Girl, 6, embodies Cambodia's sex industry
Story Highlights
• More than 1 million children in global sex trade each year,
U.S. State Dept. says
• 50,000 to 100,000 women and children involved in Cambodia's sex
industry
• Gang rape, AIDS, torture afflict the women and children in this
field
By Dan Rivers
CNN
http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/asiapcf/01/23/sex.workers/index.html?eref=rss_mostpopular
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (CNN) -- At an age when most children might
be preparing for their first day of school, Srey, 6, already has
undergone trauma that is almost unspeakable.
She was sold to a brothel by her parents when she was 5. It is
not known how much her family got for Srey, but other girls talk
of being sold for $100; one was sold for $10.
Before she was rescued, Srey endured months of abuse at the hands
of pimps and sex tourists. (Watch where freed girl is found upon
reunion with reporter Video)
Passed from man to man, often drugged to make her compliant, Srey
was a commodity at the heart of a massive, multimillion-dollar
sex industry in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
"It is huge," said Mu Sochua, a former minister of women's and
veteran's affairs who is an anti-sex trade activist.
The precise scale of Cambodia's sex trade is difficult to
quantify. International organizations -- such as UNICEF, ECPAT
and Save the Children -- say that anywhere from from 50,000 to
100,000 women and children are involved. An estimated 30 percent
of the sex workers in Phnom Penh are under the age of 18,
according to the United Nations. The actual figure may be much
higher, activists say.
Global sex industry
Around the world, more than 1 million children are exploited in
the global commercial sex trade each year, according to the U.S.
State Department. The State Department believes Cambodia is a key
transit and destination point in this trade.
"Trafficking for sexual exploitation also occurs within
Cambodia's borders, from rural areas to the country's capital,
Phnom Penh, and other secondary cities in the country," the State
Department wrote in a 2006 report. "The Government of Cambodia
does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the
elimination of trafficking; however, it is making significant
efforts to do so."
Sochua said that with millions of Cambodians struggling to live
on less than 50 cents a day, many women turn to the sex industry.
Poverty is also often what drives parents to sell their child or
themselves on the streets.
"Always a child is left behind, often a girl, who is preyed on by
traffickers," Sochua added.
An unlikely savior
Srey was rescued from the life of a sex slave by Somaly Mam, a
former prostitute who runs shelters for the victims of Cambodia's
sex trade. Somaly has rescued 53 children, so far. Many of them
have profound psychological trauma. Some clearly are mentally
ill. (Watch how one woman has saved dozens of children from
brothels Video)
"A lot of them, when they arrive, have psychological problems ...
very big problems. ... And they never have love by the people, by
their parents," Somaly said.
One girl at Somaly's shelter appears especially disturbed. She
was rescued after being imprisoned for two years in a cage, where
she was repeatedly raped.
She needs psychiatric care, but there is none available. Somaly
says she does her best to give this girl love and support, but
that it's not easy with so many other needy children around.
Somaly herself suffered terrible ordeals when she worked the
streets, including seeing her best friend murdered. She is
determined to build something positive out of so much despair.
Her work has caught the attention of world leaders, celebrities
and religious figures. Her office in Phnom Penh is adorned with
photos of her meeting Pope John Paul II and messages of support
from governments and charities.
Despite the attention, Somaly said the situation on the street is
not getting better. Gang rapes of prostitutes are becoming more
common, she said, and many of the attackers don't use condoms.
Instead, they share a plastic bag.
"Poor women, they have been raped by eight, 10, 20, 25 men ...
they hit them. They receive a lot of violence," she said.
HIV-AIDS also remains a persistent, though declining, problem
among Cambodia's female sex workers.
About 20 percent of Cambodia's female sex workers are
HIV-positive, according to Cambodia's Ministry of Health. This
compares with the 39 percent of sex workers who tested positive
in 1996, according to the Health Ministry.
To help sex workers transition to a more normal life, Somaly is
hoping to expand her refuge in the countryside outside Phnom
Penh, where former sex workers attend school and learn skills
like weaving and sewing.
Asked what the future holds for Srey, Somaly stroked the girl's
hair and paused.
Srey is HIV-positive, she said.
In such a poor country, without decent hospitals or medical care,
Srey's future is bleak. Somaly just hopes she can make this
girl's life bearable for as long as it lasts.
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