Designing Safe Spaces: Drop-In Centres KMVS provides resources, managerial support, facilitation and hand-holding to the two existing Drop-In Centres, in Bhuj and Gandhidham. It plans to open a new centre this year, and add a counselling component to the centres' work.
KMVS has been working to collectivise female sex workers in Kutch since 2016. Social stigma around sex work, weak legal protections, and hostility from state institutions, make sex workers among the most vulnerable working women. They are forced to work anonymously and unable to access basic civic and human rights, including the right to work without violence and rights to the full measure of government amenities. Samvedna is a programme harnessing the collective strength of female sex workers towards destigmatisation of their profession, realisation of rights, a better life, and a more secure future for their children.
Organising and Building Leadership
Over 500 female sex workers from 5 blocks have come together under the umbrella of Samvedna - a collective of, for, and by sex workers themselves. Regular trainings facilitated by KMVS at the district and block level are attended by both Samvedna members and its core leadership of 9-10 women. These sessions build leadership skills, discuss collectivisation, share perspectives on patriarchy, gender, legal rights and ground realities of sex work. As a member of the National Network of Sex Workers (a network of sex worker-led organisations promoting rights of sex workers in India), Samvedna leaders also learn from trainings across the country.
Privacy, security and respect for boundaries are key concepts in Samvedna's outreach strategy. Drop-In Centres, run by Samvedna's core team, are safe community spaces where women gather in privacy, discuss health, exploitation by clients, seek support, or just let their hair down, socialise and build solidarity.
Accessing State Amenities
It is difficult for sex workers to get matching identity documents - ration card, Aadhar card and voter ID card - because they are perennially forced to disguise their identity. Samvedna works on getting these documents in order, ensuring sex workers can get health care, HIV testing, treatment for HIV positive workers, condoms, as well as state benefits like widow and old-age pensions, access to livelihood schemes and loan subsidies. Samvedna also works on education for children of sex workers, getting admission into schools and supporting them through the education process.
Creating Visibility
Public events, where female sex workers take the mike and speak in their own voice, about their lives, struggles and hopes, are an important way to end the stigma.
A moralistic cop spots a female sex worker on two-wheels. What happens next?
"Samvedna Saathe Sanvad" (Dialogue with Samvedna) was organised in Bhuj on March 11, 2023. Anchored by a sex worker and attended by KMVS programme cadres, it was a celebration of sex workers' right to work with dignity and a dialogue to build a wider understanding of sex work and the lives of sex workers.
'Right to Work without Violence. Right to Live with Dignity' - For the first time, KMVS celebrated International Sex Workers Day with Samvedna women in Bhuj on June 1, 2023. It was attended by over 150 women, and by representatives of several government departments.
Sex Workers speak
If sex work bothers you and manual labour does not, your idea of labour is clouded by your moralistic view of sexuality.