The trafficking
of women to work as prostitutes is likely a key factor in
the spread of HIV across South Asia, according to a study
published Wednesday in The Journal of the American
Medical Association.
The study, which
looked at Nepali women who had been trafficked into the
sex trade in India and later repatriated, found that nearly
40% of them were HIV-positive. The HIV infection rates
were even worse among younger girls, with the figure
rising to beyond 60% among those trafficked before age
15.
''Our study for
the first time documents very high rates of HIV in girls
trafficked for sexual exploitation at very young ages,''
said author Jay Silverman, an associate professor at
Harvard's School of Public Health.
South Asia is one
of the worst areas affected with AIDS, areas with some
2.5 million people infected with HIV in India alone. The
report estimated some 150,000 girls and women are
trafficked each year across the region.
A U.S. State
Department report released last month found that India has
the world's largest human trafficking problem.
That report
estimated that tens of millions of Indians are subjected to
forced labor and said sex trafficking was common. However,
it noted that the Indian government has taken steps to
combat sex trafficking.
The JAMA
study, funded by the U.S. State Department, examined 287
repatriated Nepalese girls and women trafficked to brothels
in India and repatriated between 1997 and 2005.
''The
repatriation of Nepalese survivors of sex trafficking may
play a critical role in spreading HIV across South
Asian borders,'' Silverman said. ''They are extremely
vulnerable to being coerced into unsafe sexual
behavior and being retrafficked for sexual exploitation,
either within Nepal or back in India.'' (AP)
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