90 percent of Cambodia prostitutes sold by parents

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30 August 2010
The Underground

A Christian missionary said recently that 90 percent of prostitutes in Cambodia are sold into this industry by their parents.

Ruth Elliott, a British missionary and head of Daughters of Cambodia, said the young girls feel a need to stay in the sex trade to support their families. Elliott first arrived in Cambodia in 2004, and formed Daughters of Cambodia, which has helped sex trafficking victims for six years, CBN News said.

Elliott says, “They live in the pit of hell. It’s the truth. And they experience horrendous trauma when they come out.” Elliott said God called her to this work when she was only 14 years old, saying, “[God] wanted me to go into the places that were worst and to facilitate healing the broken-hearted and setting the captives free,” CBN News said.

Elliott does her work by entering Cambodia’s brothels and asking the sex victims if they want to change their lives. If they are amenable, she invites them to her day-center which is located within the area, CBN News said.

She said change is possible when the girls learn new ways to earn a living. “We had to start small businesses, which are fair trade businesses, in order for the girls to exit the sex industry. For without another job, it is just impossible for them to leave,” CBN News said.

The girls are also taught important lessons for a healthy domestic life, noting, “Things like domestic violence prevention, conflict resolution skills, budgeting skills, this kind of thing. [Also] drug prevention,” CBN News said.

Daughters of Cambodia can have up to 60 girls at a time per program, who learn new skills to pay for food, rent and other necessities by selling products they make such as fashion accessories, clothes and furnishings locally and for export, CBN News said.

The emotional trauma from having been in the sex industry is also addressed. As a psychologist, Elliott counsels victims and trains counselors for this growing work. She also engages in evangelization, CBN News said.

Her ministry includes brothel owners and pimps noting, “We want everyone in the sex industry to come to our church because we believe in the power of Jesus to change everyone’s life,” CBN News said.

But the girls easily accept Jesus she says, noting, “They have never in their lives experienced love — unconditional love and acceptance. And many of them become Christians as a result of this,” CBN News said.

While the work can be dangerous, Elliott sees God’s protection and faithfulness in that they have never had any problems noting, “I believe the grace of God is on us,” CBN said.

On their website, Daughters of Cambodia posted one girl’s story. She was left by her parents to work as a maid in a wealthy Cambodian family home at the age of 14, but was not paid her salary and was fed twice daily. The husband made sexual advances, forcing her to run away, the website said.

Her parents were working in Thailand so she was left in the streets. A girl she met got her a job in a Karaoke bar, which turned out to be a brothel. In this way, she was coerced into prostitution, the website said.

The girl said, “I had little choice about who I had to have sex with because they were wealthy or threatened me… Customers often made derogatory comments to me; they did not care if I was crying… There was nobody willing to help me and I cried alone every night…I started to think I was crazy. I was often so depressed; I felt I had no worth or value and my life was cheap. I cannot describe the pain,” the website said.

At Daughters she said, “I find comfort and strength, the staff value me, I have close friends and I know many people here love me and care about me. And I can talk to people here if I feel bad. I feel loved,” the website said.