women in the family to another, through the ages.
As soon as a girl would turn 12-13, she starts being groomed for the job.
Patkar recalls an instance where a girl, her mother and grandmother, all three were dressed up and made to stand out on the streets by their pimps to attract clients.
바카라That image has stayed with me,바카라 she says.
The boys are also roped into the business of sex trade.
바카라We have seen young boys being trained to become pimps or inducted into the allied activities of the sex trade.
Slightly older boys would sometimes transport VCRs and DVDs because a client might have asked to watch a blue film with one of the sex workers,바카라 says Patkar.바카라
Over the years, however, these women, thanks to the civil society organizations like NGO Prerana, have learned their rights, and discovered the possibility of a better future for their children.
These organizations like Prerana work closely with Kamathipura's sex workers to show them it was possible for their children to break out of the vicious cycle, get educated and have a different future.
바카라When we started enrolling their children into schools, the mothers realized that we wanted to help and support them, and will not leave,바카라 recalls Patkar.바카라
The most accessible school for the sex workers' children was a municipal school located within Kamathipura.
바카라Over 20 years back, the school's total population was over 3,000, and not even one percent consisted of the children from the red-light area,바카라 she says.
But after NGO Prerana's intervention, these mothers who were unsure of their children's future prospects now want their children to attend school at any cost.
Patkar explains that the municipal school would admit children once they would turn six, and because most of the children of sex workers did not have a birth certificate, the way to measure their age was 바카라to ask them to hold their left ear with their right hand from over their head바카라.
If they could, they would be admitted.
Advertisement
바카라Almost all of sex workers' children in Kamathipura are attending school.
They are in Classes 10, 12, completing graduation, making their own choices, which the women never thought would be a reality for their children.바카라
Patkar recalls an 11-year-old daughter of a sex worker who emancipated herself after overhearing the brothel owner offer her mother a hefty sum to rope her into the sex trade.
바카라The girl confided in our workers that she didn't feel safe to go back.
So, we took her to the Child Welfare Committee that in turn placed her in a children's home.바카라
As Kamathipura prepares for redevelopment and subsequent displacement, it raises concerns over the employment prospects of sex workers and their children's education.
Patkar says many women have already moved out of the brothels.
However, this doesn't mean they have cut off ties.
바카라Over the last 15 years, many of these women living the suburbs, but still controlled by their pimps, come to Kamathipura in the evenings, and take an early morning train back home,바카라 she says.
Many brothel keepers in Kamathipura, Patkar says, manage establishments across other red-light areas in Mumbai.
바카라So, during the redevelopment, brothel keepers might shift these women to these establishments in other localities,바카라 she says.바카라
Advertisement
On the plus side, the sex workers and their children have learned to fight for the right to education.
바카라When the women move out of the red-light area, they ensure their children don't drop out from school.
NGOs like us help mothers and children to fight against all odds.
They reach out and seek our help to get the children admitted to a local school and continue their education.바카라
To ensure that the children of sex workers do not get pushed back into vulnerability again, Patkar says, they must be provided with reliable information and the government needs to listen to the sex their questions, suggestions and concerns, over the redevelopment. Armed with reliable information, there are fewer chances of getting duped. 바카라Some sex workers believe they would be compensated in the redevelopment plan, and are already paying lawyers. They keep borrowing and paying back, and get trapped in a cycle of debt. Someone needs to tell them about their rights and claims in the redevelopment plan, and if they are even eligible for compensation,바카라 notes Patkar.
Advertisement
The best solution, feels Patkar, is a one-stop assistance center for sex workers, where experts in different fields can enlighten them about their rights, and help them about any other queries.
바카라Someone might require legal advice, economic rehabilitation, and livelihood training to get a job.
Another woman might need support with healthcare or education.
This assistance center should have legal experts and other professionals who can guide them on the choices they want to make,바카라 concludes Patkar.
Show comments