Flashermac Posted December 4, 2004 Report Share Posted December 4, 2004 Bangkok Post 28 November 2004 TEMPTATIONS OF THE BAHT Not surprisingly, it's the lure of easy money that is fuelling the growing supply side of the sex trade, reports PRASONG CHARASDAMRONG Ying's seductive smile, easy laugh and adoring attitude are all tools of the trade _ there to attract customers out for a night of pleasure and fantasy. But if a customer should want to know her real feelings, she might tell him she is badly missing her family and birthplace in Mae Ai district of Chiang Rai province. She left 13 years ago for a factory job outside her home town when she was only 14 years old. "I promise," said the massage parlour worker in Songkhla's Hat Yai district, "once I have saved 500,000 baht I will quit this work and return home...... to my parents. I dream of returning to the green rice fields, having meals with my dad, mom and my daughter, and sleeping in our wooden home. It could be very soon." She now has around 120,000 baht in her savings account. She calculates that if she saves 15,000 baht a month, it will only be a couple of years _ a little more or less _ until she can get on a bus and ride home. But she knows it will not be easy to save that much money, as her income has been falling lately. "I used to earn as much as 35,000 baht a month. I must try harder to seduce the customers and do my best to please them. Then they will come to use my services more often." Ying is taking part in a study on prostitution by the National Advisory Council for Economics and Social Affairs (NACESA). In an interview with a social worker assigned to the project, Ying said that she sends home up to 7,000 baht every month. "My parents don't know that I work in a massage parlour," she added. "I lie to them and tell them that I am married to a wealthy guy in Songkhla. That's why they believe that I have money to support them and my daughter." Ying finished only the Pathom 4 level at school before she left home. She worked long hours for low wages for years in different factories. At one of them she met the man who would take her into his home, get her pregnant and then leave her at the age of 24 to raise their daughter alone. Instead she took the baby to her parents' home in Chiang Rai and took up a more profitable line of work, at first in a massage parlour where a friend worked in Chiang Rai. Later she went down South because she heard the money was better. She wanted more for herself, but her main motivation was to support her child and parents. The social worker said that it is very common for women to come into the sex trade in this way, after their husband leaves them with a newborn child. "We hear this sad story more and more, and there are more and more girls getting into the sex business," she added. It is estimated that the number of prostitutes in Thailand has doubled over the past ten years and is still on the rise. Conservative estimates By far most entertainment establishments with sex services are in Bangkok and the Central Plains. After Bangkok, the top provinces are Chon Buri (where Pattaya is located), Phuket, Song Khla, Chiang Mai, Yala, Samut Prakan, Narathiwat, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Surath Thani and Khon Kaen. Records from the Ministry of Public Health illustrate how the sex industry has expanded over the past ten years. They show that in 1994 there were 5,754 "places of prostitution" ( where sex services are available). The figure was increased to 12,090 places in 2002 and 12,229 in 2003. The NACESA study team collected data from 2002 and 2003 from venues where sex services can be obtained and classified them into types, including straight brothels, disco techs, guest houses, a-go-go bars, beauty salons and street corners. It was reported that karaoke shops are the most numerous, with 4,692 places where some, most or all of the girls can be had for a price; at 1,205 Thai traditional massage parlours there are 11,134 girls, presumably most of whom are willing to provide sex services to customers; and as many as 563 straight brothels (each very small, mostly operating secretly in remote areas, particularly along the borders) where there are as many as 4,297 prostitutes. The NACESA study concludes that the number of sex workers in the nation is 66,475, of which 3,480 are male. However this survey, as most which are government-sponsored, probably considerably underestimates the actual number of "working girls". For example, the report also says that in the period the survey was conducted there were 1,286 registered beer bars with 5,689 service girls. "The estimation is very, very conservative,"admitted an official at NACESA. "The real figures must be much higher." Some sources say that the number could easily be over a million. The NACESA survey, which interviewed girls at 100 entertainment places around the country, found that around 37 percent are over 30 years of age, 32 percent are 21-25 years of age and about 25 percent are between 25 and 30 years. Around six percent are between 15 and 20 years. Just over 75 percent of the interviewed girls came to the business after their first or second marriage failed, and around 18 percent said they had never done any work other than prostitution. About 40 percent say that they entered the sex industry because of friends' suggestions, while 47 percent say they decided to do it on their own. Some of these girls may say simply: 'I have no knowledge to do any other job." The survey found that often girls from farming families _ from the northeastern provinces in particular _come to Bangkok or other urban areas after harvest season to practice prostitution, but return to the farm when the rains come. Most of these seasonal prostitutes are said to come from Surin, Buri Ram and Nakhon Ratchasima. Ground rules are clear According to the law, prostitution is illegal at any entertainment establishment. Obviously the law is seldom enforced, but there is a general understanding shared between the operators and the law enforcers that there must be no forced prostitution and no underage (under 18 years) girls. Before opening a business where sex services are commonly offered, the investor is required only to get a permit. Said one bar operator: "The business in general _ no matter what type of place_ is