Prostitution is commonly seen as a distasteful practice, a profession that women choose. Think of a child soliciting sex for money. No child wants sex; they are forced into it. Child prostitution is no small issue. It influences all of us. We must put an end to this foul practice.

A look into the lives of these prostitutes, mostly young girls but also boys, is essential in beginning to understand why this must be put to an end, as the practice is horrendous and mainstream, particularly in Cambodia, the shanty town of Svay Pak. Many children are forced into the industry of sex workers, either by being kidnapped, or even sold by their own parents. Poverty is a great issue, seeing as sex can be sold for as little as three dollars a session. These girls have no respect for themselves, and if they did, it disappeared once their virginity was taken. They are sold again and again, several times a day with no days off. So not only is the profession itself is evil, but the working conditions are horrendous. Imagine children having sex, children that are close to you working with strange men each day with unprotected sex. Not only that, but the girls that try to run away are locked in a cage, starved and beaten. Is this how we want to present ourselves to the world? That we encourage this illegal event to take place? There are American men traveling to Cambodia simply for sex, Cambodian officials encourage this practice to continue because it is a source of income and revenue for the company. From http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/920000/images/_921781_prostitute.jpg Accessed 10/20/08 BBC.com. I found this powerful image: This image fully displays how children, or these Cambodian children become shells of what they once were once their virginity is taken. Re entering into the mainstream society, these girls are seen as dirty creatures that don't respect themselves. They don't respect themselves because they were willing participants, but because they were forced. Most don't have families to return to, and others don't have Visas, or the means to return to their mother country. They are stuck in this cycle of rape and torture. Imagine a young child in your life, as young as six years old, giving "yum yum" to grown men? Six year olds are too young for "boom boom" sex, but not too young for oral sex. Disgusting. Virgins are trapped in cages for long periods of time until the highest bidder scores her first time. Some of the younger girls get surgical procedures done to repair their torn hymen, so that they can be sold for a higher price a second or third time.

Much is being done to help end child prostitution, but it is far from being solved. There are many organizations built to help the situation, humantrafficking.org, the salvation army, U.S Department of Justice among others.
News stations help to spread the word, as well as thecode.org, which recruits tourism industries worldwide to spread awareness, including the punishment of customers of the practice. Meaning, the men from the modern day world going specifically to Cambodia for prostitution who are already aware of it's illegality, but see it's enforcement loosely, if not regulated at all,in Cambodia, yet see that in many countries around the world, it is a crime against humanity and warrants 5 years or above, sometimes 17 years in prison.
We see children being abused, growing into abused men and women, yet many do little to change that. Those need to keep in mind that it is not only Cambodian men that solicit, but also American, European, and men from other parts of the world that partake in prostitution as customers.
If we leave this practice as is, who are we allowing into our society? Allowing these predators to exist near our children without due punishment, to lead their lives as respectful citizens, though secretly child rapists?
It is despicable in the least, when not even taking into account the lives of the children being bought and sold. Who deserves that, especially in the very beginning of life? Nobody. In today's modern world, child pornography is seen as terrible, despicable, and disgusting. There are many movements to discourage such actions from taking place, as education for children and legal reinforcement for this crime against children and how we perceive ourselves in humanity. In H.R. 1365 Freedom from Sexual Trafficking Act of 1999, Markup before the subcommittee on international relations house of representatives, on August 4, 1999 serial number 106-62, states "In order to deter international sexual trafficking and to bring its perpetrators to justice, nations including the United States must recognize that sexual trafficking is a grave offense...and must act on this recognition by prescribing appropriate punishment ...by giving the highest priority to its investigation and prosecution..."(pp.13 Section 6 line 13) The overall mentality of what needs to be done is clear, that it must be severely discouraged, and thus stopped.
However, another view point are from those who use the prostitutes. These people remain anonymous, as it is still a crime, even in Cambodia to partake in such actions, although it is pretty much ignored as the police are corrupt and consistantly paid off. In Cambodia shuts down red-light district. Thursday, 23 Janurary, 2003.BBC. Friday, 10 October 2008 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/2686963.stm>, it is mentioned that many men pay top dollar to fornicate with a virgin, believing that it will cure them of AIDs, no doubt acquired from previous interactions with prostitutes, as the spread of AIDs is becoming a pertinent issue in Cambodia and other countries with the strong presence of brothels. This speaks of not only the stupidity of the customers, but also the hopelessness of the situation speaking to the young women shanghied by deceit to work.
Child pornography is a subject which renders people capable of one of two radical views, for or opposed. The number for child prositution is slowly dwindling, but it is not nearly enough as thousands of children are subject to it ranging from Russia to Asia and beyond.