CNN In the heart of Athens, sidewalks teem with passersby, restaurants are packed with people and crowds flow from the metro. Chat with us in Facebook Messenger. Find out what's happening in the world as it unfolds. More Videos Child refugee forced to turn to prostitution But take a few steps into nearby Victoria Square, and you'll find a shocking world of survival sex and exploitation. The sex trade has always existed here, but it's now exacerbated by a swelling number of refugees arriving from the Middle East.
Caught in that web of desperation are unaccompanied minors -- many of them teenage boys. Young men gather in Victoria Square, central Athens. It starts with eye contact, a seemingly benign hello, or a request for a cigarette. On one bench an older man rubs the shoulders of a young refugee. Others troll the square in small groups scoping out their options. But of course the minors want money.
That's the idea: To find money to go illegally to central Europe. One of those seeking an escape is Ali not his real name , a year-old from Afghanistan. He came to Europe hoping to get an education and eventually bring his mother over to join him. Now, dependent on drugs and money from clients, the reality of what his life has become is overwhelming. Condoms litter the ground of a park in central Athens. READ: Three generations of refugees on today's crisis.
It's MyFreedomDay: All over the world, students are fighting slavery. In the clearings off the pathways, dozens of condom wrappers litter the ground. Ali says some of the older men offer to take the boys to a local disco and back to their homes. Migrant crisis: Misery builds in Greek transit camp after migrant route sealed. He has been prostituting himself every other day for the past three or four weeks -- the money and an opportunity of a warm bed too good to turn down.
How can a person be with another man like that? Those men are sick. No matter how often I do it, it doesn't get easier. Many of the refugees cling to the promises of smugglers, who also roam the park, that with enough money they can get to western Europe illegally and declare asylum there. With people who are desperate, it's very easy to abuse them.
