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Guest post: 'I was trafficked into prostitution'

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MumsnetGuestPosts · 11/03/2014 10:51

I was born in southern Nigeria to a large family. My parents did not earn much but education was important to them. They put me through school, and after I had completed my last year I went to work on my mother's stall in the local market to help out.

Life went on. I started to grow up and fell in love. The relationship didn't work out but it left me with a beautiful son. Around this time, my father reached retirement, and we decided to move to Lagos. We thought we could all earn more if we moved there. It didn't work out that way.

I struggled to find regular work. I made a new friend, Ruth, who told me about friends who had left to work abroad and were making good money. She introduced me to a man called Charles, who seemed to pity me, and offered to arrange for me to work in the UK. I’d just have to pay a small deposit and pay the rest later when I started working. Charles took the ‘small’ deposit - all my savings - and arranged my documents.

I prepared to travel. Charles took me to a juju shrine, where I was made to swear an oath of repayment. We began the journey. I still don’t know how I survived. I was in a vehicle with Charles and many other people, and we travelled from Nigeria to Mauritania. When we got there, I was told I would have to go by ship to get to the UK. I was angry and exhausted. Charles told me not to worry - it would be a short trip. Then he left.

The ship, in fact, was a small boat, completely open to the elements. There were a lot of us on that boat, and for days and days we sailed towards Europe. We were all sure we would die – but somehow we made it to Tenerife, where we were arrested and taken to Madrid. When I came out of the processing centre, Charles was waiting for me.

I asked him why I was in Spain when he had promised to take me to the UK. He told me all would be well. He took me to a flat, and I was told to rest. When I woke I was told I would be working in the street. I didn't know what this meant, until the other women in the house told me. I refused. Charles reminded me of my debt, the oath, and of my son.

I started to work as a prostitute. I had to make a certain amount every day. When I made less than this I would be beaten. This continued for 4 years, after which I ran away with the help of a friend I’d made on the street. I stayed in her flat, and after a few days I called my mother.

She was scared. Some men had come to my son’s school in Nigeria and taken him. They had told my mother that my son would be returned when I returned. So I went back to that life.

The breaking point came when a client took me to a field and gang raped me with his friends. They beat me and left me for dead. A lorry driver saw me lying naked and unconscious in the field, and took me to hospital. When I woke up, I called Charles. He collected me a few days later.

I was too scared to work. When it became clear to Charles that I would rather take the beatings than work, he took me to the UK, where I worked in a house. As time went on, they began to get lax with security. I was allowed to go out to the shops, and on one trip I found a purse with a Belgium ID card in it. I kept it and I started to save tiny amounts from the shopping money. On the day I escaped, I was left home alone and the house had not been secured properly. I took my chance. I took a bus to London and tried to leave the country with the ID card.

I was arrested at the St Pancras Station as I tried to board the Eurostar.

I was charged with possession of false documents. I told the police what happened. I told the solicitor what happened. He advised me to plead guilty. No one believed me. In their eyes I was just a lying illegal immigrant. No one there even tried to find Charles and his gang.

I found myself in prison. A charity working in the prison listened to me. They called in experts from the Poppy Project, who fought for me, and made the authorities listen. They supported me in court; the judge threw out my conviction and released me. The Home Office has officially recognised me as a victim of trafficking. Charles remains free.

If you want to help victims of human trafficking, please support the Poppy's Project's campaign at tinyprotest.org.

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dyslexicdespot · 11/03/2014 12:54

Thank you for sharing your story. My heart goes out to you, and I wish you and your son all the best.