Bodies for sale

Central Europe has recently become a centre for the illegal trade in women and children. According to the estimates of 'La Strada' , an organization helping women who have been forced into prostitution, about five thousand victims are abducted annually and lured into western brothels, night clubs, massage salons and peep shows against their will.

Unfortunately, Poland is considered a real force in the European sex business. The export of women abroad is organised and controlled by various criminal groups, gangs and the Mafia. The recruitment of prospective prostitutes is carried out on the Internet, in small jobs, for example as cooks or waitresses in restaurants and hotels. They leave Poland as ordinary tourists but after crossing the border, their documents are taken away, they are intimidated, intoxicated with drugs and sold on to brothels where they remain under very strict control. If they try to rebel, they are beaten into submission, kept in confinement and given neither food nor money.The pimps earn between five hundred and five thousand euros per person.

Another serious problem is the illegal sale of Polish children to rich, childless couple in Europe and the USA.These babies are bought in orphanages, hospitals and single mothers' homes; if they find loving parents, they are lucky.The most terrifying aspect of illegal adoption, however, is the use of children for sexual purposes by pseudo-parents who often turn out to be pedophiles or producers of pornographic films.

Procuring young boys and girls abroad is a very profitable business. Clients are willing to pay as much as ten times more for 'unusual' erotic services than for standard ones. Therefore, it is not surprising that the intermediaries are very generous to pay those want to get rid of their children, for instance pathologically disturbed families, prostitutes, single mothers or illegal immigrants.

In conclusion, the majority of Polish criminal groups have built their financial power on the sex trade. Polish law is not effective enough to exercise control over human trafficking which has recently become a very serious public menace. The problems outlined here are only the tip of the iceberg and the sooner the police and the Polish authorities recognise the scale of the problem and take forceful steps to counteract it, the better the image of Poland will be. Undoubtedly, being a tycoon in the illegal business is hardly a source of pride.