Human Trafficking in [Kazakhstan] [other countries]
Street Children in [Kazakhstan] [other countries]
Child Prostitution in [Kazakhstan] [other countries]
 

Child Prostitution

The Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children

Kazakhstan [ Country-by-Country Reports ]

Kazakhstan [map] is the second largest of the former Soviet Union republics, measuring 2,000 kilometers, east to west, and 1,200 kilometers, north to south. It is bordered by the Russian Federation (N & W), by Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Kyrgyzstan (S), and by China (E). Kazakhstan enjoyed double-digit growth in 2000-01 - and a solid 9.5% in 2002 - thanks largely to its booming energy sector, but also to economic reform, good harvests, and foreign investment. Growth remained at the high 9% level in 2003 and 2004. The opening of the Caspian Consortium pipeline in 2001, from western Kazakhstan's Tengiz oilfield to the Black Sea, substantially raised export capacity. The country has embarked upon an industrial policy designed to diversify the economy away from over dependence on the oil sector, by developing light industry. Additionally, the policy aims to reduce the influence of foreign investment and foreign personnel.

CAUTION:  The following links and accompanying text have been culled from the web to illuminate the situation in Kazakhstan. 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.

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

National Plan of Action

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

INCIDENCE AND NATURE OF CHILD LABOR - Reports indicate a rise in the number of children engaged in commercial sexual exploitation, pornography and drug trafficking in urban areas. Children working as domestic servants are often invisible and, for this reason, also vulnerable to exploitation. Kazakhstan is a source, transit, and destination country for trafficking for sexual exploitation and forced labor. Girls in their teens are one of the primary targets for trafficking from Kazakhstan to other countries. Internal trafficking from rural to urban areas also occurs.

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

TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS – Traffickers targeted young women in their teens and 20s for sexual exploitation.

Adolescents raised in orphanages, regardless of gender, and residents of rural and economically disadvantaged areas were particularly vulnerable to being trafficked. The country's relative prosperity otherwise served as a factor against citizens being trafficked through seeking employment abroad. During the year an orphanage director in the southern part of the country was caught attempting to traffic teenage girls to the UAE. The highly publicized case remained ongoing at year's end.

Concluding Observations of the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) - 2003

[72] The Committee is concerned at:

(a) The growing involvement of children in the sex industry and the apparent indifference of society towards the issue of child prostitution, including reports of parents themselves reportedly forcing their children to earn money through prostitution;

(b) The lack of specialized centers to accommodate and provide qualified services, including psychotherapeutic and rehabilitation and reintegration programs, for child victims of sexual violence.

Report by Special Rapporteur [DOC]

[49] The sale of children and enticing children into prostitution are criminal offences.  In the first nine months of 2002, one man and four women were prosecuted under article 133 of the Criminal Code for trafficking in minors.  In the same period, 71 persons were prosecuted under article 132 for enticing minors into prostitution, vagrancy or begging. In one reported case, a woman ran a coordinated criminal organization procuring and enticing minors into prostitution.  On 27 April 2001 the Taraz city court sentenced her to four years’ imprisonment.  In all such cases the minor is not held criminally liable, and the Supreme Court of Kazakhstan has standard rules on judicial practice in cases involving offences by minors to ensure the safeguarding of their rights. Minors may be taken into custody as a preventive measure or detained where they have committed a serious offence.

National Consultation on the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC)

A study commissioned in Kazakhstan by ECPAT International for a situational analysis on the commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC) has focused, among other things, on the legal protection afforded to families and children in the country and on the perception of the phenomenon by Kazakh society, while trying to identify existing gaps and possible remedies needed.

Russian National Consultation on the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children

PROBLEM VARIES ACCORDING TO THE REGION - Internal trafficking within Russia and the CIS countries (Moldova, Belarus, Ukraine, Kazakhstan) is widespread owing to rising demand for sex services, including child prostitution, in big cities, particularly in Moscow and St. Petersburg. As it does not cost much to transfer children within the country, criminals do not face major financial obstacles during the whole process.

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Human Trafficking in [Kazakhstan] [other countries]
Street Children in [Kazakhstan] [other countries]
Child Prostitution in [Kazakhstan] [other countries]