Chab Dai believes that research is the first step of the response process when dealing with issues as significant and grandiose as trafficking & sexual abuse. As a coalition we strive to understand and provide information that will improve our member’s prevention and aftercare project strategies.
In 2010, Chab Dai and partners in Cambodia launched The Butterfly Longitudinal Research Project: Study on Reintegration. Over a period of 10 years, this study aims to better understand the experiences of survivors of abuse who have been reintegrated back into society after rehabilitation. Researchers will follow victims as they become survivors starting from the time they are in the aftercare program. The purpose will be to ‘hear’ from the survivors themselves, about their lives, understandings and experiences so their voices can contribute towards a greater understanding of the complexities of reintegration.
The First Year Progress Report features findings from the Phase 1 of the research completed in 2010. Researchers focused on collecting data from aftercare programs about how they reintegrated girls back into their communities. They also facilitated peer group discussions with girls currently in aftercare programs about:
- What the ideal aftercare shelter would look like;
- What their hopes and fears are about leaving the aftercare program;
- And what they think a girl needs to take with her in her heart, her mind, and in her suitcase when she is reintegrated.
Chab Dai presented these preliminary research findings at our Shelter Forum this week and plan to begin data collection by the middle of this year. If you would like more information about funding or partnering, please contact our Research Coordinator at cambodia@chabdai.org
