What can be said is that, according to data obtained from media reports, girls from the ages of 15 to 17 are the most trafficked age group. However, here again, given the phenomena that a person legally transitions from "adolescence" to "adulthood" at the age of 18, the numbers within this group must also be questioned as possibly too low.
Traffickers may seek false documents so as to avoid the
additional complications posed by dealing in underage children.
Indeed, information provided by the media shows that forgery of
documents is a common practice, especially in the cases of
international routes.
The objective is to "turn" the adolescents into
adults in order to facilitate their entry into and out of the country.
Adolescents and children who become involved in trafficking
also share a number of characteristics.
First, and perhaps most importantly, this study shows that in general, these adolescents and
children have previously suffered some kind of family violence (sexual
abuse, rape, seduction, indecent assault, seduction of minors,
abandonment, negligence, physical abuse, etc.) or intimate community
violence outside of the family (similar to family violence though
occurring at schools, shelters, sexual exploitation networks and in other
relationships).
Related to this, these adolescents and children primarily
come from dysfunctional families, who are either the source of the
violence or are otherwise incapable of providing protective support.
Thus, the children can not find refuge in either the family or the
intimate social environment (schools, shelters, etc.).
For example, while the prospect of payment is relevant,
particularly when trafficking initiates in the rural part of the country,
issues of survival and the need to escape family violence appear
crucial.
As noted in one reported case, for example:
"A 16-year-old Brazilian girl was rescued from a brothel
the night before last, in Catuete, Paraguay, 150 kilometers
from Ciudad Del Este, bordering Brazil, by deputies of the
Human Rights Commission of the municipal council... The
girl left her parent's house in Foz do Iguacu nine months
ago... Mother and daughter acknowledged that she left her
home because she was constantly beaten by her father, who
also tried to rape her..." (Globo-RJ, Nov. 13, 1997).
For the young women being trafficked within the more
economically developed and major metropolitan regions (e.g. Säo
Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Porto Alegre, etc.), survival was also identified
as a major motivation, though many of the girls also admitted to being
attracted to the large amounts of money offered by the recruiters. These
young women are enchanted with the possibility of earning a lot of
money abroad, the main point of seduction by these traffickers.
Second, prior to the traffickers recruitment of these girls, the
majority came from low income districts located in rural areas of the
country. Among those who lived in capitals or in the cities within
metropolitan regions, the great majority lived in suburban areas and
districts. This pattern of recruitment and movement mirrors the general
migratory trends based upon economic needs.
Finally, based upon an analysis of trafficking routes (to be
discussed below), it appears that trafficking in children is significantly
less frequent than trafficking in adolescents or women.