Sale and Sexual Exploitation of Children in the Context of Travel and Tourism in Goa
| Published date | 01 April 2020 |
| Date | 01 April 2020 |
| DOI | 10.1177/2516606920921152 |
| Author | Ranjana Ferrao |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
Sale and Sexual
Journal of Victimology
and Victim Justice
Exploitation of Children
3(1) 7–23, 2020
2020 National Law
in the Context of Travel
University Delhi
Reprints and permissions:
and Tourism in Goa
in.sagepub.com/journals-permissions-india
DOI: 10.1177/2516606920921152
journals.sagepub.com/home/vvj
Ranjana Ferrao1
Abstract
Tourism has three sides: the good, the bad and the ugly. The good side is it gener-
ates employment and brings in investment. Tourism earns the state an average
Rs 4,000 crore annually. 23 lakh tourists visit Goa; this income contributes to
15 per cent of India’s foreign exchange. The bad side is everything has become
commercial in a state like Goa, where employment opportunities are few and
everyone wants to ride the bus of tourism. They want to set up hotels, rent their
homes, bikes and cars or start some business to facilitate tourism. In this process,
the beautiful scenic Goa has become a commercial hub. The ugly side is tourism
not only brings tourists but also their culture, culture which views children as
sex objects or views sex with a child as normal behaviour. This has made Goa
the sex capital of India. Many Indian and foreign tourists come in search of child
sex in Goa. Goa is also openly advertised as a state with free and liberal values.
This has made our children vulnerable. There are various ways in which the sex
offenders get access to children. Some approach the children directly on the
beach, while others offer them a drink or a meal before taking them back their
hotel rooms. Many contact children through their social media platforms. After
making friends and chatting with them for a considerable period of time, they fix
a meeting with them only to exploit them. Many people function as agents who
are involved in supplying children to these men who come in search of them. This
article discusses the evil effects of tourism on children such as sale of children,
child sexual abuse, child pornography, child prostitution and paedophilia. Abuse
and exploitation of children in tourism can have severe impact on children; it can
also affect the tourist destination. The article will discuss ethical methods, which
can be adopted to encourage tourism and keep the children of Goa safe.
Keywords
Children, sexual exploitation, tourism
1 V.M. Salgaocar College of Law, Miramar, Goa, India.
Corresponding author:
Ranjana Ferrao, V.M. Salgaocar College of Law, Miramar, Goa 403001, India.
E-mail: ranjanaferrao@gmail.com
8
Journal of Victimology and Victim Justice 3(1)
Introduction
Tourism is an important economic activity for every country. Countries look
forward to different kinds of tourists. People travel to different countries in search
of sexual services; this practice is referred to as sex tourism. Sexual tourism brings
in jobs and income for the people working as well as the country.1 Sex tourism is
a growing multi-million-dollar industry every year.2 Sex tourism could involve
real exchange and virtual exchange of sexual services. The sex workers may be
bought back by the tourist to his/her home country. There are 700,000 victims
trafficked each year and it is the fastest growing business in the world.3 Every
country in the world has the problem of sex tourism and is searching for urgent
means and ways to eliminate it.
People travel either for business or leisure. Travellers could be foreigners or
domestic travellers. Some travel for long trips, while others prefer short stays.
Most travellers plan their trip judiciously and travel like normal travellers.4
Tourists who travel for sex usually visit developing or poor countries or countries
with a weak legal system. The most popular destinations for child sex tourism are
Thailand, India, Sri Lanka, Philippines and Taiwan.5 In India, the most popular
destination is Goa. There may or may not be a connection between people who
travel and those who exploit children. However, the tourism industry facilitates
offenders and provides them with access to children.6
Travellers may exploit women and children only if they find an opportunity.7
These offenders who normally do not exploit a child in their home state may
commit acts of abuse only while travelling. Travellers often come in contact with
children selling goods without being supervised or children begging in public
places. Some tourists may find children that are smuggled, coerced, kidnapped
and sold into the sex industry. This exploitation is the worst possible crime leading
the children to a life of bondage and slavery, thus denying them their basic human
right to liberty.8 For every three children trafficked, two are girls and one is a boy.9
When children are exploited and victimized, its effect on tourism is irreversible.
