[Lost Youth④] "Do You Want to Make a Deal?" Out-of-Home Youth Meet Bad Adults

Sex Trafficking Solicitation Messages Flooding Out-of-Home Youth
Runaway Gangs and Helpers Are Essentially Sex Trafficking Organizations
Youth Outside the Home Must Obtain Parental Consent to Work
Forced to Choose Sex Work Reluctantly
"Sex Trafficking Is One of Many Crimes... Government Must Step Up to Protect"

[Editor's Note] It has been exactly 30 years since the first youth shelter was established in South Korea in 1992. The Seoul YMCA set up the first youth shelter with the goal of preventing delinquency among out-of-home youth and providing emergency living support and education. Over the past 30 years, the number of youth shelters has grown to 138, gradually developing. However, there is still a long way to go. Many out-of-home youth still cannot adapt to youth shelters or face a shortage of space, leaving them abandoned on the streets. Although unwilling, some even turn to prostitution to avoid starvation. This article aims to shed light on the reality of out-of-home youth that adults have deliberately ignored or exploited and to seek alternatives.

In October last year, A (18), a youth living outside the home, received insulting messages through social networking services (SNS). Adults who learned that A was a youth living outside the home targeted A, who was in a difficult situation, attempting to arrange sexual transactions such as compensated dating. /Provided by A

"This is a transactional meeting office. Earn 200,000 to 500,000 KRW a day." A (18), who ran away from home last October after conflicts with their parents, headed straight to a youth shelter but had to leave after six months. As soon as A was out on the streets, messages flooded their social media (SNS). These were offers for prostitution. They were told that by agreeing to transactional meetings, they could earn over 200,000 KRW a day. There were also messages offering officetel accommodations where they only had to answer the doorbell for adult men. A said, "Even now, I receive several prostitution proposals a day," adding, "There are even perverts whose behavior is too disgusting to mention. It’s very unpleasant."

Out-of-home youth who cannot find a youth shelter fall into the trap of prostitution regardless of gender. The reason is money. They need to earn money immediately to survive, but there are few ways for underage out-of-home youth to earn money.

Most out-of-home youth fall into prostitution through two routes: one is the "runaway gang," and the other is the "helper."

Runaway Gangs and Helpers Inducing Prostitution through Gaslighting and Violence

Runaway gangs refer to groups of out-of-home youth who gather around a leader who rents a room. They connect through SNS, internet cafes, and online communities. At first, they live warmly and help each other, but the leader soon changes. They continuously gaslight (psychologically manipulate) the youth by saying things like, "You have to earn money to pay back for food and lodging," or "You need to earn money quickly to leave this place," leading them into prostitution.

These runaway gangs are consistently dismantled by police raids but are quickly reformed. According to the National Police Agency, from 2019 to 2021, there were a total of 310 cases of runaway gang dismantling. About 100 gangs are disbanded each year. Nevertheless, from January to June this year, 32 cases were dismantled, showing that they are not disappearing easily.

Helpers who provide material support to out-of-home youth are an even bigger problem. Despite violating Article 7 of the Act on the Protection and Support of Missing Children, which stipulates that anyone who fails to report missing children to the head of a police station without justifiable reason cannot protect them, helpers scout out out-of-home youth through SNS and communities. According to the National Police Agency, over 100 people each year were caught violating the Missing Children Act: 133 in 2019, 173 in 2020, and 134 last year.

Though called helpers, testimonies from out-of-home youth reveal that they are actually organized prostitution operators. If the youth refuse prostitution, they are kicked out or physically assaulted. B (17), an out-of-home youth, said, "Most helpers are adult men involved in organized prostitution mediation," adding, "Who would help kids out of goodwill? They provide material support because they have bad intentions."

Choosing Prostitution to Avoid Starvation... "Adults Are Obsessed with Exploiting Out-of-Home Youth"

However, out-of-home youth cannot easily refuse prostitution because they lack money. According to Article 66 of the Labor Standards Act, employers hiring youth under 18 must have a family relationship certificate proving age and a guardian’s consent form. In Korean society, where the minor guardian system is not well established, youth must obtain parental consent to work. Out-of-home youth, abandoned by their parents, cannot earn money or must work under employers who exploit their labor without consent forms.

B said, "I barely pay for my goshiwon (small lodging) by working part-time at a PC room thanks to the owner’s favor. But a friend I know earns 300,000 KRW a day through prostitution," adding, "Is this really the right path? Adults are obsessed not with helping out-of-home youth but with exploiting them."

Joohee Chu, an HK research professor at Chonnam National University’s Institute of Humanities, emphasized, "The environment where prostitution was centered around establishments in the past has changed, and now there are many routes such as SNS and dating apps through which out-of-home youth can fall into prostitution," adding, "Prostitution is just one of many crimes. The government must step up to protect them."