My Story.    

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It was a cold dark night…around 11:30 pm when the rebels attacked the town, captured and killed some of the men, then dragged some of the women into the rooms and violently started raping them in turns. This is not a scene in a Hollywood movie, this is real life and I was one of those women. It happened in my country Sierra Leone, which was meant to be safe for us children. I was gang raped by five smelly, rebel soldiers but I will spare you the gruesome details. After being subjected to hours of rape, the men then left me for dead. I was only 14 years old.

There was no access to healthcare. Some people branded me names and called me a rebel wife. It was deeply traumatising and I used to have sleepless nights as I battled with my nightmares almost every night, all alone. I almost took the easy way out by trying to kill myself because in my culture, you don’t discuss these shameful, unfortunate things. 

Left alone to deal with the effect of severe depression, trauma, shame, guilt and social isolation, I became a very angry person and it started affecting my mental health. The political leadership was out of touch with victims like us. It almost broke me.

Fast forward to 2001. With the help of my brother, I came to the UK where I started getting the kind of support I had desperately needed. It started with psychological support, which is ongoing, then housing and financial supports and all of these gave me my sense of humanity and dignity back. I felt empowered and it enabled me to live the life am living now (better life). 

The psychological empowerment helped me through the transition process from being the traumatised teenager to a positive thinking, creative and confident woman. Now I feel like a free woman because what I went through made me feel like I was trapped. 

So when I started hearing all sorts of stories of rape victims of war or even in a peaceful country like the UK, my new home, I felt it’s time to give back. The urge to help is really high because it’s a very dark place I understand. No matter how strong you are, you will need support, the right kind of support.

This is what inspired me to set up this charity, (Women’s Health Advocacy Network) to help others; be their voices, reassure them, empower and support them through the transition process.

I want to use my first-hand experience to also educate women and the public on ways of dealing with sexual abuse and provide ongoing support for individuals that are traumatised by sexual violence. 
The charity will educate people through various platforms including my charity which will be a point of contact for victims.

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Adama Bah 
Chair: Women's Health Advocacy Network