Sex trafficking in Vietnam

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Vietnamese citizens and foreign victims are sex trafficked into and out of the Provinces of Vietnam. They are raped and physically and psychologically harmed in brothels, businesses, homes, hotel rooms, and other locations within these administrative divisions. Mapa de Vietnam.png
Vietnamese citizens and foreign victims are sex trafficked into and out of the Provinces of Vietnam. They are raped and physically and psychologically harmed in brothels, businesses, homes, hotel rooms, and other locations within these administrative divisions.

Sex trafficking in Vietnam is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation and slavery that occurs in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Vietnam is a source and, to a lesser extent, destination country for sexually trafficked persons. [1]

Contents

Sex trafficking victims in the country are from all ethnic groups in Vietnam and foreigners. Vietnamese citizens, primarily women and girls, have been sex trafficked into other countries in Asia and different continents. [2] [3] They are forced into prostitution, marriages, and or pregnancies. [4] [5] Victims are threatened [5] [6] [7] [8] and physically and psychologically harmed. [9] They contract sexually transmitted diseases from rapes, and abuse [10] [11] [2] and malnutrition are common. Some women and girls are tortured and or murdered.

Sex trafficking and exploitation have pervaded all levels of Vietnamese society. Male and female perpetrators in Vietnam come from a wide range of backgrounds and a number are members of or facilitated by organized crime syndicates and gangs. [4] [5] [12] Some government officials, troops, and police, as well as foreigners, have been complicit in sex trafficking in Vietnam.

The extent of sex trafficking in Vietnam is unknown because of the lack of data, the underground nature of sex trafficking crimes, inadequate victim identification procedures, and other elements. [13] The enforcement of sex trafficking laws and investigating and prosecuting of cases have been hindered by corruption, apathy, border management problems, lack of cooperation among sectors, ignorance of anti-trafficking law, and more. [14] [13] Globalization and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’(ASEAN) shift towards a formal community with freer movement of trade and capital may lead to an increase sex trafficking. [15] [16]

History

Cantonese outlaw bandit pirates in the Guangdong maritime frontier with Vietnam in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries frequently kidnapped and raped Vietnamese women and Vietnamese boys. [17]

Vietnamese women and girls were mass trafficked from Vietnam to China during French colonial rule by Chinese and Vietnamese pirates and agencies. French Captain Louis de Grandmaison claimed that these Vietnamese women did not want to go back to Vietnam and they had families in China and were better off in China. Vietnamese women were in demand because of a lower number of Chinese women available in China and along the borderlands of China there were many Chinese men who had no women and needed Vietnamese women. Vietnamese women in the Red River delta were taken to China by Chinese recruitment agencies as well as Vietnamese women who were kidnapped from villages which were raided by Vietnamese and Chinese pirates. The Vietnamese women became wives, prostitutes, or slaves. [18] [19]

Vietnamese women were viewed in China as "inured to hardship, resigned to their fate, and in addition of very gentle character" so they were wanted as concubines and servants in China and the massive traffick of Tongkinese (North Vietnamese) women to China started in 1875. There was massive demand for Vietnamese women in China. [20] Southern Chinese ports were the destination of the children and women who were kidnapped by Chinese pirates from the area around Haiphong in Vietnam. [21] Children and pretty women were taken by the pirates in their raids on Vietnamese villages. [22] A major center for human trafficking of the slaves was Hai Phong. The Vietnamese children and women were kidnapped and brought to China to become slaves by both Chinese and Vietnamese pirates. [23]

Mung, Meo, Thai, and Nung minority women in Tonkin's mountains were kidnapped by Vietnamese pirates and Chinese pirates to bring to China. The anti-French Can Vuong rebels were the source of the Vietnamese bandits while former Taiping rebels were the source of the Chinese rebels. These Vietnamese and Chinese pirates fought against the French colonial military and ambushed French troops, receiving help from regular Chinese soldiers to fight against the French. [24] Chinese and Nung pirates fought against Meo. [25] The T'ai hated the Viet Minh and fought against them in 1947. [26] Nung were said to be fit for banditry and piracy. [27]

Brothels in Bangkok bought kidnapped Vietnamese women fleeing South Vietnam after the Vietnam war who were taken by pirates. [28]

Victims

Vietnamese women and girls are sex trafficked into China, [29] [30] [10] Hong Kong, [31] Cambodia, [15] Malaysia, [32] [33] the Philippines, Taiwan, [8] [34] South Korea [35] and other nations. They are forced into prostitution or marriages, as well as unfree labour in homes and on farms. [4] [5] A number of women are raped so they become pregnant and are forced to be surrogates. [4] Some women and girls have been trafficked to groups of men, who are poor and pool their money together to buy one wife. [36] Forced prostitutes are raped in brothels, massage parlors, karaoke bars, and other establishments. [30] They are kept under strict surveillance and it is not uncommon for them to be guarded and/or tied or locked up. [11] A number of victims are drugged. [37] [9]

