79% of child trafficking end in child prostitution. As rosy as Malaysia seem on the outside, tucked away from prying eyes is a thriving child sex industry. Every year, child rights activists have seen increase in child prostitution with an average of 150 kids being forced into the industry.
Why?
- Poverty
- Victims of human trafficking.
- Demand
- Drugs
The Child Sex Trade
credit : IOFA Talk
Many children in Malaysia suffer from poverty. The poor and the migrants. Despite the country’s efforts to improve the situation, UNICEF estimates that more than 72,000 children under the age of 15 still live in difficult conditions without the means to fulfill their own basic needs. Some do anything just to survive, some trapped in the throes of drug addictions.
In 2013, the asking price was a mere RM20 per session. 6 child prostitutes all under the age of 14 years old, sold their bodies for RM 20 per session and psychotropic pills to get them high.
Some are homegrown Malaysian kids, others come from Indonesia, Thailand and India. All victims of human trafficking.
Citizens Against Child Sexual Abuse
To avoid being arrested by the police, these kids do not work in the brothels but are housed in dilapidated low-cost apartments. Protect and Save the Children‘s newest awareness video really hit too close for comfort. Their newest campaign Citizens Against Child Sexual Abuse have been running from November last year. P.S. The Children are asking Malaysians to pledge their support by signing the Petition before 26th February for new laws that will help end child prostitution.
“Every child deserves the right to be safe wherever he or she is, and it is our role as parents, community leaders, neighbours, religious figures, technology providers, youth, school administrators and more, to be alert and notify the relevant authorities when you see a child in danger, online or offline,” NST