Victims of human trafficking

We must ensure the protection of women who are victims of violence, coercion, and all forms of exploitation. With our activities aimed at victims of trafficking, we contribute to empower these women and help them to access to their rights.

Foreign women, men and transgenders who are escaping work or sexual exploitation can benefit from the measures provided for in Article 18 Legislative Decree 286/98 (Italian law on migration). These measures of assistance and social integration are commonly known, in Italy, as of “social protection”.

In the field of social protection interventions, IDEADONNA has a well-established and strong collaboration with the Division of Social Services of the City of Turin – Foreigners and Nomads Sector operating continuously since 2001, first as co-beneficiary partner of the project Freedom – Network for the support and social integration of women victims of trafficking and exploitation for sex work and then as a collaborator in the project Piedmont network against trafficking. Since 2007, these activities have been carried out in convention with the City of Turin.

IDEADONNA participates in pursuing the goals of assistance and social integration of victims of trafficking running a women’s shelter and operating job orientation and mentorship services to facilitate entry into the labour market.

A WOMEN’S SHELTER

The shelter for women is called Casa Aperta: an intervention providing residential care and individual or group activities for six foreign women under social protection, including single mothers.

Shelter activities began in May 16, 2008, thanks to the gratuitous bailment of a flat offered by the City of Turin, which also provided economic contribution to the running costs from 2008 to April 2013. Since May 2013, the activities are carried out meeting the terms and conditions of a competitive bid by the City of Turin: our association is part of a Syndicate Association headed by the Coop. Soc. Progetto Tenda Onlus, which is responsible of the management of the city’s shelters for women in social protection.

Casa Aperta activity has so far been supported also by a contribution from the Arcidiocesi of Turin (8×1000 funds) in years 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012. In 2013 this contribution is made through the project Rete Amica, leaded by IDEADONNA with two partners: Gruppo Abele Onlus and the Office for the Pastoral Care of Migrants.

In September 2013 we received the visit of the Special Rapporteur delle Nazioni Unite, Ms. Joy Ngozi Ezeilo.

Here’s a short documentary produced by 21st Century, UNTV in relation with the country visit to Italy conducted by the Special Rapporteur on trafficking in person, especially women and children:

The activities aimed at facilitating employment of foreign persons under social protection have been carried out through several projects, mainly financed by the Structural Funds, by local authorities such as the Piedmont Region, the Province of Turin and the City of Turin, or by bank foundations such as Compagnia di San Paolo and Fondazione CRT.

To ensure labour market insertion for single mothers, we signed an agreement with the Province of Turin in order to facilitate access to vouchers of life-work conciliation.
Some information on the latest projects, financed by the Structural Funds, can be found at opencoesione.gov.it.

Our projects:

Porte Aperte

IDEADONNA headed the Associazione Temporanea di Scopo (Syndicate) of the project, which also included the City of Turin, the Turin Provincial Chamber of Labour (Trade Union) and the Professional Training Centre CIOFS FP Piedmont. The project was presented and approved at the regional Call for Interventions aimed at supporting women exiting situations of exploitation (…) through the implementation of job paths and the coordination of the implementers, European Social Fund – Regional Operational Program 2007-2013 – Objective 2 “Regional competitiveness and employment”.

Porte Aperte started in March 2010 and ended in June 2011, offering 15 women (8 single mothers among them) personalized counseling and a training of two months followed by a 3 months internship in selected companies with provision of income support to recipients for the entire length of the integrated path (personalized training and internship).

The Porte Aperte II Project was presented by the same team, within the regional Call for Job insertion projects for victims of violence, severe exploitation and trafficking – Period 2011/2013 (POR ESF 2007-2013 – Ob. 2 Axis II – Action 1) and selected for funding. It started in December 2012, with a duration of 18 months. It offered services and incentives similar to those in the first edition, to 18 women (10 single mothers among them) former victims of sexual exploitation.

This brand of the project has been designed by Riccardo Cattaneo, IV year student of the State Professional Institute for the Services of advertising Albe Steiner in Turin, as a result of the raise awareness activities and involvement of the students on the issue of trafficking in human beings, carried out in collaboration with prof. Marco Maltecca (2011).

First ediction

Read the report (ITA)

Second ediction

Read the report (ITA)

W@W – Women at Work

IDEADONNA headed of the Syndicate of the project, which also included the non-profit associations Gruppo Abele Onlus and Tampep Onlus and was implemented with the collaboration of the Centro per l’Impiego (Employment Center) of the Province of Turin. The project was presented and approved at the regional Call for Job paths for victims of trafficking and severe exploitation, European Social Fund – Regional Operational Programme 2007-2013 – Objective 2 “Regional competitiveness and employment”. Women at Work started on February 28, 2012, and ended on December 21, 2012. It offered to 15 women (5 single mothers among them) a personalized counseling and a training of 1 month followed by a 3 months internship in selected companies, with an incentive to participation for the recipients for the entire length of the integrated path (personalized training and internship).

Centro SI (Services Center for Social Inclusion)

An intervention aimed at making people responsible for active job seeking, thanks to an easily accessible area in which recipients may autonomously use the means of communication to contact job offerers, and participate in individual and group activities aimed at labour market inclusion. This drop in activity accompanied the Aperto project actions, first in an experimental way, with the project Didone (2005/2006). Later it took on the characteristics of a new project. The Didone Project was supported with financial contributions by the Province of Turin (in the framework of the Call for actions and initiatives on immigration policies 2005) and the City of Turin (2005/2006). Centro SI was later carried out with the funding of the Piedmont Region, Province of Turin, City of Turin and Compagnia di San Paolo.

Three companies have decided to support the activities of the center: Urmet Engineering has provided free alarm systems and security, Labinf Technologies has provided free software and Pastore has donated a new shutter.

Lavoratricigeneriche.it (unskilledworkers.it)

A job-matching initiative to benefit people applying for social protection, which led to the creation of a website which, in a restricted area, shows the profiles of women the association is taking care of. This project was made possible thanks to ESF (Measure B1 – Global Grant – POR ESF 2004/2006 – Objective 3 Action 2: Implementation of measures to improve services offered by organizations operating in the field of social exclusion, intervention line 3. “Small subsidies to social assets of cooperatives”; organization administrating the grant: UnionEtica). The City of Turin also contributed in this initiative.