Ganda's Story
We partner with The Freedom Story to provide mentoring and education to students at high risk for trafficking in Northern Thailand. Students learn about human trafficking and how to safeguard themselves against it. Your advocacy & donations during Dressember not only help to provide rescue and aftercare, but also to prevent trafficking from happening in the first place. Learn more about our partnerships here.
When Ganda* joined The Freedom Story 11 years ago, she not only needed financial support to help her stay in school, she also needed treatment for an eye condition, and encouragement when she struggled with her education. Teachers weren’t always supportive, and she was often excluded from activities at the local temple. During this time, The Freedom Story staff encouraged Ganda to join the leadership development program. The leadership program focuses on the development of young adults through training on issues of trafficking and exploitation, and further opportunities for those leaders to further train younger students on human trafficking and exploitation.
Though Ganda was shy and balked at first, she quickly discovered that leadership was something she could do well and was something she honestly enjoyed. She learned games and activities she could teach to the younger kids. She made new friends and learned new skills.
The play-acting skits were her favorite because they gave her a way to express emotions safely and appropriately––a skill that has been both a personal and cultural challenge––and it taught her to be more open and comfortable speaking in front of others.
Ganda has now been part of the leadership program for more than four years. She takes pride in her leadership role and uses her experience and knowledge to help educate and inspire younger kids, especially about anti-trafficking issues. She has even been called to put her knowledge into practice when she discovered one of the young students at Freedom Story was offered money from an older foreigner in exchange for performing a sex act over Facebook. Ganda acted quickly to disrupt the dangerous situation. She spoke to the man on the phone, and told him never to call again. She then explained to the student the dangers of accepting friend requests from strangers.
She also recently was herself in a difficult situation. After downloading a chat app which she hoped would allow her to practice her English, she was solicited by an older man on the app and invited to his apartment. Recognizing the dangers through her training with The Freedom Story, she deleted the app immediately. She shared her experience at a training she was hosting with other students–bravely sharing her own lessons learned for the benefits of her peers.
Armed with knowledge and the courage to speak out, Ganda has blossomed into a strong protector and leader among her peers in her community. That’s one reason why the youth leadership program is so important for kids like her: it has enabled Ganda to see her own potential by providing opportunities in which she can act as a mentor, sharing advice, growing in self-confidence and in her ability to handle daily problems. She has a lot to offer.
She is eager to help other kids as they try to find the best path for themselves, and encourages them to follow their heart and dreams for whatever they want to do in life.
*Ganda is a pseudonym to protect the identity of the survivor