Minorities and people in poverty with little education and awareness of trafficking, as well as children, [38] are vulnerable to sex trafficking. [4] [10] [5] [30] [39]

Victims face social stigma after escaping or being rescued. Some are reluctant to report traffickers to the local authorities because they fear reprisal from the criminals. [40]

Vietnamese victims have been sex trafficked to businesses catering to people seeing the Southeast Asian Games and other sporting events. [41]

Perpetrators

The perpetrators are often members of or collude with organized criminal groups. [4] [5] Some perpetrators are government officials, military officers or enlisted men, or police. Loan sharks have been involved in sex trafficking as well and take advantage of debt bondage to control their victims. [40] The traffickers are sometimes the victims' family members or friends. Perpetrators are motivated by monetary incentives. [36] A number of perpetrators are coerced victims of trafficking themselves. [30]

Perpetrators use the internet [42] for cybersex trafficking crimes and the production and sale of child pornography. They also use cryptocurrencies to help hide their identity. [43]

Some sex traffickers pose as police officers to gain victims' trust. [44] [45] [30] Traffickers use chat sites and social networks such as Facebook and Zalo, a popular Vietnamese messaging app. [30] [46] Traffickers threaten victims' families to ensure submission.

Government response problems

The government had inadequate re-integration services, therapeutic support, legal and financial assistance, and education for victims. Limited protections are available for women and girls returned to their homes. [40]

Non-governmental organizations

Blue Dragon Children's Foundation rescues and restores sex trafficked victims in the country. [9] [46] It is supported by the United Nations Trust Fund for Victims of Human Trafficking. [47]

Pacific Links Foundation is an organization working to end sex trafficking in Vietnam through education and economic empowerment. [36]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sexual slavery</span> Slavery with the intention of using the slaves for sex

Sexual slavery and sexual exploitation is an attachment of any ownership right over one or more people with the intent of coercing or otherwise forcing them to engage in sexual activities. This includes forced labor that results in sexual activity, forced marriage and sex trafficking, such as the sexual trafficking of children.

In 2008, Taiwan was primarily a destination for men, women, and children trafficked for the purposes of forced labor and sexual exploitation. It is also a source of women trafficked to Japan, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Women and girls from the People's Republic of China (P.R.C.) and Southeast Asian countries were trafficked to Taiwan through fraudulent marriages, deceptive employment offers, and illegal smuggling for sexual exploitation and forced labor. Many trafficking victims were workers from rural areas of Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines, employed through recruitment agencies and brokers to perform low skilled work in Taiwan’s construction, fishing, and manufacturing industries, or to work as domestic servants. Such workers were often charged high job placement and service fees, up to $14,000, resulting in substantial debt that labor brokers or employers use as a tool for involuntary servitude. Many foreign workers remained vulnerable to trafficking because legal protections, oversight by authorities and enforcement efforts were inadequate.

In 2008 Vietnam was primarily a source country for women and children trafficked for commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. Women and children were trafficked to the People’s Republic of China (P.R.C), Cambodia, Thailand, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Macau for sexual exploitation. Vietnamese women were trafficked to the P.R.C., Taiwan, and the Republic of Korea via fraudulent or misrepresented marriages for commercial exploitation or forced labor. Vietnam was also a source country for men and women who migrate willingly and legally for work in the construction, fishing, or manufacturing sectors in Malaysia, Taiwan, P.R.C., Thailand, and the Middle East but subsequently face conditions of forced labor or debt bondage. Vietnam was a destination country for Cambodian children trafficked to urban centers for forced labor or commercial sexual exploitation. The country had an internal trafficking problem with women and children from rural areas trafficked to urban centers for commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. Vietnam was increasingly a destination for child sex tourism, with perpetrators from Japan, the Republic of Korea, the P.R.C., Taiwan, the UK, Australia, Europe, and the U.S. In 2007, an Australian non-governmental organization (NGO) uncovered 80 cases of commercial sexual exploitation of children by foreign tourists in the Sa Pa tourist area of Vietnam alone.

Prostitution in Cambodia is illegal, but prevalent. A 2008 Cambodian Law on Suppression of Human Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation has proven controversial, with international concerns regarding human rights abuses resulting from it, such as outlined in the 2010 Human Rights Watch report.

