How Tourism In Laos Is Fuelling A Dark Trade | Insight

Last year, the Japanese embassy in Laos issued a rare warning. It urged its citizens not to buy sex from children in Laos. This had thrust an overlooked crisis into the spotlight – the growing problem of child exploitation in Laos. Long overshadowed by neighbouring Thailand and Cambodia, Laos receives far less international attention—often leaving NGOs and child protection organisations with fewer resources to tackle the problem. Poverty, weak law enforcement, rapid tourism growth, online networks and porous borders have created conditions ripe for child sexual exploitation. As foreign demand shifts and traffickers adapt, Insight travels across Laos to investigate why the country has become fertile ground for exploitation, and whether authorities can stop a growing trade before it becomes entrenched. WATCH MORE Insight: https://www.youtube.com/show/VLPLcs80OHW6iVk?sbp=QAE%3D 00:00 Introduction 01:23 Cafe owner exposes disturbing online posts 05:06 Inside the networks of offenders 11:53 Undercover: A hotel linked to child exploitation 16:56 The notebook that led police to a dark discovery 23:00 The children left behind 26:15 Boten: The dark side of a border town 35:21 How a suspect was caught 38:22 Can offenders escape justice? 40:27 What happens after children are rescued? 44:07 The threats faced by those who speak out ========= ABOUT THE SHOW: Insight investigates and analyses topical issues that impact Asia and the rest of the world. ================== #CNAInsider #CNAInsight #Laos #Exploitation For more, SUBSCRIBE to CNA INSIDER! https://cna.asia/insideryoutubesub Follow CNA INSIDER on: Telegram: https://t.me/CNAInsiderSG Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cnainsider/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cnainsider/ Website: https://cna.asia/cnainsider