Nicholas D. Kristof is a columnist for New York Times and has written several articles about human trafficking. I found “Girls for Sale” rather interesting because it was not just an article about sex slavery, but an undercover interview with two girls from Poipet.Poipet, located in northwestern Cambodia, is known as one the wildest places where girls are bought and sold. Many of the alleys are lined with brothels, where girls grab at any man walking by (Kristof, 2004). Since Kristof would not be able to have a conversation with any of the girls, he had to act like a customer. It was $8-a-night at Phnom Pich Guest House, where a female pimp brought Srey Neth to his room.
Srey Neth said that she was 18 years old (but appeared to look younger) and was not controlled to work at the guesthouse. But she soon told him she was sold by one of her female cousins. When asked if she thought about escaping, she said that girls get beat up for trying. And when Kristof asked her why not ask the police for help, she told him that they get bribes from the brothel owners and sometimes even have sex with the girls.
After he interviewed her, he was walking down the street when another girl, Srey Mom, grabbed at him. He paid $8 for a room and $2.50 to have her for the evening, whereas Srey Neth was $10 because of her lighter complexion.
To free the girls, someone would have to pay off their debts and the price of the girl. Srey Neth was worth $150.
No one should be bought and sold, nor should they have to do things against their will. It’s alarming that a girl can be free for $150, yet she cannot make enough to buy her own freedom. And to have sex with a girl can be as low as $2.50 –which is disturbing! Many of these girls die from AIDs by the time they reach their 20s. With this knowledge, it's time to do something about these brothels. I applaud Kristof for doing what he did to write this article.
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/17/opinion/girls-for-sale.html
Picture of Nicholas D. Kristof:
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/opinion/editorialsandoped/oped/columnists/nicholasdkristof/index.html
Wow, that is shocking that having sex with one of these poor girls costs less than buying a bag of chips. I wonder how America can help this problem or if it is something that will just always be around.
ReplyDeleteWOW, that's alarming? So is the price based on skin complexion? I think the worst part is how they die from AIDS at such a young age. The worst part is once they get invovle in prostitution there is no way out. You're right, it's time to do something about this.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very interesting blog post. Kristof's interview with these girls and the information gained from them is very interesting. You make a good point that though these girls can be free for only $150, less than the cost of a Wii, they are not able to make enough money to buy their freedom. Also, the fact that many of these girls will die from AIDS when they reach their 20's is quite heartbreaking.
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