Human Trafficking in [Kenya] [other countries]Street Children in [Kenya] [other countries]Child Prostitution in [Kenya |
Child Prostitution The Commercial Sexual Exploitation of
Children In the
first ten years of the 21st Century -
2000 to 2009
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CAUTION: The following links and accompanying text have been culled
from the web to illuminate the situation in ***
FEATURED ARTICLE *** Kenya:
Country should stamp out sex tourism (commentary) Many of the children being
exploited are not from the coast region but are imported from rural areas
from around the country. You don’t have to spend a lot of time at the
Kenyan coast to know that child prostitution and sex tourism are rampant
there. In Mombasa and Malindi,
it is common to see aging white men well into their 70s and 80s with girls
young enough to be their granddaughters. Locals tolerate this type of
sexual exploitation because, as one put it to me recently, “nothing gets a
family out of poverty faster than a daughter who has a white
boyfriend.” In many cases, girls are encouraged by none other than
their parents and relatives to look for older white men who will not only pay
the girl for her services, but her family as well. ***
ARCHIVES *** www.ecpat.net/A4A_2005/PDF/AF/Global_Monitoring_Report-KENYA.pdf Commercial sexual exploitation of
children (CSEC) in Kenya is often conducted through organised
networks in private houses. A number of agencies have reported
on the growing incidence of child sex tourism in the past five years,
especially along the coastal areas. The UNICEF study, The Extent and Effect
of Sex Tourism and Sexual Exploitation of Children on the Kenyan Coast,
conducted and released in 2006, indicates that up to 30 per cent of all the
12 to 18-year-olds living in the coastal areas of Malindi,
Mombasa, Kilifi and Diani are involved in casual sex work. As such, it is
estimated that 10,000 to 15,000 girls living in these areas are being
sexually exploited in tourism at irregular intervals or seasonally. A further
2,000 to 3,000 girls and boys are sexually exploited year-round by sex
tourists, in these same areas. Other estimates suggest that as many as 30,000
girls between the ages of 12 and 14 are lured into hotels and private villas
to be sexually exploited. During the low tourism season, local demand
sustains the sexual exploitation of children. Children involved in
prostitution are also compelled to provide sex to locals who help them gain
access to tourists, such as beach boys, bar staff, waiters and others. These
illegal activities involve tour operators, hotels and well-connected agents. U.S. Dept
of Labor Bureau of International Labor Affairs INCIDENCE
AND NATURE OF CHILD LABOR - There is a high incidence of child prostitution in Bur of Democracy,
Human Rights & Labor - Country Reports
on Human Rights Practices - 2005 CHILDREN - Trafficking in children was a
problem, as was child prostitution. Child prostitution has grown considerably
due both to economic contraction and to the increase in the number of children
orphaned because of the spread of HIV/AIDS. According to the International
Labor Organization (ILO), approximately 30 thousand girls under the age of 19
years were engaged in prostitution in the country. Concluding
Observations of the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) - 2001 [61] The Committee notes that the
State party participated in the World Congress against Commercial Sexual
Exploitation, held in Asia
Is Not Alone: Sex Tourism in Mombasa kristof.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/13/asia-is-not-alone-sex-tourism-in-mombasa/
Mombasa’s child sex trade is a disturbing
thing to watch, but I found that it’s exploding everywhere in this scenic
city, one of Africa’s major tourist destinations. Officially, the problem
doesn’t exist, but according to one estimate, up to 30,000 girls between 12
and 14 years old are currently being lured into hotels and private villas
along Mombasa’s north and south coasts where they
are sexually exploited with promises of riches and trips abroad. In Malindi, impoverished children of both sexes looking for
a new life sell their bodies to tourists along the historic town’s white,
sandy beaches, and Lamu Old Town – which five years
ago was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site – is now known as a place that
attracts men looking for young boys. Most child prostitution incidents
go unreported, but when they’re brought to light, authorities mostly do
nothing. They downplay Mombasa’s role as a
child-sex capital for fear that its already fragile tourism industry would be
further affected. The laws don’t help either, since they don’t specifically
address child prostitution or provide for stiff punishment of offenders. Child
prostitution up after Kenya's election bloodshed current.com/items/89155417/child_prostitution_up_after_kenya_s_election_bloodshed.htm This time last year, Janet Kimani spent her days at school and her nights fighting
with her little brothers over what to watch on the family's flickering TV
set. A girl lies in a brothel next to
a baby born to a prostitute in Mombasa, Kenya, a
center of trade in underage girls. 1
of 2 Now, she sleeps all day and sells her skinny, 14-year-old body at night
for $3 an hour. "There are so
many of us girls on the streets these days," Janet, dressed in a black
miniskirt and white blouse, told The Associated Press in Eldoret,
a western Kenya town that was a flashpoint of this year's deadly postelection crisis. KENYA:
HIV services are scarce on the street www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/IRIN/bdd6749de0b773459de74ec54a95bec4.htm A HIGH-RISK LIFE - "These people have to make
a living, so the girls often turn to sex work and will easily have sex
without protection; they are also unprotected from sexual violence," Wairimu said. "They are especially vulnerable
because many are children orphaned by HIV and have had no real family structures
around them when they were growing up."
