In the north of Thailand, more than half a million hill-tribe people
and economic migrants live in the hills that border Myanmar and Laos.
Extreme poverty and unemployment drive many of the ethnic minorities
to Chiangmai, the largest urban center in the north.
It's a culturally diverse city, set amongst some of the highest mountains
in the country, and every year thousands of tourists visit the region.
At dusk, in the capital's popular night bazaar‚ the hill-tribe vendors mix
with the local merchants selling their goods and produce.
Many of the young arrivals are uneducated and desperate for work,
making them vulnerable to exploitation.
On the edge of the night market, in a strip of small bars it's a slow evening,
as a group of hill-tribe teenagers gather to mingle with the foreign men.
The area is a popular location for tourists and expats to meet
the young crowd, and arrange to have sex with them.
Some of the teens are new to the illicit sex trade. Others, like the 16-year-old
Akha hilltribe teenager we'll call Tom, were coerced into the business
much earlier in life.
When I was 12 I started to sit around Thapae Gate area,
and foreigners started to come and ask me to come to their house.
And go on trips with them. And they would molest me.
And go on trips with them. And they would molest me.¬†¬†
And after they finish, they give me 2 or 300 Baht (U.S.$6-9).
And I would try to convince myself that it is okay.
And after they finish, they give me money. And then I would leave them.
With more than a million stateless or migrant children in the country, Tom
is just one of many young people being manipulated into the sex trade,
either through a Thai middle-man or directly in contact with foreigners.
At Regiment Five headquarters in Chiangmai, Police Colonel Apichart Hattasin
has a backlog of cases involving sex tourists and expats
who are suspected of having sex with minors.
Working with international enforcement agencies, Hattisin is in the midst
of several cases that he hopes will lead to convictions. By sharing a network
of data, Thai police hope to reduce child prostitution and exploitation,
as well as assist foreign investigators to catch suspects using extraterritorial
laws. But as foreigners often know, it's hard to prosecute these cases
as crimes against children.
The biggest problem with the target kids is they have no identification.
They are stateless, no birth certificate. It is so difficult to know their age.
This underscores the issues that make these kids so vulnerable to sex crimes.
Kids who are immigrants or have no ID have a problem to find work.
They feel that they are low-class and have no opportunity.
And they will turn to the high-risk group and become a victim.
The vicious cycle of poverty, combined with prejudice and contempt
from the local population, keeps many hill-tribe and economic migrants
trapped in a high-risk existence.
When I was 6 I begged for money on the Chiangrai bridge with my mom.
We had no food to eat so we had to borrow money from others.
I feel sorry for myself because it is difficult for me to make money.
They look down on me. I have no ID so I can't go to work with anybody.
I feel sad. Sometimes I think this is all I can do for the rest of my life.
For my future I would like to have a family like other people.
I want to have money and a job. Have a girlfriend like everyone else.
For fear of being arrested and deported, Tom's Burmese parents
remain near the border in a migrant community.
So for moral support, Tom comes to the Children Development Foundation,
a community center that provides food and shelter, and teaches survival skills.
Here, Tom and other kids learn how to protect themselves when having sex
with a customer under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
They are good to me at the center and take care of me, teach me how to read.
And I am interested to learn more.
They are like my father. I can come here any time. Come to sleep and eat.
They don‚Äôt stop me.¬†They treat me well. ‚Äú
I can come here any time. Come to sleep and eat.
The center is the closest thing to home that Tom has,
but soon he‚Äôs back on the streets, and facing an uncertain future in a ‚Äúhigh risk‚Äù lifestyle.