here - Cooperazione Italiana allo Sviluppo

As has been many times noted, the conditions of life and work are those thatrepresent the real hidden face of the situation, as no account seems to be able tomake the girls understand, and above all the family, that the proposals made bythose who intend to recruit are such to make them take enormous risks or to placethem in a situation where the suffering and discomfort will be enormous. Anyway,even when they have access to some tale, they do not appear to be able toovercome, at least until now, the barriers or the ignorance or the hope and selfdeception.7. Much has been said about the characteristics of the magic-religious pledgerepresented by the wodoo rites. One should only underline here the fact that thisappears to be one of the diverse means used to maintain the link and to obtainobedience on the part of the victims.In other words, while it would not be correct to underrate its relevance, oneshould remember that the whole management and control system of the girlsimplicated in the activity of prostitution is based on multiple instruments. We canrecall them here:the fear of consequences for herself and her family (illness, death, etc.) in theviolation of the pact in its magic form, of superstition tied to the animistbeliefs;the fear of social consequences if the obligations they assumed by contractare not met. That, at least apparently (for the honour of the family), has a“virtuous” content, that is to say the help given by persons available to favourthe departure of the girl to guarantee to her and her family a prosperousfuture; the isolation and strict control of the life of the girls to prevent them to find -at least for a short time - support and help outside the network that gravitatesaround and in the organisations that sustain the activity of exploitation;the threat is put into place in forms of pressure and blackmail (discretionalincrease in the debt during the work, is typical), and also the use of indirect ordirect violence (it is said, “of an environmental type”), psychological orphysical, on the person and her family.In this sense one can speak about a “pact” endowed with force because thosewho manage the work know how to utilise many instruments, know how to profitfrom a learned interlacement of elements linked to the tradition (the magic beliefs)and of their own modern instruments (formalisation of the contract with theemphasis on those guarantees of the possibility for the woman to enter into theworld of business, international business 87 ). A management which adapts itself tothe conditions and the reactions of the victims, with an always original modulationof the forms of deception and blackmail, but also of the prizes and incentives;which works on the group and on the person, making leverage on the solidaritybetween persons who share the experience, but also on the differences and thecompetitiveness between these same victims.87Such is the contract-type, of which the Nigerian researcher colleagues speak in their report (a sample ofwhich is attached as Appendix).