AF3IRM/GabNet LA member Jo Ann honors Women Defender, Somaly Mam
Somaly Mam was born in the Mondulkiri province of Cambodia. Her childhood witnessed Pol Pot’s rise to power through the Khmai Rouge’s national dominance. Somaly was sold into sexual slavery by a man who posed as her grandfather when she was just merely 12 years old. She soon began working in a brothel in Phnom Penh, was forced to marry an abusive man when she was 15 who then sold her back to a brothel. It was not until with the help of an aid worker from France, that she was able to escape Cambodia in 1993. When looking back to the time of her life that consisted of being brutally raped and tortured she says, “I was dead. I had no affection for anyone.” From her painful experience, Somaly eventually found the courage to establish AFESIP (Agir pour les Femmes en Situation Précaire, or Acting for Women in Distressing Circumstances) in 1996. AFESIP works on collaborative projects with local law enforcement agencies to investigate and raid brothels. Her organization also rehabilitates trafficked women into back into society. It is because of sheroes like Somaly that other young women and children have a chance. Her advocacy work on the plight of such trafficked women and children, who otherwise would not have a chance for survival, has resulted in 4,000 women escaping the brothels of Cambodia.
