Sex Tourism- The Dirty Picture

Aditya Patil

              Sex Tourism is when one travels for the purpose of Sex. The condition with sex tourism is very bad in today's times on a global scale. Parts of South-East-Asia are well known for sale of sex. Sexual services can be purchased from men, women and even children including trans-genders. There is a lot of work to be done regarding the protection and implementation of certain laws that people break once they are out of their country.

               Bangkok is a famous tourist attraction but what does the entertainment include ? Sex ? The answer is yes. People buy sex like they are buying vegetables or groceries. Human trafficking to Bangkok has been going on since quite long but other than that many locals are engaged in the prostitution business. Aids and poverty are on a high in this area as well as other areas in the world. Bangkok though is one of the cheap places for sex. That is why it has so much of market. Tourists that are looking for sex, want a place that gives it cheap to them. A good example is the Khaosan Road in Bangkok. Also often termed as “the fantasy land”, on this road people dress up as whatever they want and get the person they get sex from dressed as whatever they want. Sex is as cheap as 3 USD a night here. The Menu including men, women, boys, girls, kids and trans-genders. The thing to question is the point of view of both the parties involved – the workers and the customers. Sex tourists don't believe that its wrong to buy sex. They think its just like buying any other good or renting something. On the other hand sex workers, especially local ones think its like doing any other job. They are professional about it. Such irresponsible thinking leads to affecting the health of so many people. Children suffer the most, their body parts are used from a very young age. One can't imagine the pain they have to go through, the life they have to live. Gay sex tourism is also big. Young boys are exploited and made to live under horrible conditions. There are two types of sex workers – ones that do it voluntarily and others are smuggled or forced into the profession. Family members are involved too in forcing some adults as well as children into the profession. Emily Hansen conveys in her article that sex tourism is more about power and opportunism than sex. It's really unfair for the people who are trafficked. Human trafficking is a huge problem worldwide today. It is our responsibility as tourists to make the right choices. That's the best we can do.
(HANSEN, EMILY)

                      Without too much being in the news, one would imagine that the U.S is not affected as much by sex tourism and trafficking, but the truth is that it is. Pimps and Traffickers target youths on streets and ones that are abandoned from their homes. Forced abduction also takes place in America. This is not it, the worst part of it is , some parents also make agreements with traffickers and sell the health and happiness of their children just for money. Such cases have increased post the recession. Fact is “55% of street girls in America engage in prostitution.” Another statistic from the U.S. Department of Justice states that , “In case of formal prostitution 75% of girls involved work for a pimp.” Sex services are well hidden in certain places. They are linked with escort and massage services, dance clubs and even sporting clubs at times. Girls and Boys are trafficked nationally as well as internationally through a huge network by all means – Cars, buses, trains, trucks, vans and planes. The average age at which girls get picked up for prostitution and trafficking is between the age of 12 to 14 and for boys its between 11 and 13. United States is not out of the picture.
(“Child Exploitation and Obscenity Home Page.")

                             What are authorities and organizations doing about it so far ? They have been making efforts toward making the scenario better than it is. Over the years Global efforts have been made to reduce prostitution especially child prostitution. In spite of that there has been a worldwide increase. 32 countries today have some extra territorial laws that their citizens have to follow. France has its guidelines for sex tourism cleared out by its travel industry. Awareness programs are included in all school curriculum over there. Brazil in the past has held national and international campaigns talking about and against sex tourism. Italy has a law that makes its tour operators inform tourists about child sex offenses and extra-territorial laws that are to be followed. Swedish tour operators have signed a code of conduct in which they agree to educate their staff about Child Sex Tourism. Cambodia has special police forces that work on Child Sex Tourism. In the United States, there is an act called the 'Trafficking Victim Protection Re-authorization Act' and one called “PROTECT Act”. Under these acts, the government carries out, awareness and development of information. They have a penalty of up to 30 years for someone who is engaged in child sex. In their mission known as 'Operating Predator' in 2003, they performed 25 arrests of people engaged with this crime.

(Child Sex Tourism - The Facts About Child Sex Tourism.)

                            The U.N can contribute to taking steps against sex tourism. This however cannot happen unless all the concerned countries agree on certain things. There is a Global Treaty that has been made and the draft is ready but it's not been passed yet. They have worked with the statistics and thought of a solution. The U.N website mentions that there are at least 100,000 illegal prostitutes in the U.S itself. In Japan, 40,000 to 50,000 Thai prostitutes are working illegally. The U.N Global Report has declared an increase in trafficking worldwide. Some of the causes are unemployment and financial crisis. Kidnapping of children has become a common happening. In Central and South America, street children are a big target for traffickers. Plus, when prostitutes get caught, the traffickers always get away, they are never at the scene. The prostitutes are held guilty but the traffickers are not. If approved, the U.N Treaty will punish the traffickers. The hunt for traffickers will be stepped up worldwide. U.N forces will be working on it. Interpol ( International Police) has been holding conferences regarding trafficking and sex tourism. Their plans will be put in to action as the treaty would encourage their plans further. This treaty can only be passed if countries like China, Thailand, India etc. agree to all the conditions and plans. Without the understanding and support of all U.N nations, the possibility of an International law or agreement of any such treaty cannot take place.
(Treaty to Combat Sex Slavery)

                           What depends on the Government and U.N is not in our hands. Although, we can take certain measures as citizens, friends and parents to avoid such happenings as much as possible. Child safety is very important. If someone is missing from your home, especially if its a child, please ask the local law enforcement to give your details to the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). Make sure you get the concerned numbers to report any sites that you see where you think somethings wrong. Call the local police if you dont have any other number of a specified department. This how we as common men can contribute to stopping crime. The rest is still in the hands of the government bodies. The situation of Sex Tourism is a disgrace to the world today and we can only hope things get better other than taking basic preventions and being alert.
("Missing Children Website.")

Sources : //

HANSEN, EMILY. "The Shameful Truth about Sex Tourism." Web log post. Matador Bnt. 2 Nov. 2007. Web. 16 Nov. 2011.

"Child Exploitation and Obscenity Home Page." United States Department of Justice. Web. 16 Nov. 2011.

Enforcement, Weak Law. "Child Sex Tourism - The Facts About Child Sex Tourism." Crime and Punishment Home Page. Web. 16 Nov. 2011.

"Treaty to Combat "Sex Slavery"" Welcome to the United Nations: It's Your World. Web. 16 Nov. 2011.

"Missing Children Website." National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Web. 16 Nov. 2011.