Illegal drugs were widely available on the streets, and while high on
glue and other substances, young people often made unsafe sexual choices or
shared needles, putting themselves at greater risk of contracting HIV. "The majority of the street families
in Mombasa and elsewhere have succumbed to HIV due
to the 'don't care' lifestyle practiced on the streets," Dona said,
adding that people living on the street were extremely sexually active. - sccp Kenya: Act On Child Sex Tourism, Say Hoteliers allafrica.com/stories/200712101915.html Hoteliers want a new law enacted
to allow State inspectors to access private villas and homes to fight child
prostitution. The Kenya Association of
Hotelkeepers and Caterers (KAHC) claimed there was a possibility of child sex
abusers fleeing from mainstream hotels and finding new hideouts in the
villas, small lodgings and private homes.
KAHC Coast branch chairman, Mr Mohamed Hersi, also urged the government to bar 29 listed international
child sex abusers from entering the country. Their names and descriptions are
on the internet, he said. A recent
report by United Nations International Child Education Foundation reveals
that today, major hotels account for four per cent of child sex tourism while
private villas and homes account for 12 per cent. Chad child scandal
can hit Kenya In Kenya, nearly 30 percent of
children between the ages of 12 to 18 years are engaged in child prostitution
according to a study by UNICEF last year. Most of these children can be found
in urban areas. The practice is most
prevalent in the coast province which is a favourite
haunt for paedophiles disguised as tourists.
Although sexual exploitation of children is a criminal offence under Kenya's
penal code and also the children's act, a study by UNICEF last year found an
extremely high level of acceptance of commercial sexual abuse by those most
closely involved with them including parents. Kenya:
Country should stamp out sex tourism (commentary) Many of the children being
exploited are not from the coast region but are imported from rural areas
from around the country. You don’t have to spend a lot of time at the
Kenyan coast to know that child prostitution and sex tourism are rampant
there. In Mombasa and Malindi,
it is common to see aging white men well into their 70s and 80s with girls
young enough to be their granddaughters. Locals tolerate this type of
sexual exploitation because, as one put it to me recently, “nothing gets a
family out of poverty faster than a daughter who has a white
boyfriend.” In many cases, girls are encouraged by none other than
their parents and relatives to look for older white men who will not only pay
the girl for her services, but her family as well. New study shames human traffickers www.eastandard.net/archives/cl/hm_news/news.php?articleid=1143968455 At one time
this article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here]
Dr George Gona,
an expert on trade unions at the Prostitution luring girls from schools www.eastandard.net/archives/cl/hm_news/news.php?articleid=1143967542 Child prostitution is one of the
major challenges to education of girls in Coast Province. Coast Provincial Director of Education
(PDE), Mrs Connie Mogaka,
said there has been a steady rise of school dropouts in the province as girls
from poor families fall prey to prostitution.
