“Having a job and being able to meet my needs gives me new hope for the future”
There are many girls raised in conservative families that cannot get to study beyond basic school and are married off at a young age without a chance to get a good job. Many of them not having the resources became victims of domestic violence in new families. Ayten, (the name is conditional), one of the dozen women – victims of gender-based violence, that used to reside in the shelter run by Tamas Regional Development Public Union, has a similar life story. Born in the refugee camp Ayten, from the very beginning of her life, didn’t have a chance to get a good education and build her career. For her, a completely different life was prepared by her relatives, which she was forced to accept. She was banned from going to school after the sixth grade and she began to help around the house and household.
When Ayten turned 16 years old, she was forced by her family to marry. Like many girls of her age, she started family life at an early age without a chance to continue her education or get a decent job.
She lived with her husband who was 10 years older for 12 years and they had 3 children. Life after marriage did not change for her for the better, it even became worse. Over time, Ayten’s situation only worsened as her husband started regularly abusing her emotionally and physically.
“I was just a slave at home with no rights. Obedient servant. My husband cheated on me and constantly humiliated me. Once he beat me badly and left me on the street,” Ayten says.
She had no place to go and following her friend’s advice she decided to turn to the shelter run by Tamas, which is supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through the Azerbaijan Counter Trafficking in Person Project implemented by the International Organization for Migration (IOM). In the shelter, Ayten received psychological support that boosted up her self-confidence. “The treatment helped me a lot. I was on the verge of suicide,” she recalls.
At the shelter, she was also provided with legal representation for her case, and she was assisted in filing for divorce.
Later, the shelter staff enrolled her in the computer course and trained her on "Personal Development" and "Career and Gender Learning". That became a new stage in her life. During the courses, Ayten became friends with two women whose life paths were very similar to hers. Later, this friendship became the basis of a joint business when three of them decided to join “Basic business skills” training arranged by IOM as part of the USAID project for the individuals vulnerable to trafficking in Ganja city. Following the training, they were granted equipment to start up a small business -- a pilates studio. The women demonstrated their belief in the viability of the startup from the start by using their own resources to pay the monthly rent and renovate the space.
“Our pilates studio has been working for several months now. We have already begun to slowly make a profit. Having a job and being able to meet my needs gives me new hope for the future,” Ayten says.
Since 2015, IOM implements the Counter-Trafficking in Persons project funded by USAID aiming at assisting the Government of Azerbaijan and civil society organizations to further improve Azerbaijan´s effectiveness in preventing and combating trafficking in persons and forced labour through raising public awareness on trafficking and providing technical and financial support to the civil society organizations operating shelters for assisting potential and actual victims of trafficking and forced labour. To date, the project has assisted 20 people to start their small businesses.
