More North Korean women, including girls under 18, university students, and brides-to-be are turning to prostitution, which used to be limited to areas around military barracks or trainstations, in order to make a living or pay for expensive goods such as mobile phones. Their clients are often wealthy elites.

 

In addition, in the 1990’s during the famine, many women fled to China and unknowingly became victims of human trafficking. The risks of being trafficked are now well known, but women are choosing to cross the border anyway. North Koreans of all social classes are also increasingly buying illegal drugs.