Leadership Council Members

  • *Ruby

    *Ruby is a gentle yet outspoken advocate against sexual abuse and exploitation of children who dreams of building a community free from violence. Ruby is a survivor of Online Sexual Abuse of Children (OSEC) and has shared her experience widely in hopes of building a community where there is no violence. She is an incredible advocate for others trapped in exploitation and has won awards for sharing her story boldly on various platforms.

    Read More

    LISTEN TO HER STORY
  • GODWIN DOGBEY

    Godwin is a survivor of labor trafficking, and he shares his story to advocate for the rights of children who suffer violence on fishing boats. In 2015, a trafficker lured him onto a fishing boat. He was enslaved and forced to work instead of going to school for three years. Within 24 hours of his own rescue, Godwin courageously led the Ghana Police and IJM back out onto the water to help authorities identify nearly 30 other children and arrest over a dozen suspects.

    Read More

    WATCH HIS STORY
  • LILIAN ACEN

    Lillian is known within her community as a passionate advocate for women’s rights. Lillian is a survivor of Intimate Partner Violence. She left an abusive marriage after nine years and filed a legal case against her husband in a society that believes that Intimate Partner Violence is a family matter. Today, she operates a small charcoal business in Gulu, Uganda. Because of her experiences, she is a strong advocate within her community for women’s rights and women’s empowerment.

    Read More

  • SIVA KUMAR

    Kumar is a passionate advocate for his community and anyone who has suffered violence. Kumar is a survivor of bonded labor trafficking. He was 7 years old when he was rescued by Indian police from slavery in a brick factory, and with support from IJM’s aftercare program he completed schooling. He is part of the  Released Bonded Labor Association which is part of the Global Survivor Network. In his free time, he enjoys performing classical Indian folk dances and creating art.  

    Read More

    WATCH HIS STORY
  • *SJ

    SJ is a gentle, shy, and artistically inclined survivor leader, who is bravely speaking out about his experiences with violence in an attempt to bring change to his community. SJ experienced sexual violence when he was only 11 years old. After almost ten years of going through a rollercoaster of emotions and trials, SJ's family and IJM Bolivia achieved justice.

    Read More

  • *BETZI SANTIS

    Betzi is a gracious and committed advocate, who desires to use her time to shed light on violence that grows in darkness. Betzi was physically, sexually, and psychologically abused as a child, and the lonely environment left her feeling hopeless and afraid to speak. She left home when she became pregnant as a young teenager. Betzi worked tirelessly to provide a good life for herself, and she completed high school and a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration.

    Read More

  • COLLINS

    Collins is a humble leader and a passionate advocate for justice that leads to true freedom. Collins’ leadership is informed by his experience as a survivor of police violence. After two years imprisoned for a crime he did not commit, he was finally released and his name was cleared. Collins fought to keep his own hope alive during those dark years, and today he brings that same light of hope to his work advocating against police violence as part of the Kenya Champions for Justice, a chapter of the Global Survivor Network.

    Read More

    WATCH HIS STORY
  • *KASHI

    *Kashi is a positive, courageous and determined young woman, who shares about her lived experience so that other girls might never know the reality of sex trafficking. She desires to see all children freed from fear and all people living in freedom. *Kashi survived domestic servitude as a young child and commercial sexual exploitation as a young teenager. The legal battle for justice has been ongoing for more than a decade, and *Kashi has persevered to pursue schooling, embrace healing, and explore meaningful work as she continues to seek justice for herself.

    Read More

    READ HER STORY
  • MALLAIAH

    Mallaiah is a committed and courageous leader, who boldly advocates for justice and sustainable development for his people, the Chenchu Tribe. For three generations, Mallaiah and his community were exploited as bonded laborers, living and working in the forests that have long sustained his people as hunters. In 2016, government officials from Telangana intervened and released Mallaiah and his community from debt bondage.

    Read More

  • MYA LAY*

    Mya Lay* is a passionate advocate against human trafficking. She narrowly escaped being trafficked from her home country of Myanmar to China. When she learned that another woman had gotten caught in the same scheme, Mya Lay* courageously contacted the Burmese Anti Trafficking Task Force Police, which led to the arrest of both the trafficker in Myanmar and the Chinese man attempting to purchase a woman from Myanmar under the guise of offering money.

    Read More

Founding Members

  • David Makara

    Makara is an advocate of the High Court of Kenya. He chose his career as a lawyer after he was brutally shot by a police officer, wrongfully accused of a crime, and imprisoned. When the charges were finally dropped, Makara decided to go to law school.

    Read More

    Watch His Story
  • Josephine Aparo

    Josephine is a social worker with a passion to serve women, children and families who have survived violence. Josephine was orphaned as a young girl in Northern Uganda, and she lived through a two-decade civil war that tore apart her family and her country. Her own story of struggle and triumph fuels her desire to help other women stand strong.

    Read More

  • M. Raja Ebenezer

    Raja is a practicing Advocate at the Honorable Madras High Court and other courts across the state of Tamil Nadu. Raja is a survivor of bonded labor, and he regularly shares about his own story of restoration with other survivors in a local survivor mentorship group.

    Read More

    Watch His Story
  • Pachaiyammal Arul

    Pachaiyammal is a cluster coordinator for the State Rural Livelihood Mission, a pilot project to increase access to government programs for survivors of bonded labour. Pachaiyammal was enslaved in a rock quarry in South India for twelve years, and she is passionate about ending modern slavery across her state and nation.

    Read More

    Watch Her Story
  • Charito

    Charito works as a Medical Social Worker in a Cebu hospital. Charito is a survivor of trafficking, and she shares her story of strength with other survivors and to groups or school programs that support ending violence. She is part of the S.M.A.R.T. group in the Visayas Region, which is part of the Global Survivor Network. On her day off, Charito loves spending time with her family and volunteering in the shelter where she once lived.

    Read More

  • Vanessa Bautista

    Vanessa is a creative and bold advocate for survivors of violence around the world based in the US. She grew up in the Philippines and is a survivor of sexual abuse. Vanessa has served as one of the survivor leaders in the advocacy group, “Standing Together to Advocate Rights”, in Manila.

    Read More

  • VICTORIA NYANJURA

    Victoria is a women’s rights advocate based in Uganda. She is a survivor of Lord’s Resistance Army abductions and has shared her story and amplified the stories of other survivors from local, national, and international platforms.

    Read More

    Read Her Story
  • JAKELIN MAYEN

    Jakelin is passionate about using her expertise to fight against violence. Jakelin is a survivor of sexual violence, and she continues to help other survivors find the courage to use their voices to fight for justice. She has advocated for the protection of women and children in Central America by sharing her own lived experience, raising awareness through the media, and speaking to elected officials in Guatemala and the United States. Jakelin is currently in her last year of law school and looks forward to becoming a lawyer for justice causes. She enjoys going for walks with her son and their dog, attending church, and dancing.

    Read More