Cairo NGO Exposes Abuse of Street Women and Girls in Urban Caves

Women and girls of the impoverished Imbaba area of Cairo had been coming to the local NGO Nour El-Hayah reporting that they had been forcibly taken to a cave under a city bridge where they were kept for days to weeks at a time. With their children sometimes in tow, they endured threats, physical abuse, drugging, and gang rape in a vicious scheme of noncommercial sexual exploitation.

A small NGO, Nour El-Hayah (Light of Life)—trained through IREX’s Protecting Dignity against Human Trafficking (PDAHT) project—is standing up against human trafficking in their community.

As in many crimes, the victims of Imbaba refused to file police reports fearing further abuse or arrest by the police. Without official reports, the local police refused to investigate. Repeated follow-up by Nour El-Hayah eventually resulted in the hasty closure of one entrance to the cave and a squabble between police departments on whose jurisdiction the cave fell under. No action was taken to investigate or stop the criminal activity.

In frustration, Nour El-Hayah turned to the media, resulting in an exposé that ran as a series for five days in a major newspaper, Al Masry al Yom (The Egyptian Daily), in late December. The issue was also discussed by a panel on local TV channel Mehwar’s “90 Minutes” evening news. The media coverage sparked public outrage and a demand by the Public Assembly to question the heads of ministries that should be responsible for preventing and reacting to such crime.

The attention likewise successfully prompted a full investigation, discovery of another cave area, complete shutdown of both caves (the original was approximately a half mile from the local police station) and the arrest of nine men. Equally important, the public caught a glimpse of one of the harsh forms of human trafficking in Cairo and women of the street may be served justice.

The PDAHT project of Egypt increases awareness of trafficking in persons and equips NGOs with the knowledge and technical skills to identify and protect victims. The program also works with the government of Egypt to help further their campaign against trafficking and to coordinate efforts of the government, international agencies, and local NGOs. This past fall the project commenced a series of trainings for NGOs like Nour El-Hayah, training nearly 70 civil society outlets, many of which see cases of trafficking frequently, but previously had not identified it as such.

The PDAHT project will continue to assist and train Nour El-Hayah and other selected NGOs in Cairo to help them lead the fight against forced exploitation in Egypt and to protect victims of human trafficking. Meanwhile, Nour El-Hayah is busy fundraising to create a 24-hour shelter for the neighborhood’s many street women and children.