Story
In July 2016, we will be riding our bikes from Land's End (the most south-westerly point in England) to John o'Groats (the most north-easterly town in Scotland) to raise money for the work of Oasis Belgium. We will be riding 1,600 km (1,000 miles) over the course of 12 days.
In Belgium, Oasis is working with exploited and trafficked Thai women. These women are tricked through abuse and forced marriage and then forced into the sex trade in ordinary houses, hidden from view. The project, having found the brothels on the internet, visits them with a Thai language newsletter, including a helpline to call. As a slow and patient relationship is built up, help with papers and money management is offered. Oasis has also partnered with another organisation to open an excellent quality (rated in the top ten in the city) coffee bar, where the women come to be trained, and then find a new life. This is possible because they are usually held in place by debt and by abusive relationships, rather than by physical restraint. If these can be addressed, than they can find freedom. The positive community at the coffee bar offers support and builds self-belief. In the first year, nine women have graduated and gone on to employment or full-time education.