Child sex tourism in Thailand

How paedosexuals in Thailand start a new life under the radar

There was a lot of commotion this week after the release of paedosexual Pieter C., a Dutchman convicted in Belgium. He was sentenced to nineteen years for abusing several children in Cambodia and the Philippines, as well as for possessing and producing child pornography. However, he was released after seven years and now resides in Amsterdam. Research shows that child abusers manage to find victims after their convictions, even while under supervision from their government. In countries such as Thailand, these convicted pedophiles often start new lives without being under the watchful eyes of their fellow countrymen, as journalist Bo Hanna learns on a recent visit to the country.

8 july 2023, De Morgen

Eighteen months ago I wrote about a disturbing child pornography case: that of Hans P., the former editor-in-chief of the Dutch-language magazine Gaykrant. The 47-year-old Dutchman was sentenced to two years in prison, but only served a year and half sentence after being released six months early, for possessing and distributing child pornographic images. According to the Dutch Public Prosecution Service, there were more than 8,500 photos and videos, mainly of children under the age of twelve. Some photos showed babies and toddlers. The public prosecutor spoke of "horrible, often violent images that are not to be seen or heard". Hans P. would have been active in chat boxes under the self chosen nickname RealPedo.

Hans P. was also placed under government supervision for three years. The verdict also stated that he needed treatment for, among other things, his substance use, because otherwise the risk of recurrence was high. The court therefore imposed regular self reporting check ins and a digital check.

I was therefore surprised when I bumped into Hans P. earlier this year at a bar in the Thai capital of Bangkok. It was a Saturday night at Silom Soi 2, Bangkok's gay nightlife street. I visited a K-pop dance show with a friend. On my way to the toilet I suddenly recognized a familiar face. It was only when the man tried to get away that I realized who it was.

When I packed my bags to work on my book in Thailand this past winter, I never expected to come face to face with this convicted sex offender whom I had previously written about. My alarm bells immediately went off: why am I seeing him in a country where forced child prostitution is common? And the bigger question: why is a convicted sex offender on parole allowed to travel to a country like Thailand, where sexual exploitation (of children) by Western men is a major problem?

This disturbing encounter raises a lot of pressing questions about the effectiveness of our surveillance system and its ability to protection of children. In the last few decades, child abuse has increasingly taken on a transnational issue. The rise of technology and easy access to international travel has made it easier for perpetrators to victimize across borders.

ESCAPE CONTROL
The release of Pieter C., which became known this week, a pedophile who had only served 7 years of the imposed 19-year prison sentence, also emphasizes the need for better information exchange and cooperation between countries so that convicts cannot fall through the cracks of the net and continue their crimes elsewhere. The Netherlands would not have been informed of his move to Amsterdam. In this case, C. was imposed various conditions, such as avoiding contact with children and a ban on traveling abroad. The question is whether he will comply with these conditions and whether he will try to escape again. After all, he previously managed to flee to Cambodia, where, just like in the Philippines, he abused children. Moreover, he turned out to play an important role in a child pornography network.

“Practice shows that practicing paedosexuals often manage to operate in a very devious way, out of sight of the judiciary. And that after the conviction there remains an interest in abuse,” explains journalist Peter Dupont, who went undercover for two years in the child porn world in the Philippines and worked there with the local police. “This group moves to a place where they are not known, because they want to escape (social) control.”

Thailand is not only visited for the tropical beaches and food. Western men who flock there for cheap sex tourism are good for a billion-dollar industry, including in the streets of Thai cities such as Bangkok, Phuket and Pattaya. In the country I couldn't miss it myself: old Western men in the company of young, attractive, often vulnerable Asian men and women, in a restaurant, bar or along the beach boulevards. With each confrontation I felt more and more uncomfortable. The figures on forced child prostitution, abuse and human trafficking confirm my bitter feeling. In Thailand alone, nearly 40,000 children under the age of 16 are said to be exploited in the sex trade.

To address the situation, Australia introduced a strict travel ban for convicted paedosexuals in 2018, barring as many as 20,000 convicts from leaving the country. If a sex offender tries to travel anyway, this person risks a prison sentence of up to five years. With this measure, Australia hopes to prevent child sex tourism, especially in the nearby region of Southeast Asia. Other countries such as the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom have also taken travel-restricting measures.

In Belgium and the Netherlands, a judge can impose a travel ban for traveling to countries outside the European Union, but that does not happen often, even though there are more than enough reasons to do so. There are numerous examples in which Dutch and Belgians who have been convicted of possession of child pornography and/or child abuse across the border, in African, South American or Asian countries, go wrong again. Some of these perpetrators even go so far as to set up orphanages or adopt children, who they then abuse for years. At the moment, it is mainly NGOs such as Free a Girl and Terre des Hommes that are bringing these kinds of abuses to light.

During my trip through Thailand I discovered the wonderful nature and the unparalleled friendliness of the Thai people, always with a smile on their face. I feel safe there, also because of the widespread acceptance of homosexuality. Still, after my meeting with Hans P. questions arise: what lies behind that smile? What do the shadows of those beautiful beaches hide? To better understand this contrast between my experiences, I decide to speak to relevant government agencies and go on a road trip with an NGO that fights child sex tourism.

