In Tokyo, Japan behind the cute costumes and happy smiles of maid cafes is a disturbing reality for many young employees. The lucrative Joshi Kosei business also known as JK has become yet another form of child-prostitution and human trafficking that many high school age maid-cafe employees are being tricked into by their employers.
Joshi Kosei is a paid service for customers that often operates along side these well known tourist destinations. This service, although claimed to be harmless by owners, has been known to be a perpetrator of child-prostitution as well as a violator of human rights and trafficking laws. JK is usually purchased by older Japanese men and foreigners. But a normal work-day of JK is anything but pleasant for many of the young women involved.
Tanaka would only pay the girls for their hourly walks with older men if they agreed to offer extra services, many of which were sexual. Although shocking and taboo, Joshi Kosei work is unfortunately on the rise. A majority of whom are not of age or aware of what they are getting into.
From a social standpoint, when young women get involved in JK they are often blamed for any of the sexual abuse experienced on the job, even at a young age. Most of these girls have experienced isolation at home or school before they reach that point of JK prostitution. The Japanese government tries to solve this problem by cracking down on the girls themselves.
I wanted to address this problem for a few reasons. As a popular tourist spot in Japan, maid cafes are often overlooked. I had heard of this issue before but had never delved deeper into it and wanted to learn more. I was also generally interested in the topic of child rights and human trafficking.
