Japan's child sex tourism warning is long overdue
The move was prompted by Ayako Iwatake, a restaurant owner in Vientiane, who allegedly saw social media posts of Japanese men bragging about child prostitution. In response, she launched a petition calling for government action.
The Japanese-language bulletin makes clear such conduct is prosecutable under both Laotian law and Japan's child prostitution and pornography law, which applies extraterritorially.
This diplomatic statement was not just a legal warning. It was a rare public acknowledgement of Japanese men's alleged entanglement in transnational child sex tourism, particularly in
Southeast Asia
It is also a moment that demands we look beyond individual criminal acts or any one nation and consider the historical, racial and structural inequalities that make such mobility and exploitation possible.
A 16-year-old girl peers out into the streets of Phnom Penh after being rescued from a brothel where she was forced to work. Photo: AFP
A changing map of exploitation
Selling and buying sex in Asia is nothing new. The contours have shifted over time but the underlying sentiment has remained constant: some lives are cheap and commodified, and some wallets are deep and entitled.
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Japan 's embassy in Laos and its Ministry of Foreign Affairs have issued a rare and unusually direct advisory, warning Japanese men against 'buying sex from children' in the Southeast Asian country. The move was prompted by Ayako Iwatake, a restaurant owner in Vientiane, who allegedly saw social media posts of Japanese men bragging about child prostitution. In response, she launched a petition calling for government action. The Japanese-language bulletin makes clear such conduct is prosecutable under both Laotian law and Japan's child prostitution and pornography law, which applies extraterritorially. This diplomatic statement was not just a legal warning. It was a rare public acknowledgement of Japanese men's alleged entanglement in transnational child sex tourism, particularly in Southeast Asia It is also a moment that demands we look beyond individual criminal acts or any one nation and consider the historical, racial and structural inequalities that make such mobility and exploitation possible. A 16-year-old girl peers out into the streets of Phnom Penh after being rescued from a brothel where she was forced to work. Photo: AFP A changing map of exploitation Selling and buying sex in Asia is nothing new. The contours have shifted over time but the underlying sentiment has remained constant: some lives are cheap and commodified, and some wallets are deep and entitled.
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