Teaching through learned experience: Survivor Leaders series part 1

Malaika Oringo is an international advocate against human trafficking and a survivor who now works to support other survivors and influence policy. She serves as a Global Specialist for Survivor Engagement and Inclusion with The Salvation Army International.

In this role, she helps ensure that people with lived experience of trafficking are involved in shaping policy, support services and advocacy. 

One of the greatest honours in my journey has been walking alongside survivor leaders in The Salvation Army – people whose stories, strength, and vision are shaping our global mission in real and lasting ways. Their voices don’t just inspire change; they help lead it with insight that comes from lived experience. 

My own journey with The Salvation Army began as someone receiving support. Over the years, I have served as a volunteer in the Netherlands Outreach Program, interned at the EU Office in Brussels and I have worked as a consultant on the Fight for Freedom strategy. Now, I am embedded in the movement against modern slavery and anti-trafficking as an Advocacy Specialist for The Salvation Army. This journey has deepened my understanding of what survivor engagement can look like when it is not just symbolic, but intentional. It has shown me that meaningful inclusion goes beyond participation. It’s about creating spaces where survivors can contribute, shape direction and be trusted as partners in the mission. 

Survivor leadership is not just about being present in the room, it is about being part of planning, shaping, and decision making.

Lived experience leading the way 

For many years, survivors have found a place within The Salvation Army as recipients of care, as volunteers and as voices within local mission. These roles have mattered deeply, and they reflect something rooted in our history. From our earliest days, The Salvation Army was built to help people who had experienced poverty, addiction, exploitation and who, through faith and community, became leaders and lifelines for others. This has always been our model: lived experience leading the way.

But, as we reflect on where we are now, we must ask how we are carrying that legacy forward. What does it mean today to move from involvement to meaningful collaboration? Survivor leadership is not just about being present in the room, it is about being part of planning, shaping, and decision making. It is about ensuring that lived experience is not only heard but trusted to help guide how we serve.  

A global survivor community 

We have gathered stories from survivors that are not just personal reflections. They carry wisdom, challenge and direction. They invite us to consider questions that sit at the heart of our mission: 

• How can we say we are truly serving people affected by human trafficking if they aren’t centered in the solutions? 
• What does it look like to walk alongside survivors not just in heart, but in structure? 
• Are survivor perspectives reflected in our global policies, budgets, and program designs? 
• And if not, what are we being invited to reimagine? 

These are the kind of questions that led us to write this piece. Because, when you hear from these leaders, you will see not only what is possible, but what is already taking shape. Survivor leadership is not new to The Salvation Army; it is part of who we are. From the beginning, we have been a movement that lifts those we serve and makes space for them to lead. 

That is why building a Global Survivor Community is so important. It is more than an initiative it is a way to honour our calling. A space where survivors from across the world can connect, contribute and help shape the future of our work, making it more grounded, more compassionate and more whole. These voices remind us how far we have come and how much more we can build, together. 

Clinton’s story 

What’s your name?  

My name is Clinton Wanyonyi  

What’s your role/connection to The Salvation Army.  

I am an Anti-Human Trafficking (AHT) Focus group Survivor leader and a team leader in an AHT football club. 

What’s your favourite dessert?    

Ice Cream (though it’s never available, sadly)  

What do you want readers to know about you being a survivor leader in The Salvation Army?  

Human trafficking and exploitation do not only affect women and girls. Men are also victims and I am one of them. 

I am a survivor of exploitation. I was tortured and burned. I still carry the scars on my body. But those scars do not define me as weak. They define me as resilient. They remind me of what I survived, and they give me strength to stand for others who are still suffering in silence. 

Although I did not have the opportunity to access formal education, I refuse to let that limit my impact. I use sports as my platform for prevention, awareness, and protection. Through sports, I reach young people, teach them about safe migration, dignity, and their rights, and help protect them from falling into the same traps I once faced. 

How are you bringing about change?  

Where I come from and in my culture, men are regarded to be strong and as such they are expected to keep silent about anything that happens to them to show they are strong like real men. However, this kind of culture makes many men to be exploited in silence. 

For me to come out publicly to denounce such acts I would be ridiculed and would face a lot of difficulties. Therefore, I decided to engage in football as a platform for ministry, mentorship and prevention. Through community football matches and youth training sessions, I engage young people who may never attend church programmes and use the game of football to teach discipline, teamwork, dignity and life skills. I integrate short talks on risky migration, peer pressure, drugs and exploitation. 

As a Survivor Leader, I am not defined by what I experienced in the hands of my exploiters, but by what I have chosen to become. My lived experience gives an understanding of vulnerability and resilience which allows me to serve others with compassion, passion and courage.

When you think about The Salvation Army’s history, what does it mean to you that survivor leadership has always been part of our DNA?  

Being a soldier of Salvation Army, I have known that from the very beginning, The Salvation Army has worked with people who have been rescued from poverty and social injustices, and it shaped them to become leaders and social justice advocates. 

From that, my situation and the experience I went through is not different from what The Salvation Army represents. It is a clear testimony that God can redeem our lives so that we can bring change in our communities. I believe that my journey as a youth and survivor leader will create hope and transformation in my community.

As a Survivor Leader, what do you want readers to understand about who you are and how your lived experience strengthens The Salvation Army’s mission?  

As a Survivor Leader, I am not defined by what I experienced in the hands of my exploiters, but by what I have chosen to become. My lived experience gives an understanding of vulnerability and resilience which allows me to serve others with compassion, passion and courage. I believe my experience and my role brings a survivor’s voice into The Salvation Army’s mission especially in our efforts in fighting social injustices, especially modern slavery and human trafficking.  

Can you share one practical example of how your voice or experience has helped shape change within The Salvation Army?  

One practical example is how my experience as a survivor has helped shape the way The Salvation Army uses sports as a tool for outreach and protection. By sharing my story with Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking (MSHTR) practitioners and my church officer, I have helped them to understand how football could reach vulnerable young people outside of normal church programmes. As a result, football activities are now intentionally integrated into youth ministry, combining sport with character formation and prevention messages. 

Why do you believe it is important for The Salvation Army to have a Global Survivor Community?  

Our lived experience as survivors helps The Salvation Arny understand real vulnerability, real risk and real recovery. A global survivor community creates a safe space for survivors to be heard, supported, and empowered as leaders, not just beneficiaries.  

What message would you give to someone who is considering joining the Global Survivor Community?   

I would say to them that your story matters, your voice is powerful, and your journey is not over. Being in this community is not about being defined by what happened to you; it is about being empowered by what you survived. In belonging to this community, you will find strength and purpose. Together we can turn our pain into hope for others and shape a world where dignity and freedom are protected for all. 

This interview is the first in the series of inspirational interviews with survivor leaders who work with The Salvation Army, so please check back to read more. 

If you are connected to The Salvation Army and a survivor leader and would like more information about our Global Survivor Community and connect with other survivor leaders, please email: priscilla.santos@salvationarmy.org or Malaika.oringo@legerdesheils.nl

For more information on Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking please click here

To recognise the signs of Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking please click here.