Road Blocks

May, 2013

Our efforts to rescue Sweetie seemed to be at a standstill. So, we encouraged our Indian partners to think creatively. On a recent visit to the brothel, they had witnessed Sweetie lying on cot alone, sick and terribly filthy. Something had to be done soon. They considered starting a daycare for Sweetie, Pepsi, and Mohina. They needed a location close to the brothel so that the owners could make sure the children didn’t run away. Rooms were found just outside the red light walls, but before the madam could approve the daycare, our partners bought a building for a rehabilitation home. It was their long awaited dream. We were delighted that their ministry was quickly growing, but the daycare had to be put on hold.

Some have asked why we don’t send in someone to buy or kidnap Sweetie and the other brothel babies. The answer is simple: buying babies is illegal.  The person sent could possibly be arrested and put in jail. We would be listed as accomplices and guilty of human trafficking. It would end the ministry in the brothel and put our partners at risk. Organizations that buy babies are usually selling a lie.  If they’re doing so, it’s done illegally and being used for sensationalism and fundraising. While buying babies used to happen in the early days of anti-trafficking, it backfired terribly. No organization of legitimacy does this today. It creates orphans.

Sweetie still has a mother. She is not an orphan. And we won’t create one. Instead, we are trying to convince Maya, Sweetie’s mother, to leave the brothel and come to our partner’s safehouse. This seems to be the only way out. Even still, it is highly risky and fraught with difficulty. If there were a legitimate way to get this baby out, we would do it today. However, we refuse to give up on Sweetie. WAR, Int’l does not have a time limit on our help to a woman or child. She is not a “program” or “ministry”—she is a daughter. We will never give up on a daughter.