The International Federation of Female Lawyers (FIDA), Plateau chapter, in collaboration with Red Cross and Teens Partners has commenced rehabilitation of some girls and married women who engaged in a pornographic video for N30,000.
Chairperson of the association, Mrs Mary Izam, who disclosed on Wednesday, January 29, said that the rehabilitation became necessary as all the girls were depressed and another, a married woman, had committed suicide.
According to NAN, the video which was uploaded on the internet weeks ago showed some young girls and married women engaging in sexual acts.
It was gathered that a man identified as Emeka, who resides at the Rayfield area of Jos, took the girls and women to a hotel in the same area to shoot the videos.
Emeka was said to have interviewed the women before stripping them naked and having sex with them on camera.
He paid the victims N30,000 each with a promise to pay additional N100,000 at a later date.
The practice had reportedly gone on for about three years, with over 50 girls and women featuring in the videos. The video had generated reactions from the public with the victims becoming stigmatized.
Two girls who approached the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) office in the state said poverty and lack of need forced them to engage in the immoral act.
“This happened two years ago. My nephew was at the point of death and I needed to help my sister with money for his treatment. I met a lady at a beer parlour who told me about the man and I quickly agreed to do it,” one of the girls said.
“The painful part is that after I took the money home, my nephew still died. He promised us that he would release the videos outside Jos, but I later realised he only played us as we are not literate enough to know that once it’s on the internet, everybody can see it.”
Mary Izam, FIDA chairperson, said the association in collaboration with Red Cross and Teens Partners, has organised a rehabilitation process to save the victims from depression.
She said a married woman, who was one of the victims, had committed suicide after being stigmatized by members of the society.
Izam described the act as unacceptable and a crime against woman dignity and right as well as an offence against the nation.
She said the association and its partners would do all they can to ensure that the perpetrator was brought to book.
The chairperson urged women to engage in moral activities in order to avoid tarnishing their names and bringing the state to disrepute.
She called on other victims to utilise the rehabilitation process, adding that running away will be of no good to them and their loved ones.
