DRUGS AND POVERTY FUEL YOUNG PROSTITUTION

DUBLIN: Almost 60 child prostitutes are believed to be working on the
streets of the capital, according to the latest figures available.

An Eastern Health Board study found 57 children involved in prostitution,
with the majority of them being solicited on the streets, particularly in
the Phoenix Park area.

Boys as young as 13 are involved in the sex trade, according to a study by
the Gay Men’s Health project.

Most male prostitutes are aged between 17 and 23 years, but some in their
early teens were also identified. Mostly they started out looking for money
for drugs and drifted into prostitution as a result. Paul Flynn, a social
worker with Crosscare, has told how young boys cared for by the centre have
been picked up off the streets. They told of being plied with drugs and
taken to locations for group abuse.

Sessions with up to 10 children and three or four adults have been reported.

However, in terms of young prostitutes ranging from their teens to their
early twenties, there are an estimated 200 recorded on the streets,
according to the most recent survey by the Ruhama Women’s Project.

DUNDALK: Teenage prostitution in Dundalk is described as a very real and
urgent problem in the latest report submitted to the North-Eastern Health
Board.

A special committee, charged with making recommendations on juveniles
involved in prostitution, identified several teenagers at risk three years
ago and, according to researchers, the situation has remained steady since.

In the meantime, steps have been taken to address the issue, with a walk-in
centre set up last year which caters for all young people at risk,
including those who are homeless, involved in substance abuse or in
prostitution. According to Rosie Toner of the Dundalk Youth Initiative, it
is a major asset in providing something for the most vulnerable group on
the streets.

"We're open to all young people. It’s a place where they can hang out
rather than being on the streets. "We have groups of professionals willing
to work to help young people in difficulty and we try to pick people up if
they are at risk and help them back into education or the workplace," said
Ms Toner.

She said the walk-in centre was the perfect model for other towns and
cities to adopt. However, much more needed to be done.

A key recommendation in the health board report urged that funding be
directed towards emergency accommodation for adolescents in crisis. But
three years since its publication, there is still no sign of the proposal
getting the go-ahead.

MID-WEST: Prostitutes as young as 14 are working in towns in Clare,
Limerick and Tipperary, according to a report submitted to the Mid-Western
Health Board last year. The majority of juveniles are based in Limerick,
where around 20 are identified as being involved in the sex trade.

But the report notes that health professionals believe prostitution in some
form exists in many other rural towns and villages.

The situation has remained steady in the 12 months since the report was
submitted to the health board, but, according to Mary Sullivan, the problem
has become even harder to detect lately due to the use of mobile phones.

Poverty and drug addiction are cited as the main reasons for driving young
people into prostitution. Since the report was issued, two out reach
counsellors have been appointed to help the young at risk. However, key
recommendations set out in the report have yet to be acted on.

It notes that there is no agency in the Mid West designated to deal with
prostitution, and says that in the absence of a service which will come in
contact with persons at risk of involvement in prostitution, accurate
figures are unlikely.

WATERFORD: Prostitutes as young as 12 and 13 are working in Waterford city,
according to a major study.

Members of the DORAS research team looking into juvenile prostitution, say
more than 35 young people are involved in the sex industry at any one time,
along with upwards of 50 adults.

The youngest who are dragged into the trade say they became involved mainly
because of family circumstances, according to members of the team who are
in contact with young prostitutes.

The study, completed last month, follows up on a 1997 study which
highlighted the scale of the hidden activity. But, according to the
research team’s leader, Anne Tsang, the problem has been around for far
longer.

There are no facilities available for young people involved in prostitution
in the city. However, the DORAS initiative, which includes community
leaders along with gardai, Good Shepherd Sisters and the Rape Crisis
Centre, is seeking funding for a drop in centre.

The study was compiled by course leader in social studies at the Waterford
Institute of Technology, Niall McElwee.