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 what is sex tourism
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Posted on 10-05-05 2:24 AM     Reply [Subscribe]
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Sex Tourism

It involves an individual traveling to a country with the intention of seeking out sex with women or children. You might think that there are a small amount of people who are willing to do this, but really booking a trip to another country with the sole purpose of having sex with women or children is as easy as booking a trip to Cancun. [For example, a keyword search using "sex travel" in the popular, supposedly selective Yahoo search engine will give you an idea of the popularity of combining travel and sex for WWW users. Look up "sex tour" in Alta Vista, and you'll find 7308237 leads....]
All over the world women and children are being abused by this industry. The following are links to information about places that have a humongous role in the sex tourism industry:


United States
Europe (information from Germany, Italy, England)
South Africa
South America
Southeast Asia

We hope you'll also explore some of our bibliography on your own:


http://www.world-tourism.org/pressrel/rellist.htm:a press release list from a world-wide organization that promotes responisble tourism
http://feminist.com/enalert2.htmthis one includes information about how you can get involved
http://www.equalitynow.org/action_eng_12_1.html: contains the same call to action that the above site does







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The United States: Sexual Predators Right Under Our Noses

"Real sex with real girls, all for real cheap"
~a typical quotation used to attract people to sex tourism.
Big Apple Oriental Tours, a tour company based in New York, sets up sex tours to Asia. They advertise that for $2,195 they will provide round trip transportation to the Philippines for twelve nights. Included in this package is the option to pick a companion for the "vacation." Before committing to such a "tour," a video is available for viewing. The video includes the experiences of previous tourists and even a typical gang rape.

Many people wonder what actually occurs on a sex tour. It usually goes a little something like this:

The traveler is met at the airport by a car or a bus. They are then taken to meet with a Big Apple Tours representative who takes them to "pick our" their companion for their stay. As soon as the traveler chooses their companion, the representative negotiates with the woman's "mamasan" or pimp a price for the traveler's stay. It usually costs about $24. After the first night, the mamasan checks with the traveler to see if the woman was satisfactory. If not, the traveler is entitled to have a new woman.

There are more than 25 companies which offer the same type of tours. They are based in cities which range from Miami Beach, Florida to Ventura, California. To push their businesses, many brochures ask, "Had enough of the American bitches who won't give your the time of day and only interested in your bank account? In Asia you'll meet girls who will treat you with respect and appreciation, unlike their American counterparts."

Prostitution is a multi-billion dollar business, which is why many officials look the other way when it comes to convicting people who engage in such a business. They feel that it brings in tourist dollars--money which many countries need. In the United States, the Violent Crime Control Law and the Law Enforcement Act of 1994 make travel with the intent to engage in sexual activity with a juvenile illegal with a punishment of up to 10 years imprisonment. Up until now, there have never been any convictions. Because these people are looking in the other direction, women and children are ruining their lives. At the time it, it may seem to many that it is doing more good than harm because much needed tourist money is being brought in, but in actuality, these women quickly become worthless. After these prostitutes reach a certain age, they are thrown out, considered worthless, out of a job. This puts them back in the position they were in before, but now they can't do anything about it. For the rest of their lives, many regret what they have done and many also feel that suicide would have been a better choice. One woman said, "If I had known it was going to turn out like this, I would have killed myself."




New York Legislation Concerning Sex Tourism and Prostitution:


Traffickers of sex tourism may face 5-20 years in jail, depending upon the age of the prostitute.
Customers of sex tourism may face 1-6 years in jail.
Persons causing bodily harm to any prostitute may face the death penalty.
Travel with the intent to engage in sexual behavior with a juvenile is punishable by up to ten years in prison.
Promoting prostitution is considered a Class D felony.
Knowingly advancing or collecting profit from prostitution is considered a Class A misdemeanor.




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Europe: Latest news about sex tourism in Europe


Italy: The world tourism organization launched a campaign against organized sex tourism. Pope John Paul II sent a video to the campaign. He called for an urgent solution to the problems generated by sex tourism.
Objectives for the campaign:
1. To help WTO members take a political stance against sex tourism.
2. To determine the ways by which the tourism sector should effectively react to this problem.
3. To consider the possibility of a world-wide action plan to stop sex tourism, particularly in all its organized forms.


