Submitted by crinadmin on
ECPAT International in collaboration with its partner organizations, has conducted situational analysis studies on prostitution of boys in Bangladesh, India and Pakistan. These studies show that the magnitude of prostitution of boys is much bigger than generally speculated and boys are sexually exploited at very young age. A big number of boys living and working on the street, those who have migrated to cities and children working in exploitative environments or lacking family support system are highly vulnerable to commercial sexual exploitation. Sexual eexploiters of boys are mostly local men and also some women. The research reports were released in a regional consultation in Dhaka, Bangladesh (8-9 June 2006).
Emphasizing the need for immediate actions to address the issue of prostitution of boys, Research Advisor, Mr Anil Raghuvanshi said that the issue has not been addressed properly. Mr Raghuvanshi, Deputy Director of ECPAT International and the Focal Person for South Asia says, “There is a widespread misconception about the issue of prostitution of boys as it is wrongly viewed as an issue of homosexuality. As a result, prostitution of boys is largely unreported, under-reported or misreported.” These studies indicate that the magnitude of the problem is much bigger than generally speculated and boys are sexually exploited at very young age. A big number of boys living and working on the street or those who have migrated to cities and children working in exploitative environments or lacking family support system are highly vulnerable to commercial sexual exploitation.
The research has also highlighted that boys are also be used as sexual objects and targeted by exploiters and that exploitation of boys is not committed solely by homosexual men. Mr AKM Masud Ali, Executive Director of INCIDIN Bangladesh and one of the researchers of the Bangladesh research said that cases of prostitution of boys in general is not a new phenomenon and has been manifested in different ways. Mr Ali says, “The research in Bangladesh shows that a large number of boys living on the street are victims of sexual exploitation. Parks, streets, markets, railway/bus terminals, hotels, restaurants, religious places, etc are the main contact points for sexual exploitation.
These studies throw light on how stereo-typed gender constructions have created myths about male roles and led to inadequate protection of boy children in relation to sexual exploitation. Presenting the research findings, Dr Tufail Muhammad Khan of Pakistan Pediatric Association and the team leader of the Pakistan research said, “The North-Western Pakistan has a practice of keeping boys as kept for sexual gratification by older men, which is called bachchabazi.” Gender segregation is also shown to be a major factor affecting the protection of children as closed societies restrict adult male-female relationship creating risks for boys and girls. “Children in such societies appear to become more vulnerable as they can be easily accessed and targeted by the exploiters crossing the gender barrier, while the exploitation may remain invisible,” Dr Khan added.
The physical, psychological and social harm experienced by boys documented in these reports dispels any notion that the sexual exploitation of boys is non-existent.