In 1997, a process in Belgium was adopted that allowed a victim of human trafficking to obtain a residence permit in exchange for the victim’s cooperation with the prosecution of the victim’s trafficker.

Sally Beeckmann and Ilse Hulsbosch are part of a three person juridical team, of the non-governmental organization Pag-Asa.

Pag-Asa provides temporary housing, psychological counseling, medical support, and legal assistance throughout the proceedings a victim of trafficking must go through in an attempt to attain Belgian citizenship.

Pag-Asa receives its funding from the Belgian government.

In part one of this audio interview, I spoke with Sally and Ilse about how victims of trafficking find their way to Pag-Asa.

We look at what defines a victim of human trafficking.

And we discuss some of Sally & Ilse’s perspectives on the global situation of trafficking and how that plays out in Belgium.

Pag-Asa, means 'hope' in the Philippine language Tagalog.