Speaking to The Standard on Thursday, shortly after launching an
education service charter and strategic plan, Mogaka
said boys have not been spared either as they drop out of school after being
lured by rich female tourists who laze around the coastal beaches. WOMEN’S ISSUES - Girls often lack the
information and power necessary to negotiate for delayed or safe sex. Girls
living in the rural areas are particularly vulnerable: they are living in
poverty and have limited opportunities for education and employment. Many
girls and young women are forced into sexual trading in order to survive. Some
are forced into marriage at an early age, becoming parents and family
caretakers while still in their teens. They are deprived of their rights as
children and are denied rights to develop at the natural pace. First
Lady urges the church to empower vulnerable groups The First Lady, at the same time,
expressed the need for the Church in the Coastal region to step up measures
to protect young girls from sexual exploitation. She regretted that the incidence of child
prostitution and sex tourism was high at the Coast. The First Lady also expressed the
need for churches to make deliberate efforts to mobilize communities to take
action towards solving problems that affect them. IRIN HIV/AIDS Weekly - 326: 16-Mar-07 iys.cidi.org/humanitarian/hivaids/ixl9.html The contents of this article had
appeared under a different title and may possibly still be accessible [here]
Western
countries accused of fueling conflicts in Africa At the same time the minister
instructed Labour officers countrywide to crackdown
on farms and other facilities that may be promoting child labour. He said the recent shocking revelation of
child-prostitution in the country was worrying and warned that the
perpetrators will soon be brought to book. A generation betrayed www.africanpath.com/p_blogEntry.cfm?blogEntryID=419 At one
time this article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here]
Nation Newspapers carries a story
today where the German ambassador to The ambassador states that the
practice of child trafficking and prostitution is rampant due to private
villas where these activities are carried out. Kenya currently has the
notorious reputation as a hot sex tourism destination. Most of these villas
are rented by visiting tourists. Anything can happen behind closed doors and
nothing can be done to these law breakers. At 20,000 a year, these are too
many children who fall through the cracks without the care of the government
or families. With unmonitored villas and houses, the practice continues
without interruption. Child Prostitution in Kenya www.africanpath.com/p_blogEntry.cfm?blogID=36&blogEntryID=253 At one
time this article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here]
What is even surprising is the fact
that children are coming to the coastal region which is in the east from While the starting age of these
sex workers wasn’t mentioned, the fact that they are in primary school puts
them between ages 10 and 14. This is truly sad. How can we protect the
innocence of youth and help develop our children into mature and whole adults
while they are exposed to such circumstances? Campaign for hotels to sign ethics code A campaign has been launched to ensure that hotels in Coast Province sign a code of conduct to protect children from commercial sexual exploitation. TRAINING WORKERS - The code calls for ethical policy regarding commercial sexual exploitation of children from hotels and for them to train their employees on how to prevent child sexual exploitation by tourists. The campaign follows the release of a report by UNICEF in December, which revealed that child prostitution at the coast had hit alarming levels. A campaign has been launched to
ensure that hotels in Coast Province sign a code of conduct to protect
children from commercial sexual exploitation. TRAINING WORKERS - The code calls for ethical
policy regarding commercial sexual exploitation of children from hotels and
for them to train their employees on how to prevent child sexual exploitation
by tourists. The campaign follows the release
of a report by UNICEF in December, which revealed that child prostitution at
the coast had hit alarming levels. Child prostitution
reaching alarming levels in Kenya A report undertaken by the Kenyan
Government and the UN children's fund, UNICEF, studied the sexual
exploitation of children on the Kenyan coast.
