101 East

Asian brides for sale

The mail order bride industry is flourishing in Asia, but is it also leading to sex trafficking and domestic violence?


101 East investigates the dramatic increase in South Korean men marrying mail-order brides, up from almost none a decade ago, overturning centuries of prejudice against interracial marriage and creating a wave of cases of divorce and abuse.

More than a third of South Korean men in rural areas married foreign brides last year. While some unions are happy, the industry has also led to sex trafficking, domestic violence and murder.

Authorities are cracking down on illegal agency activities but the Korean government is facing calls to implement a stricter screening of interracial marriages.

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101 East airs each week at the following times GMT: Thursday: 2230; Friday: 0930; Saturday: 0330; Sunday: 1630.

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