"It is a phenomenon that affects the lives of hundreds and thousands of women and children. Virtually no destination in the world is spared. Children as young as five years old are forced by poverty into prostitution and exploited by unscrupulous individuals and criminal groups that use child sex or prostitution as the main selling point in tourism."
~Henryk Handszuh (WTO Chief of Quality Tourism Services)

Read more at the World-tourism site

Germany: The German Health Ministry said that the sex tourism industry is contributing to the spread of HIV in Germany. A study conducted concluded that more than half the men surveyed admitting paying for sex. New infections through unprotected sex has increased dramatically in recent years in the main destination countries of prostitution tourism. The ministry is making leaflets and brochures informing tourists of these risks.

England: Last March, Britain passed legislation allowing the prosecution of people who commit sex crimes against children abroad.





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Sexual Tourism in South Africa



Sexual tourism is wide-spread, especially in the third world countries, including South Africa. On August 28, 1996, Nelson Mandela spoke at an United Nations conference in Stockholm, addressing the problem of commercialized children sex. The President of the Republic of South Africa had strong words of reprimand for those committing the horrendous acts and words of wisdom for correcting the problem. The following are highlights of his speech:

"There are linkages between the issue of commercial sexual exploitation [of children] and the murky world of drug abuse and crime."
South Africa is part of NPAC, National Plan of Action for Children, where government is paying close attention to abuse of children including sexual, physical, and mental abuse, pornography, and child exploitation.
Poverty, not to be confused as a reason or excuse, often forces children into the streets due to home pressures, to make a live, or parents selling their children as a means of income.
In order to combat sexual exploitation, "socio-economic programs or reconstruction to address the problems of poverty, and the empowerment and protection of women and the girl child. Early childhood development, youth development and comprehensive changes to our child and youth care system are key components of this the process."
Days past have dictated that children should be "seen and not heard," but days have passed. The "cries of our abused and exploited children must no longer fall on deaf ears or closed minds."
South Africa signed and ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and is currently working on full implementation through the National Plan of Action of Children.
"I commit my country towards ensuring that each day fewer children in our world, in each of our countries, are treated as insignificant objects to be traded, mangled and mocked."

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Sexual Tourism in South America


Imagine young girls playing with dolls by day and engaging in sexual acts against their will at night. In South America, as elsewhere, this scene is often not imaginary but reality.

In 1994, ECPAT reported that 500,000 children in Brazil were involved in the sex industry.
In March 1997, United Nations officials reported that "child sex abuse and prostitution are rising in Latin America and children are most threatened in Brazil, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, and Cuba.
Brazil's UNICEF delegate Arabela Rota said, "Without a doubt, those are the countries where the problem is most prevalent." Rota also stated, "Sexual trade in children is blatant on the streets of Brazilian cities," and she went on to criticize Latin America's widespread free market economies which neglect social policies.
According to Agnes Fournier of Interpol's general secretariat, one million children are forced into prostitution around the world.
Of 48 missing children traced by Interpol, 23 were found Brazil. 16 were raped before dying.



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~Child Prostitution Runs Rampant in Southeast Asia~
Again: From Dolls to Sex and Violence

Recently public awareness has been aroused about the growing population of children involved in sex tourism throughout Southeast Asia. It is estimated that nearly half a million children are involved in the sex trade. Little girls as young as twelve are selling their bodies on the streets of cities throughout Southeast Asia for as little as $8.
Many of these young girls were tricked into prostitution or kidnapped. Some are forced into prostitution by their own parents in the hopes of generating income into their impoverished households.


Tricked into the life of prostitution: one girl's story

Ee Chang, a young Chinese girl fell victim to the world of sex tourism at age 15. She and two friends were lured from their rural village by a monk. They were promised employment at a nearby market, but instead were kidnaped and taken to Thailand where they became prostitutes. The girls were sold to the owner of a sex resort in Thailand. He paid 1,786 dollars for each girl, a small price for their innocence.
According to Ee Chang, she and so many girls like herself become easy targets because they were trusting. In their rural villages, dishonesty was something they had not encountered. For eight months, Ee Chang sold her body day and night. Finally she escaped, only to be captured and sold to a brothel. Ten months later she managed to escape and reach the Chinese embassy.

Her life has been greatly impacted by this ordeal. Not only does she face the threat AIDS, but she bears two years of mental anguish from being sexually abused by men. In the highly traditional Chinese society, Ee Chang will possibly face ridicule and persecution.


If you would like more information on child prostitution and prevention, visit http://www.uia.org/uiademo/org/f2222.htm and read about ECPAT (End Child Prostitution in Asian Tourism).

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NOTE: This page was part of a multimedia group presentation for a Spring 1998 introductory Women's Studies class at Towson University. The students who submitted it for educational purposes make no claim to copyright.
Return to WMST231 home page




 


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