Crowd burns down sex workers homes in Sitamari, Bihar

April 22, 2008

Dear All,

You must be already aware about the gruesome, inhuman incident happened in the

Sitamari of the Muzaffar district of Bihar, on 15th of April where armed

hooligans torched down a sex work site and it was shocking to know that the

police & the local administration were awfully found to take the back seat of

mere spectators just to watch the barbaric act.

The brutal act has not only rendered around 250 sex workers and their families

homeless, but some are found to have succumbed to death by this inhuman

destruction spree. Three children of sex workers were reported to have died and

many injured by this nefarious act. The bodies of the deceased were even

reported to lie unattained. The police instead of nabbing the perpetrators

allegedly arrested some of the sex workers and detained them in custody.

We at DMSC strongly oppose to this barbaric act and press for an immediate

enquiry at every possible level starting from Human Rights Commission, National

Commission for Women, to find the fact and to bring the culprits to the book. A

15 member squad comprising of sex workers and program officers have already been

sent to Bihar to render required assistance to the helpless sex workers of

Sitamari and to reinforce the advocacy with the local administration to bring

justice to the sex workers . The team already met with the Superntendent of

Police and today they are supposed to meet with the CM of Bihar.

We are also going to organize a Protest Rally in Kolkata tomorrow, 23.04.08 at

5.00PM to mark a strong protest against this heinous incident and will call for

a nationwide campaign to force the administration of Bihar to take appropriate

legal actions against the miscreants found guilty.

We also urge you to all to raise your voice against these state-sponsored

atrocities perpetrated on the innocent sex workers of Sitamari.

In solidarity,

Ms. Asha Banerjee

(Secretary)

Durbar Mahila Samanwaya Committee (DMSC)

12/5 Nilmoni Mitra Street

Kolkata-700006

INDIA

e-mail: <sonagachi@...>

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