LESS CONTROL ON CRUISES
Napol Woraprateep is a specialized researcher into transnational child abuse. At his office of the Thai intelligence service (DSI), he complains that Thailand does not always have the information to stop people at the border. “We see that Westerners, mainly Europeans, are over-represented in child abuse cases in Thailand.” According to him, sexual exploitation of children has increasingly shifted to the internet since the corona pandemic. Children are forced to perform sexual acts in front of the camera that Westerners pay big money for on the dark web. He emphasizes that the Thai intelligence services are working closely with international parties to counter the problem.

Sanphasit Khumpraphan, human trafficking adviser, pulls out a booklet from one of his drawers at the youth wing of the Thai Ministry of Social Welfare. “Almost all countries in the world have signed the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which states that countries must work together to combat child abuse worldwide.” He also refers to my meeting with Hans P., which he calls "inappropriate". “We exclude visitors with a history of child abuse and if we discover that someone here has such a criminal record, we will send that person back.” He doubts that we can monitor convicted child molesters who are under surveillance in our country when they are on the other side of the world.

According to Khumpraphan, the Thai government has become increasingly tougher over the past ten years. For example, minors are not allowed to work openly in bars and cafes, so that they are not visible to tourists. But perpetrators work cunningly, on cruise ships for example. “We see that perpetrators board with minors. Thailand deploys the navy, but it is difficult to control in international waters.”

In recent decades, numerous studies have shown that there is a need for better international cooperation and that not all options are being used to prevent victims across borders. In 2013, the Dutch national rapporteur on human trafficking and sexual violence against children, Corinne Dettmeijer, argued for the withdrawal of passports of convicted paedosexuals in probation.

Esther Vanderstraeten, chairman of the Dutch-speaking probation committee in Brussels: “I suspect that a travel ban is rarely imposed by the court. In any case, the convicted person or accused person must always agree to comply with conditions, only then can conditions be imposed by a judge.”

Heidi De Pauw, CEO of Child Focus: “In practice, it turns out to be difficult to check imposed conditions, especially when someone crosses the border. Children here can also become victims, because we know that the monitoring of sex offenders is inadequate.”

MONEY BOYS
In Thailand, which is heavily dependent on tourism, the problem of child sex tourism remains. At the beginning of this year, large-scale raids took place in gogo bars in Pattaya and Phuket, where minors worked and were targeted by traffickers. In 2019, a gang was also arrested around Hua Lamphong, Bangkok's central station, who recruited homeless youths. Photographer and filmmaker Ohm Phanpiroj, whose sister ended up in the sex industry at a young age, made the documentary Underage about it. He takes me to the train station. “Disadvantaged young people from Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia or Vietnam, and to a lesser extent the Thai countryside, board the train to the capital where recruiters are ready to recruit them for bars in the sex industry. That can be in Bangkok, but also in Phuket or Pattaya.”

Meanwhile, NGOs like Alliance Anti-Trafic (AAT) have their hands full. During my visit to Pattaya, they point me to several locations and hotels that are notorious for meeting places between minors and adults, often Western sex tourists. In some cases, corrupt police officers seem to turn a blind eye.

During a walk along the beach, my eye falls on sex workers. A woman calls to me: “Do you like ladyboy?” She immediately mentions her hourly rate - the equivalent of 60 euros. It feels harsh, but our Thai photographer points out that this amount for Thai people is considerably more than what most people in this country earn.

At another beach, Jomtien, aimed at gay men, I see Western men trying to make eye contact with young boys, so-called 'money boys', on the boulevards. A boy giggles and yells “money” at me. How old they are is hard to say. But according to AAT employees, underage boys are the main victims; and in 80 percent of cases the perpetrators come from the West.

The next day we drive to a shelter on the outskirts of Pattaya called Baan Kru Ja, where children from exploitative situations can go. Supagon Noja of the reception center, who is called Kru Ja himself, works together with the judiciary of the Scandinavian countries, among others. On his table is a file of a Norwegian man who spent years in Pattaya and recruited young girls. Also on his desk: a list with hundreds of names of Western paedosexuals, including Belgians and Dutch.

Kru Ja sometimes receives information from the Philippines and surrounding countries. “Some perpetrators fly to Singapore first and then come here or change their names to cover up traces,” he says. “But luckily I also see people being denied entry at the border because they are on a blacklist.”

SIX YEAR OLD GIRL SOLD
Most children in the shelter appear relaxed and polite. To avoid kidnapping, they are still taken to school in a special van. As I observe the children and see the pain in their eyes, I find it hard to comprehend that they will have to live with the traumatic consequences of abuse for their entire lives.

Kru Ja cites some harrowing examples, such as a two-month-old baby who was rescued and a six-year-old girl who was sold by her mother, who worked in prostitution. He emphasizes that this problem occurs everywhere and nowhere. For example, some minors work as servants in restaurants and cafes frequented by sex tourists, such as billiards or snooker bars.

Kru Ja has a team of people who keep an eye on the city and the internet. However, there is a lack of cooperation with certain authorities. Some countries, such as Switzerland, have stricter controls on exits. There they also check for name changes, since perpetrators are sophisticated. Kru Ja tells the story of a perpetrator who even underwent plastic surgery to stay under the radar.

His work is not without danger. Kru Ja has already been shot three times, someone also tried to run him over. He is now protected by the authorities. Despite these incidents, he tirelessly continues his struggle.

Back in Bangkok, the owner of my accommodation asks me about my travel experiences in the south. When I tell her about my impressive visit to Pattaya and the shelter, she gives me a questioning look and thanks me profusely. “You really care about Thailand. Tell the people in your country what you saw. After all, prevention is better than cure, isn't it?"