Breaking out of vicious cycle of stigma, discrimination

While the other girls born in the Daulatdia brothel at Goalanda have been forced into prostitution, Putul has achieved a remarkable success -- she passed the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) examinations this year and is now studying at a government college in Tangail.

It is an organisation that played the most important role in changing the fate of her and 34 others, aged between 6 and 14. They are now staying at the safe home run by Karmajibi Kalyan Sangstha (KKS), a local NGO.

At the age of six, Putul left the brothel with the consent of her mother, who is still engaged in her profession, and started living at the safe home in Daulatdia. She studied at Daulatdia Model High School and passed the SSC from Bashail High School in Tangail, securing GPA 3.38 under the commerce group.

The safe home provides the girls with all the basic needs, such as food, education, healthcare and clothes. The Karmajibi Kalayan Sangstha has been running the safe home since 1997 with the assistance from the Save the Children, Australia.

As the first girl of the safe home to have achieved such an extraordinary feat, Putul was accorded a reception at Daulatdia Primary School by the Sangstha on Wednesday. Five sons of sex workers of the same brothel, who were trained up as drivers, were also accorded the reception.

Morshedul Anwar, the police superintendent of Rajbari district who was present at the reception ceremony, called on the women's and human rights organisations to come forward to stop child prostitution.

Talking to The Daily Star, Putul said, "I am very happy today. We, the girls, who are very unfortunate to be born in a brothel, also want to grow up like other children in society."

"We want to be educated so that we can free ourselves from the appalling conditions our mothers and sisters have been experiencing day in day out," she added.

Putul also said she wants to study accounting in the future.

Laxmi, another girl living at the Daulatdia safe home for the last six years, is now reading in class six. "I want to be an engineer. I like to read English more than any other subject. My parents come here to see me every Thursday." She said.

Their fellow Pinki said, "I want to be a doctor."

These girls also take music and dance lessons and receive religious education. They also learn how to cook and manage household activities.

Monira Ahsan, deputy country director, Save the Children, Australia, told reporters, "We have taken this project to give them a chance of integration into the mainstream."

"We are working for them, keeping the child rights to survival, protection, participation and development in our mind."

Monira said girls are brought to the safe home when they are aged between four and six years so that they can adapt themselves in a typical society easily.

If the girls stay at the brothel after the age of five to six, they get accustomed to the brothel's lifestyle and at that stage it becomes quite difficult to change their mindset, she added.

She added that they also set some conditions for their mothers. No mothers can take their child to the brothel from the safe home.

Monira sought active cooperation from the government and local and foreign organisations in sustaining the changes brought to the lives of these girls.