Denver Newsroom, Aug 2, 2022 / 05:00 am
For 27 years, the Adorer Handmaids of the Blessed Sacrament and of Charity in Cúcuta, Colombia, have helped some 4,000 women escape human-trafficking networks at the city’s three border crossings to Venezuela.
The Adorer Sisters were founded in the mid-19th century by the Spanish St. María Micaela to help women leave prostitution. The home they run in Cúcuta was established 27 years ago by Sister María Soledad Arias, and it takes in women and adolescents who are victims of sex trafficking.
Although Colombia has eight official crossings with Venezuela — in addition to 74 informal trails — the main point of entry is through Cúcuta, where 94 percent enter on foot.
Consequently, this city is a strategic place to fight against human trafficking, since many women fall victim to these trafficking networks when trying to flee the economic crisis in Venezuela.