National charity Ruhama officially launched its Cork-Kerry service on Friday, July 11, offering comprehensive supports to women impacted by commercial sexual exploitation and human trafficking, ensuring that women in remote, rural or isolated circumstances have equal access to supports.
Ruhama’s new research ‘Room for Recovery – Housing Hope After Exploitation’, published on the day, highlights significant deficiencies in accommodation for victims of sex trafficking in Ireland and is calling for appropriate, specialist, gender-specific accommodation.
The research finds that by failing to offer victims of these horrific crimes appropriate supported housing and the opportunity to rebuild their lives, Ireland is falling far short of its obligations under binding EU legislation. Safe, appropriate and stable accommodation is a foundational prerequisite for recovery and protection, according to Ruhama.
The research recommends that any new model of accommodation for victims of human trafficking for sexual exploitation must explicitly recognise the cumulative harms of gender-based violence, sexual exploitation and human trafficking, and facilitate recovery from these harms.
Ruhama provides supports to women in the Cork-Kerry region from its hub in Cork city. Supports include outreach, casework, counselling and trauma therapy, peer support and sign-posting to legal and immigration support.
Speaking at the official launch of the Cork-Kerry service, Taoiseach Michel Martin said that the opening of the Cork-Kerry service “is a vital step towards providing some of the most vulnerable women in appalling circumstances with the supports, safety and compassion they need to rebuild their lives”.
