Prevent sexual exploitation of children in tourism

Yann’s only hope was her oldest daughter. If Thaury, 15, could get a job in the city, maybe they all could live in a real house and eat more than rice porridge once a day. This chance of a lifetime came through a neighbor, and Yann eagerly sent her daughter off to the city.

But once in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, this deceitful neighbor sold Thaury to a brothel. When Yann eventually discovered this she was devastated. To escape the shame, Yann moved to a nearby village. There she and her three other children became even poorer than before.

One small loan through WILFund might have changed it all.

The commercial sex trade

Poverty drives parents, like Yann, into desperation, sometimes to the point of unknowingly selling their own children into one of the most harmful environments—the commercial sex trade.

More than one million children are abducted, sold, or coerced into the commercial sex trade every year. Many of these children are either sold into prostitution to pay off family debts or are forcefully recruited on the street to work in brothels where they are required to have sex with as many as 30 clients each day.

Child sex tourism

Unfortunately, U.S. citizens are among those from several industrialized countries who exploit children trapped in the commercial sex trade and fuel a demand for younger children. Some Americans take advantage of prostituted children while traveling to impoverished countries for business or other reasons. Others travel abroad specifically for a “sex tour.” Worldwide, it is estimated that one out of every four sex tourists is a U.S. citizen.

Under the new Protect Act of 2003, U.S. citizens can face 30 years in a U.S. prison for engaging in sexual activity with a child under 18 anywhere in the world.

New World Vision project

With backing from the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), World Vision is launching a child sex tourism prevention program in Cambodia, Thailand, Costa Rica, and the United States. In partnership with ICE, World Vision will train and alert its local staff in these countries to assist law enforcement in identifying American sex tourists and providing information that could assist in their prosecution.

World Vision is also implementing a targeted campaign to deter U.S. citizens from participating in sex tourism. Through partnerships with U.S. government agencies, the U.S. travel and tourism industry, and World Vision offices in sex-tour destination countries, a strong deterrence message is being strategically placed at airports, on television, billboards, in-flight videos, and on the Internet. This message will dissuade would-be sex tourists at each step of their journey.

You can help

There are two ways you and your friends, small groups, or churches can make a difference. Together you can provide WILFund loans to help women like Yann operate small businesses to earn family income rather than selling their children into prostitution. Click on the Donate Now! box above to make a donation to WILFund and help prevent a woman like Yann from having to make a heartbreaking choice.

You can also help us protect children by telling others about child sex tourism, especially by Americans. Through your own donations or group fundraising you will equip World Vision staff to assist local law enforcement and will stop would-be sex tourists from exploiting children by placing strong detterence messages in their path.

Protect a child today.

If you have questions about World Vision's Child Protection Advocacy -- Sex Tourism Prevention project or are interested in making a contribution to support this campaign, click here.