Sex trafficking in Thailand is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation and slavery that occurs in the Kingdom of Thailand. Thailand is a country of origin, destination, and transit for sex trafficking. The sexual exploitation of children in Thailand is a problem. In Thailand, close to 40,000 children under the age of 16 are believed to be in the sex trade, working in clubs, bars, and brothels.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human trafficking in China</span>

China is a main source and also a significant transit and destination country for men, women, and children who are subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced labour and forced prostitution. Women and children from China are trafficked to Africa, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, and North America, predominantly Taiwan, Thailand, Malaysia, and Japan for commercial sexual exploitation and forced labour. Women and children from Myanmar, Vietnam, Mongolia, former USSR, North Korea, Romania, Indonesia, Nepal, Pakistan, and Ghana are trafficked to China for commercial sexual exploitation and forced labour.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Women in Vietnam</span>

The role of women in Vietnam was subject to many changes throughout the history of Vietnam. They have taken on varying roles in society, and the country has seen a number of advances in women's rights, such as an increase in female representation in government, as well as the creation of the Vietnam Women's Union in 1930.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human trafficking in Texas</span>

Human trafficking in Texas is the illegal trade of human beings as it occurs in the state of Texas. It is a modern-day form of slavery and usually involves commercial sexual exploitation or forced labor, both domestic and agricultural.

Sex trafficking in China is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation and slavery that occurs in the People's Republic of China. It is a country of origin, destination, and transit for sexually trafficked persons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sexual slavery in China</span>

Sexual slavery in China is sexual exploitation and slavery that occurs in the People's Republic of China.

Sex trafficking in Myanmar is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation and slavery that occurs in the Republic of the Union of Myanmar. Myanmar is primarily a source and transit country for sexually trafficked persons.

Sex trafficking in Laos is human trafficking for sexual exploitation and slavery that occurs in the Lao People's Democratic Republic. Laos is primarily an origin country for sexually trafficked persons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sex trafficking in Cambodia</span>

Sex trafficking in Cambodia is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation and slavery that occurs in the Kingdom of Cambodia. Cambodia is a country of origin, destination and transit for sex trafficked persons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sex trafficking in Indonesia</span> Indonesian sex trafficking

Sex trafficking in Indonesia is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation and slavery that occurs in Republic of Indonesia. Indonesia is a country of origin, destination, and transit for sex trafficking.

Sex trafficking in the Philippines is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation and slavery that occurs in the Republic of the Philippines. The Philippines is a country of origin and, to a lesser extent, a destination and transit for sexually trafficked persons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sex trafficking in Macau</span>

Sex trafficking in Macau is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation and slavery that occurs in the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China. Macau is predominantly a destination country for sexually trafficked persons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sex trafficking in Mongolia</span>

Sex trafficking in Mongolia is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation and slavery that occurs in the country. Mongolia is a source, transit and destination country for sexually trafficked persons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sex trafficking in Kazakhstan</span>

Sex trafficking in Kazakhstan is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation and slavery that occurs in the Republic of Kazakhstan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sex trafficking in Brunei</span>

Sex trafficking in Brunei is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation and slavery that occurs in the country.

Cybersex trafficking, live streaming sexual abuse, webcam sex tourism/abuse or ICTs -facilitated sexual exploitation is a cybercrime involving sex trafficking and the live streaming of coerced sexual acts and/or rape on webcam.

