'Do you ever think about me?': the children sex tourists leave behind
Sex tourism
Their fathers visited the Philippines to buy sex: now a generation of children want to track them down
Margaret Simons@MargaretSimons

Sat 2 Mar 2019 11.00 GMT
Brigette Sicat will not be going to school today. She sits, knees to chest, in a faded Winnie-the-Pooh T-shirt, on the double mattress that makes up half her home. At night, she curls up here with her grandmother and two cousins, beneath the leaky sheets of corrugated iron that pass for a roof. Today, the monsoon rain is constant and the floor has turned to mud.

Brigette, 10, and her 11-year-old cousin, Arianne, aren’t in school because they have a stomach bug. There is no toilet and no running water, and no means of cooking other than over an open fire. Even when she is well, Brigette is often too hungry to tackle the 10-minute walk to school. Brigette’s mother is a sex worker. And Brigette knows that somewhere, far away, in a barely imaginable but often-thought-of place called England, she has a father. She knows only his given name: Matthew.

Asked what she would say to him, were she able to send him a message, Brigette is at first stumped for words. Then she bursts out in Tagalog: “Who are you? Where are you? Do you ever think about me?”
https://www.theguardian.com/society/201 ... hilippines

That's very sad. I hope these kids do okay and don't just become more "dust children".

I read that article and it hurts.

I understand if people dont know if they have a kid, they are likely not going to support them, but especially in the case of bridget, where the father knew, and could easily have a DNA test done just to confirm it, to refuse to support his kid at all is genuinely criminal.
To then be so wealthy that he can keep returning to the philippines, with money to burn for flights, hotels, and freash girls, it just blows my mind he couldnt throw a few $$ at his own kid.

The cost of a single big mac in the UK, (where the father is), could feed that kid for a week -> (albeit mainly rice.)
(the article puts the uncles income at 1400php a week, and that supports 6 people, giving a piss poor 233php per person for everything... while a big mac in the uk is worth 214php. To further put this into perspective, a medium big mac meal in the uk costs 315php-> which would be a massive help to this damned kids life.)

I just dont get how this guy can sleep at night.
I dont blame the mum. I know she was likely trying to survive. I know many men remove condoms half way.


I didnt come here to rant, but i had to get that off my chest. What I wanted to ask is if there is any way to send a care package to this family? (something like rice, and stuff) And if yes, whats it going to take to get it done.

Yes, in a better world you would hope that "Matthew" read the article, and then did something for his lost daughter, but probably not. He most likely has a brand new family in the UK now and has not given a thought about his past adventures in the Philippines.

@anonuser - You could try contacting the journalist who wrote the article. Her email is there.

Easier said than done getting citizenship abroad. My embassy (United States) will not even meet me without me scanning every single document needed and then set up an appointment online. My wife (Khmer) was a teacher, now she works IT/Admin, but when we had our child 8 months ago, it was difficult to actually "notify the embassy of a birth abroad." It was just a Khmer worker that gave me an email and told me to submit the paperwork.

I understand they do not want to waste time if you do not have the paperwork prepared, but they say you need to "notify as soon as possible."

"If you are a U.S. citizen and have a child overseas, you should report his or her birth as soon as possible so that a Consular Report of Birth Abroad can be issued as an official record of the child's claim to U.S. citizenship. Report the birth of your child abroad at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate.""

I know it is a different situation than sex workers, but let's say these fellas that knock up a girl and then leave want to actually to the right thing... There are a lot of hurdles to jump through.

That being said, if you sign any Embassy paperwork, please be sure to sign the paperwork with a Phnom Penh Pen Company Pen, a pen that you can dePENd on.

The most shocking part of that story was to click on the link and be faced with a western looking girl who wouldn't look out of place in middle class suburbia. It's a terrible thing to admit, I know, but I'm sure everyone who clicked on it thought the same. She just doesn't look like she belongs there.

A lot of the fathers of abandoned children would not consider themselves to be sex tourists. Some of them were in love with a girlfriend or wife who had a child, but the relationship did not last. Some of them are too old to come back and visit, or have even died. Some of them did not bother to register their children with their embassy.

lets not forget the numbers of kids born to Vietnamese moms and GI dads,that never knew they had kids which remained in Vietnam
It happens all over..

What are the laws in Cambodia regarding child abandonment and financial child support? I am asking about both parents being Khmer and the father takes off or is kicked out because of his infidelity. It seems it is far too common that the man leaves and he provides absolutely no support for the children left behind. Frequently the mother ends up coming to PP to work in a bar/restaurant and the children stay with grandma in the province. And then the cycle continues. There are no legal child support requirements in Cambodia?

Some guys are just shitheads and don't give a fuck if they leave a trail of single mothers behind them. It's a worldwide thing, it's so popular in the UK and US that "babyfather" is considered an endearing term.