It found that 30 per cent of girls aged between 12 and 18 are selling
sex for cash at resorts and that most of their clients are European men. The shame of Kenya’s Coast www.nationmedia.com/eastafrican/20112006/Magazine/mag2011062.htm At one
time this article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here]
The The promise of easy money has seen
underage girls registering for identity cards to falsify their ages and be
allowed to gain entry into hotels and entertainment spots, says the report by
the United Nations Children’s Education Fund (UNICEF). The Code
Quarterly, Newsletter No.9, July – September 2006 [PDF] [PAGE 9] NEW UNICEF-RESEARCH IN
KENYA ON CHILD SEX TOURISM AND CSEC WITH SHOCKING FINDINGS - Commercial sex tourism is
gaining acceptance among children at the Coast, a new study has revealed. The
study says 76.3 per cent of girls interviewed said the practice was a
"normal and an acceptable means to earn a living". In more shocking
findings of the study on the extent of sex tourism and sexual exploitation of
children at the Coast, the UNICEF reports that 35.5 per cent of the girls and
boys interviewed said they had unprotected sex when their clients demanded
it. Prostitution in Isiolo Alarming www.propertykenya.com/news/022601-prostitution-in-isiolo-alarming.php At one
time this article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here]
Child prostitution in Isiolo town has reached alarming levels and steps should
be taken urgently to stem it. Young
girls aged between 14 and 16 year comb the streets of the town at night or
hang near bars and brothels waiting for clients. Many young girls drop out of
school to join the booming prostitution business, which is seen as an
alternative way out of poverty. Prostitutes
'play risk lottery' Child prostitutes in Kenya play a risky
lottery with HIV infection, seeing up to five partners a night and using
condoms only 60% of the time, says a United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) researcher. The glimpse into child
prostitution in Kenya was presented by the Unicef
at the 16th International Aids Conference, and lifted the veil on a world
previously closed to researchers working on the global HIV epidemic. Parents accused of luring girls into prostitution www.eastandard.net/archives/cl/hm_news/news.php?articleid=1143956432 At one time
this article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here]
An international NGO has accused
parents in Kwale District of encouraging their
children to engage in prostitution.
World Vision-Kenya officials said many parents in the district
encouraged their daughters to indulge in prostitution with tourists and other
clients for cash. She was a teenage orphan living on
the streets of Nairobi when a man approached her and promised her work in the
United Kingdom. He told her she would be working as a house girl. True to his word, her
"savior" brought her into the U.K. -- but instead of placing her
with a family the man took her to a brothel, where she was systematically
raped, beaten, and forced to work as a prostitute. Three months later, when the
16-year-old Kenyan girl became pregnant, she was forced to continue sleeping
with a succession of men until she was almost due to give birth. The heavily
pregnant teenager was then removed from the brothel, driven out of the town
where she had been held, and dumped many miles away on the streets of
Sheffield. Booming tourism
boosts juvenile sex trade Sixteen-year-old Judy (not her
real name) sits in a nightclub sipping beer with two other girls in this
coastal resort town popular with foreign tourists thanks to its numerous
beach hotels and villas. She is one of a rising number of
under-age girls who have taken to commercial sex due to poverty or the allure
of easy money from tourists. "I had no choice, I had dropped out of
school, I had no job and my parents have four other children to take care
of," said Judy. Her 58-year-old European boyfriend has bought her a car,
pays her rent and gives her money to support her family. Hotels
warned over child prostitution The Coat PC, Ernest munyi has decried child prostitution and alcohol abuse by
teenagers in some bars, tourist hotels and disco joints especially in Mombasa and Malindi and has
threatened to close down these establishments. Munyi
said the vices had reached alarming proportions in the two towns which were
frequented by thousands of tourists and told owners of such premises that the
government would not hesitate to withdraw their licenses. ECPAT: Fifth Report on implementation of the Agenda for Action [DOC] www.ecpat.net/eng/Ecpat_inter/publication/other/english/Doc_page/ecpat_5th_a4a_2001_full.doc At one time this article had been
archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] [B]
COUNTRY UPDATES – KENYA
– It is reported that there has been an increase in child participation
through the Child-to-Child Methodology developed by Child Trust Kenya, where
children form clubs identifying problems that affect them and come up with
solutions. Various rehabilitation centers are said to have set up children’s
clubs and the children invite their peers to their activities. Dzoro can do better in war on sex pests www.eastandard.net/archives/cl/hm_news/news_s.php?articleid=1143952853&date=22/5/2006 At one
time this article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here]
Child prostitution is one of the
numerous abuses that dehumanise children everywhere
in the country. Where children are not being enslaved into prostitution, they
are being defiled, tortured and, at times, killed by the very people who are
supposed to protect them — parents and guardians. Raided Hotel Tied to Child Prostitution, Says Minister www.propertykenya.com/news/004196-raided-hotel-tied-to-child-prostitution-says-minister At one
time this article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here]
Mr Dzoro
told the Nation in an interview that he had interviewed mothers of the three
schoolgirls, who confirmed that they regularly offered their daughters, aged
between eight and 14 years, to the tourists for sex in exchange for cash. Child
Prostitution a Menace at the Coast Participants said children are
lured into having sex with tourists along the beach. They claimed the
children are also forced to take nude photographs, which the tourists later
use to produce pornographic material in their countries. High poverty level
and pressure from parents were the main reasons given for the abuse. Protection
Project - Kenya [DOC] Child sex tourism has also been
increasing in Sexual
Abuse Continues Unabated Even with the enactment of the
Children s Act in March 2002, sexual exploitation of children continues
unabated with disastrous consequences, owing to a number of underlying
factors. The
AIDS/Orphan Situation in Kenya CHILD
PROSTITUTION (A.K.A. "SURVIVAL SEX") - It has been found that even guardians and others
initially willing to help, find themselves unable to cope with the additional
responsibility of supporting extra children. As a result, guardians are
increasingly either sending these children out to the streets with
instructions to return home with money or expelling them from their homes.
