(Next Magazine, December 2017)
In a Phnom Penh nightclub in Cambodia, Deborah Papworth witnessed a little girl being sold into the sex trade. Deborah was shocked when she first saw the girl following a middle-aged man. The lifeless and helpless look on the girl’s face was indescribably heart-wrenching but Deborah could not do anything to stop the girl from being taken away.
Previously based in Hong Kong, Deborah is a lawyer who volunteered for Hagar’s Legal and Protection Unit in Cambodia. She shared her experience working pro bono for Hagar in an interview with Next Magazine last month.
Here are excerpts of the interview translated into English:
“The incident took place shortly after Deborah first arrived at Cambodia as a volunteer. The shocking experience gave her the determination to utilize her legal knowledge accumulated over the years, and play the role of ‘backend-support trooper’ to focus on training lawyers to fight for the right of thousands of children being sexually abused or trafficked, to live normal lives.”
“This really moves people because once you’ve seen it, you couldn’t just turn a blind eye. You would definitely want to do something about it.”
Read the full article in Chinese here
Hagar pursues the highest degree of care and protection for each of its clients. To protect the identity of our clients, names have been changed and images do not necessarily represent the individual profiled.
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By partnering with Hagar, you’re supporting survivors to heal from the trauma of severe abuse. Our work is dependent on charitable giving by people like you.
Help us transform lives
Donate now
By partnering with Hagar, you’re supporting survivors to heal from the trauma of severe abuse. Our work is dependent on charitable giving by people like you.
Help us transform lives
Donate now
By partnering with Hagar, you’re supporting survivors to heal from the trauma of severe abuse. Our work is dependent on charitable giving by people like you.
