SEXUAL ABUSE AND EXPLOITATION OF BOYS IN SOUTH ASIA A ...

knowledge of the intermediate situations of child vulnerability, from which others may lead
the child into sexual exploitation such as prostitution or pornography.
The process by which a boy becomes involved in prostitution often involves a complex
sequence of interlinked actors and events that isolate a boy from his family safety net and
disempower him. The process may begin with sexual abuse in the home, as noted by
researchers in Sri Lanka. 72 The boy’s vulnerability is often exacerbated by entry into
unprotected labour situations and by family separation and migration. 73 In some cases,
offenders sexually exploit boys who are addicted to tobacco or hashish, who readily exchange
sex for drugs or money. 74 Many boys are forced through violence to have sex in exchange for
money by gang members, older boys or local community members. 75 Through a chain of
increasingly disempowering events, boys find themselves captive in prostitution, as if in an
invisible prison, maintained through fear, force, social stigma, uneven power relationships,
lack of options and dependency. 76
Many enter prostitution through the influence of peers or friends, particularly boys separated
from their families who are living on the street or working in exploitative labour conditions.
These boys may feel forced by a lack of alternatives or the desire to have a ready source of
income. Often, prostitution is seen as an income-generation option that pays more than other
work, and with seemingly minimal dangers. 77 In the case of sexual exploitation by foreign
perpetrators, boys may be provided food, shelter, clothing and education as well as money for
themselves and their families, all in exchange for sex. Families themselves may encourage
boys to enter such situations for the financial benefit of both the boy and the family. 78
Boys exploited through prostitution with other males, particularly boys who manifest
feminine characteristics, may do so because social discrimination deprives them of other
means of employment. 79 However, such exploitation (as with boys living on the street) often
72 International Labour Organization/International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour
(Amarasinghe, S.), 2002, ‘Sri Lanka: The commercial sexual exploitation of children: A rapid assessment’.
73 ECPAT International and INCIDIN Bangladesh, 2006, ‘The boys and the bullies: A situational analysis report
on prostitution of boys in Bangladesh’.
74 ECPAT International (Akula, S.L.), 2006, ‘Situational analysis report on the prostitution of boys in India
(Hyderabad)’; ECPAT International and Pakistan Paediatric Association, 2006, ‘Situational analysis report on
prostitution of boys in Pakistan (Lahore and Peshawar)’.
75 International Labour Organization/International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (G. Subedi),
2002, ‘Trafficking and sexual abuse among street children in Kathmandu’; ECPAT International and INCIDIN
Bangladesh, 2006, ‘The boys and the bullies: A situational analysis report on prostitution of boys in
Bangladesh’; ECPAT International and Pakistan Paediatric Association, 2006, ‘Situational analysis report on
prostitution of boys in Pakistan (Lahore and Peshawar)’.
76 ECPAT International and INCIDIN Bangladesh, 2006, ‘The boys and the bullies: A situational analysis report
on prostitution of boys in Bangladesh’.
77 ECPAT International and Pakistan Paediatric Association, 2006, ‘Situational analysis report on prostitution of
boys in Pakistan (Lahore and Peshawar)’.
78 International Labour Organization/International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour
(Amarasinghe, S. 2002, ‘Sri Lanka: The commercial sexual exploitation of children: A rapid assessment’;
Personal correspondence with Jeremy Southon, CWS Nepal.
79 ECPAT International (Akula, S.L.), 2006, ‘Situational analysis report on the prostitution of boys in India
(Hyderabad)’.
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