Nov 1996 A harrowing report on children forced into prostitution. In India girls cuddle up together on the steps of notorious red light district in Bombay, India, one of Asia's... more

Nov 1996 A harrowing report on children forced into prostitution. In India girls cuddle up together on the steps of notorious red light district in Bombay, India, one of Asia's largest sex markets. Upstairs in the dilapidated wooden brothels, children as young as 10 peep from the window. Using a secret camera, we focus on girls kidnapped from their villages in Nepal and forced into prostitution in Bombay. In a narrow attic, we discover rows of sleeping girls, concealed because "Madame" heard there was a foreign camera in the vincinity. Desired by locals and Arabs for their fair skin, these girls are a rich commodity. Back home poverty stricken families are stunned by the loss of their daughters. In a Kathmandu prison a rickshaw driver receives 15 years for selling his wife. Tragically, rescued girls who return to Nepal often find that their families won't take them back because they are prostitutes and usually HIV positive. In a care centre, they wait patiently to be reclaimed. Kidnapped at 13, Srijana describes how she was raped by six men. The Centre Director and the Minister for Women emphasize the need for education and awareness. But while the government procrastinates, more and more girls are forced into child prostitution, and are robbed of their innocence. less