Li Chunhong, a 16-year-old girl from southwest China's Sichuan Province, thought the world had fallen apart when she was kidnapped and forced into prostitution a year ago.

The rural girl had dreamed of a well-paid job in the city, but fell into the hands of human traffickers shortly after she left her hometown in Renshou County, in the outback of the province.

Though she was soon rescued and sent home by police, she could not manage to regain faith in life, until she was offered psychotherapy at a recuperation center for kidnapped women and children.

"I could not shed the nightmare, even though life turned normal again after I went home," Li said. "The trauma was still there and the unpleasant past made me feel humble and disgraced."

Besides a systematic psychotherapy, Li was offered free lodging, counseling and professional training that aimed to qualify her for a job in the future.

The recuperation center in Pixian County, established in November 2003, has reignited hope for Li and hundreds of other kidnapped women and children who have managed to escape from human traffickers themselves or have been rescued by police.

The center also helps the escaped victims get in touch with their families and sends them home, after some time of treatment that can heal their wounds to the maximum extent possible.

All the running costs of the center, approximately 300,000 to 400,000 yuan (US$36,145 to 48,193) a year, are subsidized by the provincial and local governments, said Cao Hong, an official with the provincial public security authority.

"It's crucial to help the kidnapped people regain self esteem, independence and courage and pick up enough skills to support themselves in the future," said Cao. "All these should be included as a continuation of our crackdown on human trafficking."

Before the massive crackdown in 2001, the hinterland of Sichuan Province had a high incidence of human trafficking. Its agricultural Renshou County alone reported more than 2,000 human trafficking cases between 1995 and 2000.

As most victims were children and rural women between 16 and 30 years old, the local women's federation joined hands with the public security authorities and the United Nations Children's Fund to compile self-help booklets that explained in simple words and vivid pictures how rural women should protect themselves from outlaws.

To maintain the mental well-being of the escaped victims, the county has set up a network of psychological service providers at county, village and community levels to offer psychological counseling and therapies to the victims.

Besides the recuperation center in Pixian County, China has set up three other such organizations in Yunnan Province, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and Jiangsu Province respectively.

(Xinhua News Agency June 5, 2004)