Virgin Girl Brides Sought for Virility and Good Fortune
September 1, 1999 ·
Published in Child Workers of Asia
(April – September 1999)
In regard to Vietnam, the situation of trafficking of women and children within and from the country relates to three areas. First, there is trafficking from the northern part of Vietnam to China for marriage andother reasons. Second, there is trafficking from the southern part to Cambodia and subsequently to Thailand mainly for sexual purposes. Third, there is trafficking to Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macau mainly for marriages. Tracking cases is faced with many obstacles, including the fact that in the cases of sexual trafficking:
“victims do not come forward because they suspect that there is considerable prejudice against women and children when they report cases of sexual violence. They may fear threats of violence from traffickers and the humiliation of deportation, especially if their families should find out that they have been working as prostitutes.
For the police and authorities of alien countries, combating trafficking in women and children has not been a priority and therefore they are dealt with only as illegal immigrants. Most of them may simply be deported and their experiences may never be recorded as cases of traffic.”
Source:TheTraffickinginwomenand
Children in the Mekong Sub-region by Vitit
Muntarbhorn
VIETNAM
“The development of tourism is one of the main causes of increasde child prosiitution. Many Foreigners who come to Vietnam think that besides the favourable condition sfor business and tourism, Vietnam will also provide cheap and safe tours and will present little danger of AIDS and other venereal diseases, particularly in sexual intercoarse with children. Many business men from Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan believe that buying a young girl’s virginity will help them succeed in business, increase their longevity and give them strength and youth. As a matter of fact, an organized network or system to supply virgin prostitutes to foreigners has come to light in a number of hotels and tourist venues.”(Vietnam News) Vietnamese women and children are being smuggled out of the country into the sex trade in Cambodia and Thailand. There is also an increasing trade in young wives in China and Vietnam.
Source: ECPAT International
