Two Indian women in distress in Singapore

JALANDHAR - Two young Punjabi women who were promised lucrative jobs in Singapore are being forced into prostitution in that country, the mother of one of them said.

Davinder Kaur said her daughter Amandeep Kaur, 23, and her friend Suman went to Singapore after they were told they could join a dance troupe.

She said the travel agents took Rs.150,000 from her.

“A few days after they reached Singapore, my daughter called to say her employers were forcing them into flesh trade. She was very scared and wanted to return home. When I approached the travel agents, they demanded another Rs.200,000 to ensure her safe return,” said Kaur, who works as a maid servant.

“There is no one to help me and I do not have any money with me. I want the Punjab government and police to help me bring back the girls,” she said.

Kaur has registered a complaint against the travel agent with the assistance of Lok Bhalai Party (LBP), a party working for the rescue of people stranded abroad.

“It is not the only case where Punjabi girls are being forced into prostitution abroad. There are hundreds of poor girls going through the same trauma. There is a strong nexus of travel agents who take girls abroad by promising them lucrative jobs and then force them into flesh trade,” Balwant Singh Ramoowalia, president of LBP, told IANS.