Francesca thought she was sneaking out of the house for a fun day at the beach with her new friend. Instead of splashing in the waves and playing in the sun, she was plunged into darkness. Her family didn’t see her again for months.
Francesca's story will be difficult to read as it contains both violence and rape toward a child.
Francesca was forced to work in a hotel bar every night and go with men to their hotel rooms. “They raped me. They beat me with a bat when I did not want to serve their customers. They drugged me and many times they did not feed me.” Alone and penniless in a strange town, Francesca thought she had nowhere to turn. “My ‘friend’ sold me,” Francesca says sadly.
Sex trafficking is a form of modern slavery in which someone deceives and sexually exploits another person for a profit. Sex trafficking includes exploitation in establishments (brothels), private networks (homes) and on the internet (online sexual exploitation).
For months Francesca was trapped and began wishing that she was dead. Yet, something inside her kept fighting.
When Francesca finally managed to contact a relative who called the authorities, the Public Ministry called IJM to help coordinate a rescue.
Thanks to a team effort between local authorities, IJM and the support of caring people like you, Francesca was found and rescued — along with nine other minor children and one adult — in November 2015. Her case became a testing ground for justice in the Dominican Republic because the man who trafficked them was wealthy and well-connected. In the end justice was served.
IJM supporters can be proud to be a part of Francesca’s story. Since Francesca's rescue, she has continued to heal and has been motivated to speak up for others since the birth of her daughter seven years ago. Today, she is a leader in the fight against sex trafficking in the Dominican Republic.
“IJM helped me realize that in life there are things worth fighting for, a reason to keep moving forward, and that what happened to me will stay in the past and now I am living in the present.”
Francesca
Francesca is a founding member of her local Global Survivor Network (GSN) chapter. The GSN is an international group of survivors shaping and leading a movement to protect people from violence. “I want to keep moving forward with my daughter,” she says. "My dream is to live in peace, tranquility and with no fear. You know? I will not let anyone defeat me."
Francesca’s outcome is the kind of lasting transformation you make possible with your support — changing the lives of individuals who go on to inspire even more change. Thank you in advance for helping build a safer future where more children, women and men are safe and protected.
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