Human Trafficking of Girl: A Human Rights Violation That Damages Japan’s Credibility

Editorial

16:41 JST, November 24, 2025

It is heartbreaking to imagine how a young girl must have felt being left behind in a foreign country and forced to provide sexual services. Human trafficking is a grave violation of human rights. The police must do everything in their power to solve the case.

The Metropolitan Police Department has arrested a man who operated a massage parlor with private rooms in Bunkyo Ward, Tokyo, on suspicion of violating the Labor Standards Law by having a 12-year-old girl of Thai nationality work in the establishment. The police have also obtained an arrest warrant for the girl’s mother on suspicion of violating the Child Welfare Law.

The girl arrived in Japan with her mother in June on a 15-day short-term stay visa. She was reportedly left behind by her mother at the parlor, where she slept in the kitchen and was forced to perform sexual services for 60 male customers over a period of 33 days.

The mother left Japan in July, and half of the girl’s earnings were put into a bank account accessible by her mother. This is believed to be a case of human trafficking through an intermediary.

The case came to light in September when the girl sought help from a regional immigration services bureau. She is reportedly saying she wants to go back home and attend junior high school.

It is absolutely unacceptable to put a young girl under one’s control and sexually exploit her. The customers who received the services from the girl should also be held accountable.

Thai authorities are said to be closely following the case as a serious instance of human trafficking. This is a situation that could damage Japan’s international credibility.

The police must collaborate with Thai authorities to uncover the existence of any brokers who brought the mother and the girl to Japan and investigate whether there are other victims. It is also essential to care for the girl’s physical and mental needs.

Under the U.N. Protocol adopted in 2000, human trafficking is defined mainly as the act of transferring persons by unlawful means for the purpose of sexual exploitation or forced labor. If the victim is under 18, it applies regardless of the means used.

The number of victims has been increasing in recent years. There were 66 victims in Japan last year, up five from the previous year. Eight of them were foreign nationals.

Cases in which people are abducted and sexually assaulted by a person they met on social media, or forced into prostitution to collect money to pay their tab at host clubs, also constitute human trafficking.

With many cases remaining under the radar, it can be said that the harm uncovered is likely just the tip of the iceberg.

In Japan, the crime of human trafficking was established in 2005 to directly punish the act. However, proving that such crimes occurred is difficult. Therefore, authorities have no choice but to pursue many cases under different charges, including the latest one. This results in lighter penalties, obscuring the true nature of the crime.

To prevent further harm, it is necessary to apply the law against the crime of human trafficking and severely punish organizations that facilitate trafficking. It is also crucial to instill in society the awareness that human trafficking is a serious crime that is strongly condemned around the world.

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Nov. 24, 2025)