References

  1. ↑ "VIET NAM - UN ACT". UN-ACT. Archived from the original on 2018-06-01.
  2. 1 2 "Vietnamese Women Fall Prey to Sex Racket". Radio Free Asia. March 8, 2013.
  3. ↑ "Precarious journeys of Vietnamese children trafficked to Europe". Anti-slavery International. March 7, 2019.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Women, children and babies: human trafficking to China is on the rise". Asia News. July 11, 2019.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Vietnam's Human Trafficking Problem Is Too Big to Ignore". The Diplomat. November 8, 2019.
  6. ↑ "Raped, beaten and sold in China: Vietnam's kidnapped young brides". Channel News Asia. August 3, 2019.
  7. ↑ "Vietnamese teen's escape from the China trafficking trade that sold her mother". ABC News. September 18, 2018.
  8. 1 2 "Sex trafficking ring busted, Vietnamese women rescued". Focus Taiwan. November 18, 2019.
  9. 1 2 3 "Sold, raped, enslaved: Human trafficking victims shared stories in 2019". VnExpress. December 24, 2019.
  10. 1 2 3 "Vietnam's "modern sex slaves" sold in China as prostitutes or brides". Asia News. February 3, 2015.
  11. 1 2 "Vietnamese Trafficking Victim Reveals Heartbreaking Ordeal". VOA News. September 24, 2015.
  12. ↑ "Dangerous journeys: tackling Vietnamese trafficking". Anti-slavery International. September 5, 2018.
  13. 1 2 "Human trafficking remains a headache in Vietnam and Southeast Asia". Hanoi Times. June 22, 2018.
  14. ↑ "Human trafficking on rise in Vietnam, says government". Anadolu Agency. July 1, 2017.
  15. 1 2 "Trafficking of Vietnamese women for sex and marriage expands across region: expert". Reuters. May 18, 2016.
  16. ↑ "Trafficking of Vietnamese women for sex and marriage expands across region - expert". Thomson Reuters Foundation News. May 18, 2016.
  17. ↑ ANTONY, ROBERT J. (2014). "Violence and Predation on the Sino-Vietnamese Maritime Frontier, 1450–1850". Asia Major. 27 (2): 104. JSTOR   44740552 . Retrieved 16 April 2021.
  18. ↑ Micheline Lessard (24 April 2015). Human Trafficking in Colonial Vietnam. Routledge. pp. 70–. ISBN   978-1-317-53622-2.
  19. ↑ Micheline Lessard (24 April 2015). Human Trafficking in Colonial Vietnam. Routledge. pp. 144–. ISBN   978-1-317-53622-2.
  20. ↑ Alain Gerard Marsot (1 January 1993). The Chinese Community in Vietnam Under the French. EmText. p. 43. ISBN   978-0-7734-1941-4.
  21. ↑ Douglas Porch (2010). The French Foreign Legion: A Complete History of the Legendary Fighting Force. Skyhorse Pub. pp. 227–. ISBN   978-1-61608-068-6.
  22. ↑ Cao Dương Phạm (1 January 1985). Vietnamese Peasants Under French Domination, 1861-1945. Center for South and Southeast Asia Studies, University of California. p. 5. ISBN   978-0-8191-4715-8.
  23. ↑ K. W. Taylor (9 May 2013). A History of the Vietnamese. Cambridge University Press. pp. 461–. ISBN   978-0-521-87586-8.
  24. ↑ Douglas Porch (11 July 2013). Counterinsurgency: Exposing the Myths of the New Way of War. Cambridge University Press. pp. 52–. ISBN   978-1-107-02738-1.
  25. ↑ John Colvin (1996). Volcano Under Snow: Vo Nguyen Giap. Quartet Books. p. 76. ISBN   978-0-7043-7100-2.
  26. ↑ John Colvin (1996). Volcano Under Snow: Vo Nguyen Giap. Quartet Books. p. 64. ISBN   978-0-7043-7100-2.
  27. ↑ Maurice Abadie (1 January 2001). Minorities of the Sino-Vietnamese Borderland: With Special Reference to Thai Tribes. White Lotus Press. p. 106. ISBN   978-974-7534-57-3.
  28. ↑ International Maritime Bureau of the ICC.; Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (1989). Piracy at sea. ICC Pub. p. 88. ISBN   978-92-842-1078-7.
  29. ↑ "Over 5 pct of Vietnamese children have trafficking-related experiences: report". VNExpress. August 15, 2019.
  30. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "China is main destination for Vietnamese trafficking victims: official". VnExpress. August 24, 2018.
  31. ↑ "New ways to help Hong Kong's human trafficking victims". CN Monitor. October 22, 2015.
  32. ↑ "Sex trafficking in Vietnam". Doy News.
  33. ↑ "136 Vietnamese women rescued from forced prostitution in Kuala Lumpur". Thanhnien News. January 4, 2015. Archived from the original on January 7, 2015.
  34. ↑ "Taiwan News: 7 Human Trafficking Suspects Arrested in Missing Vietnamese Case". The News Lens. January 22, 2019.
  35. ↑ "6 arrested, including 2 foreigners, for selling 147 Vietnamese women to S.Korea, China". Thanhnien News. October 26, 2014.[ dead link ]
  36. 1 2 3 "Pacific Links Foundation: The Battle Against Human Trafficking". Vietcetera. August 7, 2017.
  37. ↑ "Vietnamese woman trafficked to China returns home after 22 years". VnExpress. July 4, 2019.
  38. ↑ "Vietnamese girls smuggled into China and sold as child brides". CNN. April 19, 2016.
  39. ↑ "4 arrested for forcing women into sex ring in northern Vietnam". Thanhnien News. May 25, 2016. Archived from the original on May 26, 2016.
  40. 1 2 3 "Vietnam's Human Trafficking Problem Is Too Big to Ignore". The Diplomat. November 8, 2019.
  41. ↑ "SEA Games: foreign tourist surge to Philippines sees rising risk of sex trafficking". South China Morning Post. December 10, 2019.
  42. ↑ "How the internet fuels sexual exploitation and forced labour in Asia". South China Morning Post. May 2, 2019.
  43. ↑ "How the internet fuels sexual exploitation and forced labour in Asia". South China Morning Post. May 2, 2019.
  44. ↑ "How the internet fuels sexual exploitation and forced labour in Asia". South China Morning Post. May 2, 2019.
  45. ↑ "80 percent of Vietnamese human trafficking victims end up in China". VnExpress International. August 1, 2019.
  46. 1 2 "Vietnam wakes up to its human trafficking problem". The New Humanitarian. September 2, 2016.
  47. ↑ "Our Funded Projects Around the World". United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.
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