Abu Dhabi: The UAE has set up the Ewa’a shelter for women and child victims of human trafficking on a humanitarian basis that is inspired by the UAE leadership’s wise directives to care for people regardless of their gender or race.
The statement was made by Sara Shuhail, Executive Director of Ewa’a, during a meeting held at St Regis Hotel in Abu Dhabi with more than 100 journalists from 45 Arab and foreign countries in attendance. The journalists are currently in the UAE as part of a programme launched by the National Media Council on the occasion of the country’s 43rd National Day celebrations.
Sara said that the centre provides victims of human trafficking with rehabilitation services so they can lead normal lives once they leave the shelter and return to their home countries. She stressed that the UAE is a destination in such crimes, not the country of origin.
“The victims arrive at the shelter in a bad psychological state due to the trauma and injustice that they have experienced. The shelter then works on plans for victims to help them regain their confidence,” said Sara, who presented to journalists a number of rehabilitation programmes and procedures implemented by Ewa’a.
She pointed out that the victims are medically examined once they are admitted in the shelter, and added that shelters were opened in Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah to facilitate required procedures and alleviate the victim’s burden of travelling, not due to the high volume of human trafficking victims. Sara said that the objective of the shelter is to protect human dignity and society, as well as raise awareness on the dangers of human trafficking crimes and the importance of combating it.
