Human Trafficking in [El Salvador] [other countries]
Street Children in [El Salvador] [other countries]
Child Prostitution in [El Salvador] [other countries]
 

Child Prostitution

The Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children

Republic of El Salvador [ Country-by-Country Reports ]

The Republic of El Salvador [map], a Central American country, is bounded by the Pacific Ocean (S), by Guatemala (W), and by Honduras (N & E). The capital and largest city is San Salvador. GDP per capita is roughly half that of Brazil, Argentina, and Chile, and the distribution of income is highly unequal. One of the key achievements towards realizing children's rights in El Salvador has been the approval of a National Code for Children that gathered support from the three branches of power and from society.

CAUTION:  The following links and accompanying text have been culled from the web to illuminate the situation in El Salvador. Some of these links may lead to websites that present allegations that are unsubstantiated, misleading or even false. No attempt has been made to validate their authenticity or to verify their content.

ECPAT – On-line form for reporting child prostitution and other sexual offences against children

National Plan of Action

Quick Search for Missing Children - Select Gender, Country (El Salvador), and Years Missing

U.S. Dept of Labor Bureau of International Labor Affairs

INCIDENCE AND NATURE OF CHILD LABOR - The commercial sexual exploitation and trafficking of children, especially girls, is a problem in El Salvador. El Salvador is a source, transit, and destination country for children trafficked for commercial sexual exploitation.  Salvadoran girls are trafficked to Mexico, the United States, and other Central American countries.  Some children are also trafficked internally. Children from Nicaragua, Honduras, and South America have been trafficked to bars in major Salvadoran cities, where they are then forced to engage in prostitution.

Bur of Democracy, Human Rights & Labor - Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2005

CHILDREN - Child prostitution was a problem, and included the commercial sexual exploitation of minors for upper class clients. Children, especially those living on the streets, were trafficked to other countries, including for the purpose of sexual exploitation.

A UNICEF sponsored a program to prevent sexual and commercial exploitation began operations during the year and provided information to 8,517 children.

Concluding Observations of the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) - 2004

[63] The Committee is concerned about the extent of sexual exploitation and trafficking in the State party and about the lack of effective programs to address this problem. It also regrets the lack of information on assistance and reintegration programs for children who have been subject to sexual exploitation and trafficking.

GUATEMALA: Where Sexual Exploitation of Minors Is Not a Crime

But hers is not an isolated case. Although no precise figures are available, in 2002 it was estimated that 2,000 minors were sexually exploited in Guatemala City alone, according to a report by Casa Alianza (the Latin American branch of the New York-based Covenant House, a child advocacy organisation) and ECPAT (an international NGO working to end child prostitution, child pornography and the trafficking of children).

Of those 2,000 minors, 1,200 were from El Salvador, 500 from Honduras and 300 from Guatemala itself. María Eugenia Villarreal, ECPAT director for Latin America, says Central America is a hub for trafficking in minors, child pornography and sex tourism.

ECPAT: Fifth Report on implementation of the Agenda for Action [DOC]

[B] COUNTRY UPDATES – ECPAT El Salvador, which is a network of both governmental and non-governmental organizations, has spent the last year refining the National Plan of Action against the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (Plan de Acción Nacional contra la Explotación Sexual Comercial de Niñas, Niños y Adolescentes en El Salvador 2001-2004). The plan has now been finished and programs and activities have been designed in the areas of coordination and cooperation, prevention, protection for children at risk of becoming victims of CSEC, rehabilitation and reintegration of child victims, and the promotion of child participation. Funding is now being sought in order that the programs in the plan can be successfully implemented.

Child Prostitution: A Growing Scourge

A REGION OUT OF CONTROL - El Salvador is a country of origin and destination for the commercial sexual exploitation of minors. Sex tourism is becoming ever more lucrative. Interpol has discovered a network that shuttles children from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, and forces them into prostitution in bars along the El-Salvador-Guatemala border.

Country Report - El Salvador

PROSECUTION - In 2003, police arrested 33 individuals for commercial sexual exploitation of minors, prosecutors presented 51 individuals charged with involvement in child prostitution to the courts for either their initial hearing or trial, and San Salvador courts tried 17 individuals for violating anti-prostitution laws. Of these 17, one was convicted for involvement in child prostitution.

Crime and Society - A Comparative Criminology Tour of the World

CHILDREN - Child prostitution is a problem. Between 10 and 25 percent of visible prostitutes are minors, and an estimated 40 percent of the hidden prostitutes who cater to upper-class clients are believed to be minors, according UNICEF.

Country of Origin Research - Responses to Information Requests (RIRs)

The Coordinator of the Constitutional Studies Program of the Legal Studies Foundation (FESPAD, based in San Salvador, stated that laws governing the rape of a minor are not being enforced effectively. By way of example, the Coordinator indicated that child prostitution is a problem throughout El Salvador, yet there is very little police action against those involved.

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Human Trafficking in [El Salvador] [other countries]
Street Children in [El Salvador] [other countries]
Child Prostitution in [El Salvador] [other countries]