Thursday, March 1, 2012

Cycle of Poverty

If you are a poor woman from Nepal, from a poor community with a poor family who is struggling to make ends meet. . .
probably you have no access to education
probably your family will be expected to pay a dowry to the family of the man who marries you
probably you feel desperate and hopeless

If a recruiter comes to your village offering you a job in India, where you can work as someone's house girl, learn to read and write, make enough money to send home to your parents and pay for your dowry. . .
probably your family will have to pay the recruiter a relatively large sum to secure the position for you 
probably you will feel hopeful and cling to that hope
probably your family will see it as a way to give their child a better future

probably the recruiter is lying

If you go with that recruiter and they do get you across the border into India or another country. . .
probably you will be sold for a relatively large sum to someone else
probably you will have your documents taken away
probably you will not be given paid work
probably you will suffer abuse emotionally, physically, spiritually, sexually
likely you will be working in a brothel
likely you will be beaten or physically abused
likely you will never see your family again
maybe you will escape

If you get rescued by an NGO that is working to stop human trafficking. . .
probably the NGO will recieve a large sum of money from donors (like the European Union) to help you
probably you will be given a safe place to stay
probably you will be repatriated to Nepal
probably you will be treated well, though perhaps patronizingly by workers there
probably you will be "rehabilitated" to go back into society although, because of the cultural emphasis on virginal wives and stigma attached to sex, your prospects for marriage are not very good nor are your chances of procuring your livelihood
probably you will be returned to your village and your family who may or may not accept you
probably you will not receive any education, training or instruction that will help you make a better life for yourself back in the place you began

Since the same conditions are still in place in your village, it is likely that the same process will happen again.

All along the cycle, money is changing hands and good paying jobs are created for everyone but the exploited person.  The jobs and the money is there because of the exploited person and yet, they don't see any of it.
There is a market for this, clearly, and where there is a market there are people who are equally desperate or else evil, who are taking advantage of it.  Even in NGOs, the focus, often times is only to rescue girls without looking at the bigger picture; "why are these people so poor, desperate and hopeless in the first place?" No steps are taken to remedy those problems.

The factors are different but the same general situation repeats itself anywhere there is poverty, desperation and hopelessness.  Those 3 things are increasingly prevelant in our society.  If we don't stand up against injustices and the horrible treatment of humans, no matter who they are or where they are from, we are setting the precedent that it's tolerable and thus we invite the same treatment onto ourselves.
We take the stability of our lives, social status, wealth, health and well being for granted.  Everything is constantly changing, faster and faster as time goes on.  In one moment everything could be turned completely upside down.

1 comment:

KLS said...

wow, i never thought to look past the "rescue"