Oasis’ Aruna project addresses the complex issues of commercial sexual exploitation (CSE), prostitution and trafficking in Mumbai, India.
‘Aruna’ means ‘bright morning sun’. Through the project, Oasis works to provide a new beginning for victims of trafficking trapped in situations of CSE by providing a way out of exploitation and help to lead sustainable lives. Aruna:
- Establishes relationships with women, their children and their male stakeholders to promote the worth of each individual life so that trafficking, soliciting and exploitation is reduced.
- Facilitates and supports local organisations and churches to effectively reach out to those trapped in CSE.
- Is also involved in Advocacy on civil rights, access to health-care, voluntary testing & counselling and other relevant issues in the red light area
topAbout the Country
India is a multi-ethnic and multi-religious country. It is the second most populous country in the world.
Trafficking is rife in India. Men, women and children from India are trafficked for sexual and commercial exploitation; trafficked people are taken through India on their way to other countries; and trafficked people end up in India.
Trafficked people can find themselves trapped in CSE, which includes prostitution, pornography, cybersex and sex tourism. They are also trafficked into servitude of different types - domestic labour, industrial labour, agricultural labour, debt bondage, begging, organ trade, camel jockeying, false marriage and adoption.
Mumbai is the commercial capital of India and is a bustling metropolis in the western state of Maharashtra. It is an urban conglomerate of 3 cities - Mumbai, Thane and Navi Mumbai. Aruna works in the Grant Rd area of downtown Mumbai.
topExplanation of the Project
Aruna offers the following services and facilities:
A visiting programme in the red light area to build relationships with women and their children and male stakeholders (pimps, customers and boys). All these primary stakeholders are helped to access health care, vocational training, gainful employment, rehabilitation and care options.
A Drop-in Centre in the red light area provides an informal environment and offers a much-needed space for the women and children. They can come and chat, seek advice, and receive skills training. The Salvation Army are also partner agency of Aruna and use the same building to run a night shelter for the children of women in CSE and also to provide education for them.
A Halfway Home to provide a bridge between the red light area and society. Here women find a secure place of belonging where new skills training options are offered along with counselling and guidance.
Aruna has developed a model that relates to the breadth of issues faced by those trafficked into CSE. Now in its second phase, the project wants to focus on training volunteers from local NGO’s and churches to work in red light areas – passing on its expertise and increasing awareness about CSE and trafficking.
topHistory of the Project
For over 20 years Oasis has worked to transform individuals and communities by promoting inclusion and confronting injustice.
Established in 1998, Aruna was initiated to reach out to the girls working in the red light area of Grant Road, Mumbai. According to a study by Indian Health Organisation, when the project started, Mumbai city alone has an estimated minimum of 100,000 women in prostitution. Today, the numbers of those involved in CSE could be as high as 500,000 – if not already victims of trafficking; the social exclusion these women experience greatly exacerbates their vulnerability to traffickers.
Sunita’s Story
When Sunita was born, her parents wanted nothing to do with her. They sent her away to her aunt where she was treated as a servant.
Sunita was fit and healthy, intelligent and beautiful. However she suffered rejection at the hands of those closest to her simply because she was born a girl. Like many marginalized women, Sunita is a victim of a culture where the birth of a girl brings shame on a family…
…and where shame is handled with hatred, abuse sets in.
In her early teens, Sunita’s aunt sold her into prostitution. As a punishment for trying to run away from the brothel, she was tortured.
Thankfully Sunita was rescued from the brothel and was sent to Aruna. Like so many women who have shared her experience, Sunita was deeply hurt by what she went through and lives with emotional as well as physical scars.
Today, she still has trouble communicating and needs life skills support, but she is on the journey of healing the past hurts in her life.
topAbout the organisation
Founded in the UK by Rev. Steve Chalke in 1985, Oasis began work in India in 1994.
Today, Oasis works to transform individuals and communities by promoting inclusion and confronting injustice in 9 countries around the world.
In India, many NGOs focus on the issues women face within the sex trade. Oasis is one of the few organisations that works to free people from CSE altogether.
The potential of Aruna is tremendous – through it, Oasis has developed a prototype that can be replicated in other parts of Mumbai and across India so thousands of women and children who belong to the most marginalized group in society can have the opportunity of a better future.
True to its name, Aruna is a light in one of the darkest places on earth.