Andrea recently returned from Nepal where she has been working with the charity Asha Nepal, which helps young women and children affected by sex trafficking.
Asha Nepal helps the girls by providing a safe place to live and a school education so they can learn to how to safely re-enter society. Eighty one girls were living at the Asha Nepal Shelter when the earthquake struck on Saturday evening.
Andrea Ubhi, owner of Andrea Ubhi Cosmetic Dentistry said: “Thankfully the children that Asha Nepal cares for and all the staff are fine, but really shaken and scared. During the earthquake, one of the four residential Asha homes was badly damaged and so the nine girls that lived there are staying temporarily in the other homes. They are unable to return back to this home and we are now looking at getting them new accommodation.
For several days the children and residential team had to sleep outside due to many aftershocks and fear that the buildings would fall down on them. It rained. However last night they slept inside on the ground floors, however there are still aftershocks and they have to run outside every time, which is creating stress and panic.
The water tank has been damaged, so a new one will need to be bought and fitted to collect rainwater. There is ban on showers to conserve the water for drinking. Sewage is a problem as the sewers are broken, so there is an increased risk of disease. At the moment the children are well, but the risk of disease is growing significantly.
Many relatives of the girls are not so fortunate and the local community is not as well off. Food, water and shelter are an issue. One of the Asha team has been unable to get back to her home as there are too many corpses on the streets; she is being housed temporarily in a local college. Asha Nepal is housing people that need shelter, food and water. “
Andrea was working with the Nepali team of Asha Nepal doing management, appraisals and strategy planning. They are looking at finding the girls who have been tricked into being trafficked. In past years girls have been taken to Indian brothels and now they are being taken to places such as Korea, Middle East and Europe. Asha Nepal was planning to open a new foster home for children affected by both domestic labour and sex trafficking and to start an Anti-Trafficking Campaign in schools to teach children how to recognise the traffickers tricks.
Andrea Ubhi continued: “The earthquake means that food and shelter are now the main priority; Asha Nepal needs money for basics like water and food, especially with prices rising due to scarcity. The next stage will be rebuilding their lives and replacing basics like clothes, bedding, basic furniture, and rebuilding the properties. Normality is months or years away. Even more worrying, the risk of trafficking is rising as traffickers often target misplaced girls and orphans away. Our work is ever more important both to protect the girls in our care and girls who need help because they are even more vulnerable since the earthquake.”
If you would like to help please donate at: http://mydonate.bt.com/events/earthquakeappeal/224463
or visit www.asha-nepal.org