OneWorld.net (U.S.)

This year, Thanksgiving coincides with the start of the global campaign “16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence.” While violence against women may seem like a tough topic to think about at Thanksgiving, there is progress being made that gives the victims – and all of us – a lot to be thankful for.

Winrock International and the Women's Edge Coalition are observing the 16 Days by sharing with you, through a series of emails, true stories from around the world about women who have escaped the scourge of gender-based violence. A critical component in their escape: economic self-sufficiency.

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Irina's story comes from Moldova, a former Soviet Republic bordering Romania and the poorest nation in Europe. Hers is a story of human trafficking – the forcible buying and selling of human beings. The U.S. State Department estimates that each year 600,000 to 800,000 people are trafficked across national borders. Approximately 80 percent are women.

Irina is from a small village in northern Moldova. At just 19 years of age, unable to find work, she was deceived by her boyfriend, sold into prostitution, and eventually enslaved in a Dubai brothel. She became pregnant by one of the many men with whom she was forced to have sex. Finally a local NGO helped Irina escape and return home with her one-year-old son. She had survived a horrible, shattering experience.

In September, Irina turned to a New Perspectives for Women Regional Support Center (RSC) in Moldova, seeking social and economic support services to help her build a new life. She was referred to a rehabilitation center, where she and her son are receiving psychological assistance, accommodations and meals, HIV/AIDS testing, and legal assistance.

Irina is now ready for the RSC's economic empowerment services. These resources – vocational skills courses, employment and entrepreneurship trainings, job placement, and internship programs -- will allow her to earn an income and develop real options for her life. She also intends to share her experiences with other young women. Hearing about Irina's ordeal, and having access to programs that provide women with economic opportunities, will help young Moldovan women avoid trafficking and other forms of violence against women.

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As we celebrate Thanksgiving, let's all take a moment to appreciate how safety from fear and violence is central to our own happiness and that of others. Let's also pledge to bring greater economic opportunity to women around the world. This will open to them the freedom and security that come from having a safe, healthy way to support themselves and their families.

Watch for more stories – and a positive path to action – from the Women's Edge Coalition and Winrock International as the 16 Days unfold.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Ritu Sharma President and Co-Founder Women's Edge Coalition Frank Tugwell President & CEO Winrock International

Join the Women's Edge Coalition today and don't miss a single story of survival. (It's free.)