PESCARA. «It is not correct to talk about a prostitution alarm. The return to the streets in the last period is linked to the arrival of the good weather, but in general the numbers are low compared to the years before the pandemic, in Pescara as elsewhere. Ten, at most fifteen people, are fighting on the coast, between the territories of Silvi, Montesilvano and Pescara. In the summer months they can reach around thirty.”
Reporting it is Fabio Sorgoni, responsible for the “trafficking and exploitation” area of the On the Road cooperative, in reference to the reports received in recent days about the sighting of prostitutes, especially in the pine forest area, after 10.30 pm, but also during the day. Sorgoni warns: «This is a particularly delicate and often misinterpreted topic. The real drama is represented by the general impoverishment which has further worsened the conditions of migrants. There are more and more people who are unable to get regularization in our country, so they are forced to work illegally and are exploited, not only sexually.”
The decrease in street prostitutes also depends on the fact that many of them have moved to apartments, Sorgoni says, also because customers are no longer willing to pay high prices. «At this point, for five or ten euros, they prefer to work at home, where they feel safer. In Pescara, for example, many kids throw stones at prostitutes in the street. It is a rather widespread phenomenon.”
Among those who choose the path, there are mostly Romanians and transsexuals, for a percentage that is around 30-40 percent. Then there are also Peruvians or women from South America. Fewer and fewer Nigerians. «Even more complex are the situations in which we deal with victims of trafficking in the strict sense, where getting out of the loop is quite difficult. People who, to leave their country, borrowed money to repay. Repaying debts and trying to support yourself, however, is not at all easy”, explains Sorgoni.
How does On the Road intervene to help these people? After the work of the street units, which try to come into contact with the victims of sexual or other exploitation, the path to gaining autonomy begins. In Pescara there are two homes for victims of trafficking. «The achievement of full autonomy, which therefore also includes social and work integration, is rather subjective and not everyone can do it», says Sorgoni. «When there is very strong underlying suffering, psychological support is fundamental. In any case, there have been stories with happy endings.”
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