United States:
Harriet ran away from home when she was 11 years old and moved in with a 32-year-old man who sexually and physically abused her and convinced her to become a prostitute. In the next two years, Harriet became addicted to drugs and contracted numerous sexually transmitted diseases. The police arrested Harriet when she was 13 and charged her with committing prostitution. They made no efforts to find her pimp. Harriet was placed on probation for 18 months in the custody of juvenile probation officials. Her lawyers have appealed the decision, arguing that since she could not legally consent to sex, she cannot face prostitution-related charges. US Department of State
Albania-Western Europe:
Anna's trafficker kept her in submission through physical abuse -- beating her, raping her, and slicing her with knives. He abducted her from Albania and took her to a Western European country, where she was forced into prostitution for about five months. He then took her to a second Western European country, where she told border authorities she was traveling on a falsified passport in hopes of getting help. The police sent her to a refugee camp where two Albanian social workers released her back to her trafficker. During more than four years of subsequent forced prostitution in the second destination, Anna was made to undergo four abortions. When her trafficker was deported to Albania, five years after her initial abduction, Anna went to police with information about the trafficking ring. Two days later, she too was deported to Albania, where the trafficker continued his threats and abuse. Anna pursued prosecution of her trafficker in Albania, but he remains free. She has been denied residency and assistance from several Western European countries, including the ones in which she was exploited. She was able to resettle in the United States where she is continuing her rehabilitation and studying to become a nurse. US Department of State
China-Ghana:
Cindy was a poor girl in rural China when a neighbor and her husband offered to give her work at a restaurant their friends opened in Africa. Cindy dropped out of school and went with the couple to Ghana, only to fall victim to a Chinese sex trafficking ring. She was taken to live in a brothel with other Chinese women, and her passport and return tickets were confiscated. Her traffickers forced her to engage in commercial sex and beat her when she refused. They made her peruse casinos to attract white men. The traffickers took Cindy's money, telling her she had to repay them for her travel and accommodation costs. A Ghanaian investigative journalist exposed the ring, and the traffickers were prosecuted in a Ghanaian court. With NGO assistance, Cindy and the other women returned to China and are trying to rebuild their lives. US Department of State
Ethiopia-United Arab Emirates:
Mary left her home in East Africa determined to earn money for her family. But from her second day of work as a maid in a private house in the United Arab Emirates, she was beaten daily. If she didn't beat me in the day, she would beat me at night, Mary says of her employer. The beatings continued for two years. Once, Mary's employer threw boiling water on her and continued to beat her after she collapsed in pain. She was denied medical attention. Her clothing stuck to her wounds. Her employer ordered Mary to have sex with another maid on video. When Mary refused, the woman put a hot iron on her neck and threatened her with more beatings. After two years, a doctor noted wounds, scars, and blisters all over Mary's body. US Department of State
Cambodia:
Rathana was born to a very poor family in Cambodia. When Rathana was 11 years old, her mother sold her to a woman in a neighboring province who sold ice in a small shop. Rathana worked for this woman and her husband for several months. She was beaten almost every day and the shop owner never gave her much to eat. One day a man came to the shop and bought Rathana from the ice seller. He then took her to a far-away province. When they arrived at his home he showed Rathana a pornographic movie and then forced her to act out the movie by raping her. The man kept Rathana for more than eight months, raping her sometimes two or three times a day. One day the man got sick and went to a hospital. He brought Rathana with him and raped her in the hospital bathroom. Another patient reported what was happening to the police. Rathana was rescued from this man and sent to live in a shelter for trafficking survivors. US Department of State
Romania-Portugal:
Cristina flew from Bucharest to Lisbon where a friend's boyfriend promised her a job serving drinks in a cafe. But instead she was taken to a town in southern Portugal and forced into street prostitution. Cristina was expected to give her traffickers 200-500 euros a day. Her traffickers verbally and physically abused her, one time breaking several of her teeth. They took her passport and forced her to use heroine and methadone. A Romanian friend helped Cristina escape and contacted Portuguese law enforcement officials, who took her to the government's trafficking shelter after taking her statements. Her resilient spirit prevailed. With the shelter's assistance, she relocated to London, where she is currently living and working. US Department of State
