Ada's Story
TENELLE PORTER relates the story of a woman trafficked from Sierra Leone to London, and draws wider lessons for public policy
How do you tell a story that shames you? That causes you to bury your head in your hands or to look up to heaven and sigh; a story that burns all you knew or thought you knew about humankind to ashes? How do you tell a story like Ada's?
I have not met Ada. I do not even know her real name. I have not looked into her eyes for signs of death or life, despair or hope. What I know are the bones of her story. The skeleton. I know just enough to know nothing much at all.
Ada was born in Sierra Leone. Her father physically and verbally abused her so she ran away from home and moved in with a friend. Life with her friend was difficult, and when Ada's boyfriend asked her to marry him and move to London she accepted. This was the opportunity of a lifetime.
He bought her a ticket and they flew to London. Three men met Ada and her boyfriend at the airport and took them to a house. Before she had her bearings, Ada's boyfriend disappeared. Ada, twenty-three years old and completely alone, was raped by one of the men.
Her boyfriend never returned. The men drove Ada to a brothel where she was forced to work as a prostitute, servicing two to three men a day. She was beaten and held captive; armed guards threatened to kill her if she tried to escape.
Maybe stories like Ada's are so difficult to tell that they remain untold. Yet stories of individuals who are forced, conned or coerced into the sex industry are disturbingly common. Human trafficking, as it was defined by the UN in 2002, is thought to be the fastest growing criminal activity in the world, and the fastest-growing.
Trafficking statistics are grim. Though difficult to compile because of the covert nature of the crime, data suggest that two and a half million people are trafficked each year; about 80% of those trafficked are women and girls. An estimated 90% of trafficking in Europe feeds the sex industry.
The International Labor Organization estimates that global profits from sexual exploitation of women and children reach $28 billion a year. But the sex is usually cheap, selling for as little as $5 and free from all relational obligations . Regardless of how much sex costs, workers are rarely, if ever, paid.
Women and girls trafficked into sex work are exploited not only by traffickers but also by consumers driving the demand. Flourishing markets for cheap sex resemble markets for cheap clothes, cheap foods, and cheap appliances.
Against all odds, many trafficked women possess a degree of resilience. Six months after being forced into prostitution, Ada escaped. She fled during a New Year's Eve party when distracted guards accidentally left a door unlocked. She ended up at the Poppy Project, part of Eaves Housing for Women.
Funded by the Ministry of Justice via the Office for Criminal Justice Reform, the Poppy Project provides accommodation and support for women trafficked into the sex industry in the UK. Most women referred to Poppy are from south-east Asia, Africa and eastern Europe.
Without the support of organisations like Poppy, many women find themselves in trouble even after they are "rescued" from traffickers. Traumatized and threadbare, women sit for interviews with the immigration authorities. Women may be arrested and detained for breaking immigration laws; treated as criminals instead of as victims of violent crimes.
Poppy lobbies for policies designed to decriminalize trafficking victims and punish traffickers. Before 2004, the UK had no specific anti-trafficking laws. Traffickers, if convicted at all, were detained for committing only immigration related crimes. Specific anti-trafficking laws are now in place but penalties for trafficking are still less severe than penalties for rape.
Along with prosecuting offenders, curbing the demand for sex workers also plays an integral part in combating trafficking. Prostitution related policy is currently being debated in Parliament and some argue that legalising prostitution could reduce trafficking by providing legal and regulated channels for sex workers.
Evidence collected from countries where prostitution is legal does not support this argument. In fact, it is likely that the added supply will create its own demand. Trying to curb trafficking by legalising prostitution is like trying to put out fire with gasoline.
Not all trafficking stories have happy endings. Some women return home only to be re-trafficked. Some live with STDs including HIV for the rest of their lives. Many develop chronic psychological problems like post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression. I do not know how Ada's story ends. But with public awareness and effective policy, we can help her rise from the ashes of her past.
Tenelle Porter is a student a St Hilda's College, and works in Oxford's Department of Social Policy and Social Work.