A congregation of nuns in central India is helping domestic workers who face sexual abuse and other forms of violence access legal help, counseling and rehabilitation.
Abp Leo Cornelio of Bhopal, who is based in the Madhya Pradesh State inaugurated June 28 the Nyay Chaupal — forum of justice initiated by the congregation of Holy Spirit Sisters for domestic workers.
The office plans to monitor cases of rape, sexual harassment and violence of domestic workers and help them file police complaints, provide them legal help and well as counseling and rehabilitation. The new office is part of the congregation’s Uday Social Development Society that already works with victims of abuse.
Holy Spirit Sister, Sister Lizy Thomas, its secretary, told ucanews. com that they were compelled to launch this new office as nuns found many domestic helpers women “stressed and in need of help.”
A 2015 survey by the Uday Social Develop-ment Society in two slums of Bhopal found that most domestic servants came to the city from villages in search of employment and had “no means to get legal remedies” against exploitation.
More than 60 percent of the 800 families that took part in the survey came from the Dalit or socially poor communities once considered untouchable, while 36 came from other economically weak communities.
