Editing Sex tourism (section)

== Child sex tourism ==
{{Main|Child sex tourism}}

Some sex tourists travel in order to engage in sex with children. While it is criminal in most countries, this industry is believed to involve as many as 2 million children around the world.<ref>{{cite news |title=Sex trade blights the lives of 2 million children; Canada is not doing enough to fight the international scourge of sex tourism |author=Janet Bagnall |work=Montreal Gazette |year=2007}}</ref> [[Thailand]] is considered to have the worst child sex trafficking record, followed closely by [[Brazil]].<ref>{{cite web|title=The Crisis of Child Sexual Exploitation in Brazil: Between 250,000 and 2 million children forced into prostitution in Brazil|url=http://www.libertadlatina.org/LA_Brazils_Child_Prostitution_Crisis.htm|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160603204047/http://www.libertadlatina.org/LA_Brazils_Child_Prostitution_Crisis.htm|archive-date=3 June 2016|access-date=7 October 2011|publisher=Libertad Latina|df=dmy-all}}</ref>

"Child sex tourists may not have a specific preference for children as sexual partners but take advantage of a situation in which children are made available to them for sexual exploitation. It is often the case that these people have travelled from a wealthier country (or a richer town or region within a country) to a less-developed destination, where poorer economic conditions, favourable exchange rates for the traveller and relative anonymity are key factors conditioning their behaviour and sex tourism."<ref>{{cite web|title=Child Sex Tourism|url=http://www.ecpat.net/ei/csec_cst.asp|publisher=ECPAT International|access-date=3 July 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130617133538/http://www.ecpat.net/ei/csec_cst.asp|archive-date=17 June 2013|df=dmy-all}}</ref>

In an effort to eradicate the practice, many countries have enacted laws that allow the prosecution of their citizens for [[child abuse]] that occurs outside their home country, even if it is not against the law in the country where the incident  took place. This is evident in America, under the United States [[PROTECT Act of 2003|Protect Act]].<ref>{{cite web
|url         = http://www.thailawforum.com/sex-crimes-in-thailand.html
|title       = US Sex Laws Abroad: The Long Arm of Uncle Sam
|author      = Chaninat & Leeds
|date        = 3 September 2009
|website        = Sex Laws in Thailand, Part 1
|publisher   = Thailand Law Forum
|access-date  = 7 October 2011
}}</ref> In the United Kingdom, the Sexual Offences Act 2003 allows for prosecution in British criminal courts of British citizens who commit sexual offences against children while traveling abroad; this legislation was used to prosecute [[Richard Huckle]] in 2016.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/jun/06/richard-huckle-given-23-life-sentences-for-abusing-malaysian-children|title=Richard Huckle given 22 life sentences for abuse of Malaysian children|website=[[TheGuardian.com]]|date=6 June 2016}}</ref> In Ireland, the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017<ref>{{cite web|last1=Ireland|first1=Government of Ireland|title=Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017|url=https://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2017/act/2/enacted/en/print.html|access-date=12 January 2017|date=2017-11-16}}</ref> gives worldwide jurisdiction to prosecutors for sexual offences committed against children outside the state, and was used to prosecute Kieran Creaven for sexual acts with a child and producing child pornography in The Philippines in 2021.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.rte.ie/news/2021/1203/1264668-kieran-creaven-courts/|title=Former RTÉ Sport producer Kieran Creaven jailed for 10 years|website=[[RTE.ie]]|date=3 December 2021}}</ref>  [[The Code of Conduct for the Sexual Exploitation of Children in Travel and Tourism]] is an international organisation composed of members of the [[tourism]] industry and [[children's rights]] experts with the purpose to eradicate the practice of child sex tourism.

[[UNICEF]] notes that sexual activity is often seen as a private matter, making communities reluctant to act and intervene in cases of sexual exploitation.<ref name="DeenaGuzder2" /> These attitudes make children far more vulnerable to sexual exploitation. Most exploitation of children takes place as a result of their absorption into the adult sex trade where they are exploited by local people and sex tourists.<ref name="DeenaGuzder2" /> The [[Internet]] provides an efficient global networking tool for individuals to share information on destinations and procurement.<ref name="DeenaGuzder2"/>

In cases involving children, the U.S. has relatively strict domestic laws that hold accountable any American citizen or permanent resident of the U.S. who travels abroad for the purpose of engaging in illicit conduct with a minor.<ref name="DeenaGuzder2">{{cite web |last1=Guzder |first1=Deena |author1-link=Deena Guzder |title=Local Thai NGOs discuss efforts to end commercial sexual exploitation |url=http://pulitzercenter.org/blog/untold-stories/local-thai-ngos-discuss-efforts-end-commercial-sexual-exploitation |website=[[Pulitzer Center|Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting]] |access-date=9 July 2022 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130416010609/http://pulitzercenter.org/blog/untold-stories/local-thai-ngos-discuss-efforts-end-commercial-sexual-exploitation |archive-date=16 April 2013 |date=30 August 2009 |url-status=dead}}{{cbignore}}</ref> As of 2009, sex tourism and human trafficking remain fast-growing industries.<ref name="DeenaGuzder2"/>