So, what happens to a child with nowhere to go? What is the quickest way for
a teenager to make money? For females, prostitution is usually the easiest
option. The
vicious circle of sexual exploitation According to the report, child
sexual exploitation in Kenya exists in the form of child prostitution,
incest, early child marriages, rape, sodomy, indecent assault, and
defilement. The report notes that there are a number of children joining
prostitution as a means of survival. Children - especially those from slum
areas - are exposed to sex at an early age. "An overwhelming majority of
children in Kenya are abused in the streets. They are either orphaned, destitute
or from families facing conflicts", says the report. A unique feature of child
prostitution in Kenya is that people take in destitute children but instead
of caring for them, they hire the children out as prostitutes from time to
time. Some children are also kept in brothels alongside adult prostitutes - htcp Child
Prostitutes Brought to SA Child prostitution is flourishing
in Talking about CSEC www.ecpat.net/eng/Ecpat_inter/IRC/articles.asp?articleID=803&NewsID=67 At one time this article had been
archived and may possibly still be accessible [here] In They are children who cannot rely
on their families to provide them what's necessary to live and grow up
peacefully. Even though few of them still maintain some kind of bond with
their parents, particularly with their mothers, street children live by their
wits in the back streets of huge cities, begging, collecting garbage to be
recycled, committing thefts or prostituting themselves. Sexual Abuse Part of Life
for Kenya's Street Children Sexual exploitation is a fact of
life for them. They can't avoid sexual
abuse because when they sleep, wherever they sleep, it's on the streets. For girls on the streets, as young as six
or seven years, sexual abuse usually starts in gangs. When they are new on the streets, they are
raped in order to be accepted as a member of the street gang, 3. At the same time, specialists
working with children in the streets were of the opinion that poverty per se
is not the only cause, although it certainly aggravates matters, but that
abuse or rejection within families is the primary reason for the increase in
street children and the consequent vulnerability to commercial sexual
exploitation. The breakdown of traditional family values and the culture of
African extended family were frequently cited as most compelling causes leading
to a moral disintegration of society, again making children more vulnerable
to sexual exploitation. Children escape physical and sexual abuse from home
and from dysfunctional families affected by unemployment, substance abuse and
criminality, and end up in the streets. Cultural practices in some
communities (such as Nanyuki/Mt. Kenya) where
families send children out to earn money through prostitution are also
compounding the problem of sexual exploitation of children, but poverty is
once again the underlying factor. 4. In addition, the increasing
number of single parent families, and in particular female-headed households,
results in children having to supplement the family income or being left to
their own devices. In view of the scarcity of employment opportunities, girl
children might often be pushed to engage in commercial sex, with or without
the knowledge of their parents or family. - sccp All material used herein
reproduced under the fair use exception of 17 USC § 107 for noncommercial,
nonprofit, and educational use. PLEASE
RESPECT COPYRIGHTS OF COMPONENT ARTICLES.
Cite this webpage as: Patt, Prof. Martin,
"Child Prostitution - |
Human Trafficking in [Kenya] [other countries]Street Children in [Kenya] [other countries]Child Prostitution in [Kenya