Read this two-part series on how recent visitors to the Diocese of Parramatta, Mother Corazon Salazar and her fellow sisters of Mary Queen of Heaven Missionaries (MQHM), have entered brothels and bars in the Philippines to rescue women and children from the clutches of sex trafficking, offering education, rehabilitation – and a path to Christ’s love.
In the heart of the Philippines’ red-light districts, an unusual scene unfolds several nights each week. A group of women, not wearing their religious habits but dressed in ordinary clothes, approach bars and brothels.
The bar owners recognise them, often calling them “the bar-hopping sisters.”
These women are not there for entertainment but on a mission of mercy – they are missionary sisters from Mary Queen of Heaven Missionaries (MQHM), and they’ve come to offer hope to women and children trapped in the sex industry.
The story of this extraordinary mission began in the mid-1980s with Mother Corazon Salazar, a successful businesswoman who owned a garment manufacturing company in Manila.
Her daily commute took her through the red-light district of Ermita, where she witnessed something that broke her heart: children walking the streets at dawn in the company of older foreigners.
“Every time I pass through there, I saw children walking in the streets or inside restaurants or pubs with elder foreigners,” recalls Mother Corazon, who recently visited Parramatta and toured through different parts of Sydney to tell her story to local parishioners.
“And of course, you would conclude why they are there and why they are in the company of such older foreigners, because they are probably 12 to 18.”
Initially moved by a feeling of duty and anger at what was happening to these children, Mother Corazon spent years praying and discerning. By 1994, she felt called to form a group to help these exploited children.
Six women joined her, and in 1996, they began living together in community.
Their founding bishop, the late Cardinal Vidal, accepted them into the Archdiocese of Cebu with a promise: “If your charism is true, and it is from the Lord, you will bear fruits.”
Breaking the cycle through education and intervention
The Philippines faces a severe crisis of child exploitation. According to the MQHM 2023 Annual Report, nearly 400,000 people are being trafficked in the Philippines, with an alarming 80 per cent under the age of 18.
The archipelago’s location makes it a convenient stopover for traffickers, and poverty pushes vulnerable families into desperate situations.
“Children trapped in the sex trade due to susceptibility and poverty become relegated to a life of unspeakable horrors which continue throughout their teen and adult lives,” the annual report writes.
Local corruption exacerbates the problem, with brothels flourishing in communities where financial gain takes precedence over protection of the vulnerable.
The situation is further complicated by what the report identifies as “cyber-sex cafes” becoming “the modern-day vehicle of trafficking and harder to track,” alongside the prevalence of familial sexual abuse in impoverished households.
Sister Glecy, one of the nuns who works alongside Mother Corazon, explained the vicious cycle: “Most of the women that we rescued came from those places.”
“The traffickers would go to their area, they would give money to their families, they would invite them to work in Manila but then you will find them working inside the bars and brothels.,” she said.
“And some of the women that we rescued were also victims of incest at a very young age, so they would run away from home, and then you’ll find them working on the streets.”
A new ministry
Mother Corazon and her sisters developed a two-pronged approach: rescue and prevention.
Their Home of Love shelters provide rehabilitation for rescued women and children, while their educational assistance program works to prevent trafficking by keeping vulnerable children in school.
“In three years of doing that in three municipalities with 207 beneficiaries in that area, we found out that there were zero incidents of kids being recruited,” Mother Corazon explained proudly.
“So, we decided to extend our ministry all over Cebu.”
This preventive approach recognises the root causes of trafficking. As noted in the annual report: “It’s a fact that when children are in school, they cannot easily be contacted by sex traffickers or those wishing to exploit them.”
From modest beginnings, their Regina Coeli Education Program now serves 28 provinces, providing educational support to 18,000 students as of 2023 – 6,000 more than the previous year.
Entering the darkness with Christ’s light
The rescue work requires extraordinary courage and strategy. These sisters don’t storm brothels with police but build relationships through consistent presence and unconditional love.
“Our policy in the Home of Love is we do not do the police work, but we just give them unconditional love to show them that they are not alone, and there is always hope,” Mother Corazon explained.
Their approach is patient and built on trust. The sisters first introduce themselves as missionary sisters, offer rosaries and scapulars, and conduct prayer meetings before the women begin their work in the bars. They return repeatedly, gaining trust gradually.
“We do not tell them right away that we are there to rescue,” Mother Corazon clarified.
“That’s why we have to be going back and forth many times so that we could gain the trust of these women.”
“We don’t force them, and it is safer for us,” adds Sister Glecy.
“When we go to the streets, bars, and brothels, we do not go alone or by twos alone. We have also mission partners who look after us.”
This careful approach minimises danger from traffickers and recognises the complex situations many women face – some are the sole breadwinners for their families or are indebted to bar owners.
Stay tuned for the second part of this series.
The Diocese of Parramatta reaffirms the wise axiom attributed to St Augustine of Hippo: “in essentials, unity; in non-essentials, freedom; in all things, charity.” In this spirit, Catholic Outlook publishes a variety of catholic viewpoints. They are not necessarily the official views of the Diocese of Parramatta.
To support the missionary sisters in this vital ministry, visit www.mqhm.orgwww.mqhm.org.
