Migration and incest in Sri Lanka

Dumeetha Luthra:

Pasinthu Malintha, a Sri Lankan baby is crying in his cot. He is only two weeks old.

His mother is 14, and his father is also his grandfather.

He is one of the many victims suffering the consequences of Sri Lanka's heavy reliance on sending maids to work abroad.

Nearly 600,000 Sri Lankan women work as domestic servants in other countries.

It is a huge money earner, bringing in millions of dollar in foreign exchange. But it can also fundamentally change the nature of the family unit.

Children left at home can be vulnerable to child abuse, incest and other exploitation.

"The mother leaves the children, sometimes with the father. Sometimes, when the father feels lonely, he will try and make use of the children to satisfy his needs," warns Neeta Ariayaratna.

She works for a local NGO Sarvodya, which runs a home for young unmarried mothers.

Karani is a shy 19-year-old.

She was left with her uncle's family when her mother went overseas for work. She was just 13 when her uncle raped her and left her pregnant.

She cannot talk about the experience and says she just wants to forget what happened.

She says she is not angry but that it is hard to come to terms with her missed youth.

The plight of Sri Lankan women

Battling Incest in Sri Lanka

The problem of violence against women