Child Prostitution

Child prostitution “involves offering the sexual services of a child or inducing a child to perform sexual acts for a form of compensation, financial or otherwise.”

Worldwide, approximately 1 million children are forced into prostitution every year, and it is estimated that the total number of child prostitutes is as high as 10 million. “Generally children do not commit child prostitution but the adults who engage in prostitution or offer a child’s sexual services to others force them. It is estimated that at least 1 million girls worldwide are lured or forced into this scandalous form of child exploitation. Child prostitution is more frequent in developing countries such as Brazil and Thailand where more than 200,000 children are exploited.”

Child prostitution is not only a cause of death and high morbidity for millions of children, but also a gross violation of their rights. Prostitution negatively affects children’s sexual health, causes psychological harm, and puts them at risk for enduring increased violence.

Sexual Health: Child prostitutes are at a high risk of contracting HIV. HIV infection rates in prostituted children range from 5% in Vietnam to 17% in Thailand. One study reports that 50-90% of children rescued from brothels in Southeast Asia are infected with HIV. Prostituted children are also at a high risk of acquiring other STDs. For example, one study found that child prostitutes have STD rates in Cambodia of 36% and in China of 78%, compared to the 5% yearly incidence of STDs in adolescents worldwide.

Psychological Harm: Child prostitution also causes serious long-term psychological harm, including anxiety, depression, and behavioral disorders. Prostituted children are at a high risk of suicide and post-traumatic stress disorder. A study conducted in the U.S. found that 41% of pregnant prostituted adolescents reported having seriously considered or attempted suicide within the past year.

Violence: Prostituted children are at a high risk of enduring injuries and violence. The children may be physically and emotionally abused into submission, while girls may be beaten to induce miscarriages. A study of 475 child prostitutes in five countries found that 73% of participants had been physically assaulted while working as a sex worker, and 62% reported having been raped. 

"Slavery still exists but now it applies only to women and its name is prostitution"