By Fiona Gounden
Thousands of girls and boys, some as young as 10, are selling themselves on Durban's streets where many are making as much as R15 000 a month.
The city streets are being invaded with teen prostitutes who openly ply their trade in the Point, Grey Street, Stamford Hill Road, Umbilo, Central Durban and Chatsworth areas.
Scantily dressed girls flock to these sites after dark, where they wait for clients.
Children's groups and police are now saying the problem is out of control and that many are not selling themselves for survival but rather just for money to buy luxury items, cellphones and other teen status symbols.
According to police spokesperson Capt Gugu Sabela, teen prostitution in Durban has now reached alarming proportions.
"A large number of girls are selling themselves in Durban, especially the Point area. The men are usually older and are preying on their vulnerability. Once caught, these men face charges of statutory rape."
Childline's Joan van Niekerk said the "scourge of teen prostitution in Durban is about to get worse".
"I have worked with a large number of children who have been involved in prostitution for years. They become addicted to making money and cannot stop doing it.
"The sad thing is they are as young as 11 and are unable to distinguish right from wrong.
"This in turn is leading to the spread of HIV and Aids and other sexually transmitted diseases, as well as teenage pregnancy. Many girls, who are barely in their teens, have already slept with many partners and, in most cases, without protection."
Statistics from the KwaZulu-Natal Bureau for Missing Persons revealed that from 2000 to 2005, 491 children under 18 were reported missing. Of that number, only 137 have been found.
For 2006, there are already 85 reported cases of missing children.
According to Van Niekerk, boys are also being sexually exploited on Durban's streets.
In Chatsworth, authorities claim that teen prostitution has reached an alarmingly high level with young girls claiming to make thousands a month.
When The Independent on Saturday visited a popular hangout, based in central Chatsworth just outside the Chatsworth Centre, six girls aged roughly from 11 to 16 scattered into the nearby centre.
However, one girl dressed in a short and revealing dress was not ashamed and explained how she targeted the more affluent clients.
"I go to clients with flashy cars. I charge about R200 for a 'round' and I ask for money up-front.
"Sometimes I get paid extra money. I also accept 'gifts'. I live with my friend in an outbuilding in Montford and we pay the rent of R800 a month."
The Chatsworth Anti-Drug Forum has treated more than 3 000 Sugars users and claims that most of these addicts have been involved in prostitution.
The problem of child prostitution is worsened by men driving luxury cars as this entices the girls, according to the communications officer at the Chatsworth SAPS, Capt Edmund Singh.
"Young girls feel they will be paid much more by men driving attractive and expensive cars. This is what is luring these girls to do this.
"We are warning men who pick up these prostitutes that once they are caught, police will not hesitate to charge them and expose them to their families," he said.