Case Scenarios

Case 1
Nadia, a sex worker, experienced intimate partner violence within her
relationship. Her partner used her involvement in sex work as a means of
control and subjected her to physical and emotional abuse. Her statement
about how that made her feel was that “It affects me up to this day in a way
that I don’t show it but, it does, because it put me into a shell and it lowered
my self-esteem and I feel less than a woman…me personally, sometimes I
don’t have no hope, there is no escape, it’s like a bond, I mean like a prison
you can’t get out of.”

Case 2
Maria, a 25-year-old sex worker, faced physical violence from clients and law
enforcement officers. She was often harassed, beaten, and robbed by clients
who refused to pay or sought to exert control. She was coerced into the sex
trade and experienced physical abuse when she tried to resist. One experience
she shared was; “Yes. There was a time I went out with a client. We were
involved in a conflict and I went to the police station to make my complaint.
The officer told me if I wasn’t out so late this wouldn’t have happened, and he
told me to come into the back to relay my statement, and he forced his self
onto me also.”

Demonstration: Do a role play on how you would help someone who has just told
you this?

Intervention:
You MUST show empathy
Look out for these signs;
Changes in behaviour (more or less engaged, distant, withdrawn)
Appearing fearful or hyper-vigilant (alert and on edge)
Appearing agitated or quick tempered.
Changes in attention and performance
Appearing isolated.
Changes in appearance.
Encourge the victim to SPEAK OUT
Seek support from a trained professionals, like those in the OSS.
Know and utilize your rights.