HOW DOES THE REST OF THE WORLD FEEL?

Global perspective

As many as 184 countries with Interpol-members have no laws regarding child pornography. Other countries have laws that are insufficient. The International Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (ICMEC) is a global movement that helps protect children from sexual predators. A study done by the ICMEC has shown “1 in 5 girls and 1 in 10 boys are sexually exploited before they reach adulthood. Less than 35% of those child sexual assaults are reported to authorities.” (Claburn). According to ICMEC only five countries in the world have adequate laws to help prevent child pornography. These countries are Australia, Belgium, France, South Africa, and the United States. The Internet Watch Foundation, based in the United Kingdom, reports there has been a 1500% increase in the number of child pornography images since 1997. ICMEC determined the United States has the most viewers of child pornography but they are buying the porn through off-shore accounts.

In certain countries around the world children are forced to prostitute themselves with tourists so that their family can eat. “On this trip, I've had sex with a 14 year-old girl in Mexico and a 15 year-old in Colombia. I'm helping them financially. If they don't have sex with me, they may not have enough food. If someone has a problem with me doing this, let UNICEF feed them” (CEOS) this was said by a retired American school teacher. Child sex tourists are people who travel to different countries to have sex with children. Child sex tourism is most common in Asian countries like Thailand and Indonesia. The countries with the highest rate of child sex tourism are states with the highest rate of poverty. “Studies indicate that child prostitutes serve between two and thirty clients per week, leading to a shocking estimated base of anywhere between 100 to 1500 clients per year, per child” (CEOS). Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) has estimated that more than one million children around the world are drawn into sex tourism every year.

Crimes done to children doesn't just happen in the United States, but all over the world.

Citations

Claburn, Thomas. "Study: Child Porn Isn't Illegal In Most Countries." InformationWeek. UBM TechWeb, 06 Apr. 2006. Web. 20 Nov. 2011. <http://www.informationweek.com/news/184429489>.

"Sex Tourism." Welcome to the United States Department of Justice. Web. 20 Nov. 2011. <http://www.justice.gov/criminal/ceos/sextour.html>.

ICMEC. "Missing Children Website." National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Web. 20 Nov. 2011. <http://www.icmec.org/missingkids/servlet/PageServlet?LanguageCountry=en_X1>.