VIJAYAWADA: N Rammohan, secretary of Help, an NGO, demanded that the State government formulate an Act criminalising ‘end clients’. These clients pay trafficked men, women and children in exchange of sex.
According to the report of National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB)-2016, of the 15, 379 persons trafficked, 58.7 per cent were children. In addition to traditional red-light areas, women and children are increasingly forced into enduring sex in small hotels, vehicles, huts and residences, he said.
Addressing media persons on Thursday, Rammohan said the sex industry has thrived due to increase in flesh trade, especially that of children. He added that Andhra Pradesh is the first State in India to explore the idea of choking demand for commercial sexual exploitation, by penalising the ‘end clients’ (men).
“In January, the State government issued an order to criminalise those who buy sex from trafficked victims. The bold step will curtail exploitation of women and girls by targeting the sex buyers who are at the core of the organised crime. It is high time for the State to formulate an Act and implement it,” he added.