MORE KIDS TAPPED BY DRUG RINGS

Illegal drug syndicates have turned many street children into couriers
to transport contraband to avoid suspicion from the police.

However, the drug couriers have become drug addicts themselves and
some poor children as young as nine get hooked on drugs.

Worst, young girls who become addicts, exchange sex for
drugs.

Even without a visible source of income, children have been known to
demonstrate purchasing clout.

The increased "feminization of drugs", in the words of the Ateneo de
Manila University's senior researcher Dr. Emma Poria, shows the
creative and resourceful ways children buy their highs.

"Bato't pekpek" is one of them. "Bato" or rock is the street term for
methamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu, which come in crystal chunks
before they're pulverized for use. "Pek-pek" is the common word for
the female genitalia. Simply put, girls exchange sex for drugs.

From 1994 to 2002, girls showed the highest growth percentage in what
Dr. Poria called "risk-taking behavior," which include tobacco,
alcohol and drug consumption.