1 K. Stjernrup, Sex-tourism as a Development Strategy. Department of Political Science, Lund
University. Available at https://lup.lub.lu.se/luur/download?func=downloadFile&recordOId=132383
2&fileOId=1323833
2 R. Chilcaca, Sex Tourism. Available at https://www.colegio-humboldt.edu.mx/Munch2012/committees/
wto.html
3 M. Sun-Suon, Human Trafficking and the Role of Local Governments Good Practices,
Challenges and Ways Forward 1 (UNITAR).
4 ECPAT, Global Study on the Sexual Exploitation of Children in Travel and Tourism, Country Specific
Report (China, 2015).
5 M. A. Healy, Prosecuting Child Sex Tourists at Home: Do Laws in Sweden, Australia, and the United
States Safeguard the Rights of Children as Mandated by International Law? 18 (5), Fordham Int Law
J 1861 (1994).
6 Child Safe Tourism, The Tourism Perspective, World Vision 7 (Australia, 2012).
7 United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime, Global Report on Trafficking in Persons 10 (New York,
2018).
8 See Article 4 Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
9 Child trafficking statistics, See www.archofhopeforchildren.org
Ferrao 9
Exploitation of Children at the Hands of
Foreign Tourists in Goa
Goa woke up to child sexual exploitation when Freddy Peats who was of 76
years was arrested on 3 April 1991. Peats, along with his aides, was running
an orphanage for boys in Calangute. Children in the orphanage were from
poor families in Goa or were bought from Karnataka. The aides of Freddy Peats
took nude photographs of the boys and bought clients from all over the world to
Goa. Since the orphanage had only boys, the crimes went unnoticed, until a boy
who lived in the neighbourhood was abused by Freddy Peats. This boy filed a
complaint at the police station and the crime came to light.
Mcbride was one of the men who ran the brothel and bought foreign tourists to
Goa. When Peats was arrested, McBride fled from Goa. India was successful in
getting an extradition order to bring McBride back to India.10 Peats and McBride
were sentenced for committing offences amounting to criminal conspiracy,
kidnapping, abducting and selling minors for prostitution.
Raymond Varley a citizen of United Kingdom was another associate of Freddy
Peats who abused children in Goa from 1989 to 1991. He was charged for sodomy,
indecent assault and taking obscene photographs of children. When Peats was
arrested, Varley Absconded from Goa. India filed an extradition petition in the
courts in United Kingdom. He later produced a report from a psychologist
claiming he suffered from dementia. The UK court rejected India’s application to
extradite Varley and try him in courts in India.11 In the last decade, there have been
many such tourists, who have exploited children in Goa. Foreign tourists often
escape the arm of law by fleeing to their home country, making extraditions
process difficult for Indian Law officials. Some countries like Sweden do not
allow extradition process.
In 2008, Goa woke up to the famous Scarlet Keeling case. A girl who was a
British national, was raped and drugged and let to die at Anjuna Beach. It took the
mother of the victim 11 years to achieve justice. The Children’s Court tried two
accused, Samsun D’Souza and Placidio Carvalho, of offences like administering
(stupefying) drugs, outraging the modesty, culpable homicide, disappearing
evidence and child abuse. The Children’s Court had acquitted them in 2016.The
High Court acquitted Placidio Carvalho and convicted Samsun D’Souza with 10
years of imprisonment.
Goa has the legal and administrative framework and has made progress and
efforts in stopping child trafficking. The Goa Children’s Act,2003, prohibits
soliciting, publishing or making the child available for commercial sexual
exploitation through websites, posting of photographs or guiding tourists or agents
10 Naomi Larkin, ‘Innocuous’ man faces Goa child-sex charges. Available at https://www.nzherald.
co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=15129
11 Bring back Raymond Varley—Wanted for child Sex Abuse in India. Available at https://www.
thenewsminute.com/article/bring-back-raymond-varley-wanted-child-sexual-abuse-india-21563
(accessed February 25, 2005).
10
Journal of Victimology and Victim Justice 3(1)
in any way, which could lead to any kind of abuse on the child.12 The question is
how can Goa put an end to child...
To continue reading
Request your trial