largely dependent on the national economic situation and the number of tourists visiting the province, and whether they are foreign tourists or local tourists." An investment in a typical beer bar in Pattaya is around 800,000 to 900,000 baht. Profits after expenses are considerable according to reliable sources. An official source estimated that the operator of a middle size massage parlour may bring in up to nine million baht a month. The girls who work in upscale massage parlours are among the highest paid sex workers in the country, typically earning between 20,000 and 50,000 baht a month. It is uncommon to find a girl with serious complaints about the management of an entertainment establishment. The ground rules are generally well known and similar regardless of the operation. Management rarely resorts to force or pressure because usually there are a lot of girls waiting for employment openings. The most frequent complaint from the girls is how easy it is to get replaced. "The big rule for us is that we have to come to work on time. A few minutes late and it may cost me my job," said one girl. The manager of a high end karaoke lounge said that he would never force girls to sell sex. "It isn't worth it. There are a lot of girls who want to work here." However, the manager confided on the condition of anonymity that, "We let the girls understand from the very first that if they want to work here they must sleep with any customer who wishes. If the girl can't accept this rule, we have no job for them. "If the girl accepts my rules, I accept them. I pay them a fixed salary (usually around 5,000 baht) and they get a share when they go out with a client," he said. Every service girl is required to give the operators their personal history to verify their age and get periodic checks for HIV. The health check will always be once every three months, according to an operator of a massage parlour. Normally the girls pay for the blood tests themselves. However, one massage parlour operator said many places, massage parlours as well as other establishments, make an exception to the rules for certain girls. "For extremely beautiful girls who want to work part time, I don't check their age and I don't mind if they prefer not to check for HIV. I will give them a job." Neither are these girls required to wear a uniform or show a tag number. They don't have to wait in the "fish bowl" and they can decide who they want to leave with. They are allowed to roam around the establishment in search of a client. A fateful bargain Ouh is another girl from Chiang Rai who participated in the NACESA study. Now 35, she has made peace with her life, though most would say it has been a cruel one. Ouh accompanied her parents to Bangkok soon after she finished Pathom 6 at just a little over 12 years of age and roamed around the construction site in Yaowarat where her parents found work. As she told the social worker assigned to interview her, there were female workers at the Yaowarat construction site who were freelancing as prostitutes. "They were doing it openly, it was not kept secret from the other workers. Regularly there would be people coming out of nowhere to take a woman or women out to have sex with customers," she said. "One of them offered me 10,000 baht to have sex with a man at a tea house. I was still a virgin then, but it seemed like so much money that I went with him." Ouh has been in the business in one way or another ever since. She worked as a call girl for a time, but got tired of waiting for a middle man to tell her when there was an interested client. She began to freelance and moved around from town to town. She is now back in her home town working in a massage parlour. Not exactly a fairy tale ending, but one thing is clear; Ouh is now a real tough, and independent, young woman. She has a house of her own and has bought another with a 10 rai plot of land for her parents. Her bank book shows regular deposits. She seems content. No matter whether the girls are happy or unhappy with the job, they rarely have other opportunities to be as comfortable financially. Said one bar owner of the girls who work for him: "Some of them may stop working to do something else - marry a foreigner or go back upcountry to farm - but sooner or later they usually come back." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
khunsanuk Posted December 4, 2004 Report Share Posted December 4, 2004 Hi, Interesting article, although not providing much new info. One thing that I noticed is that they still do not have a clear idea of how many prostitutes there are. "Some sources say that the number could easily be over a million." While I agree that the other number (66,475) is likely too low, I can not accept the 'over a million'. This would work out to roughly 1 in 20-25 women being a prostitute. Sorry, but that just don't wash. Sanuk! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stickman Posted December 4, 2004 Report Share Posted December 4, 2004 An article in the Post on page 3 about 3 days ago estimated the number of working girls nationwide at 400,000 - 500,000 but did not say how they came up with this number. Stick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
khunsanuk Posted December 4, 2004 Report Share Posted December 4, 2004 Hi, Still a rather high number, guess it all depends on who are included. Only those women who are actively prostituting (as a full time profession) or all women who at one time in the last year (2 year, 5 year) got paid for sexual services would make quite a difference I would imagine. Sanuk! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elef Posted December 4, 2004 Report Share Posted December 4, 2004 Hi, the most trustworthy estimate of girls working in this profession in Pattaya I've seen was 40,000 - 80,000! Add Bangkok, Phuket and other tourist areas and we may land on 150,000 - 300,000, then add girls in barber shops and other similar places around Thailand and the result will be at least the number Stick gave! elef Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 4, 2004 Report Share Posted December 4, 2004 It's really quite simple.........they worked out the number of prostitutes in Thailand in the same way that they worked out that 80 million origami birds have been made in Thailand.....can't wait to see just what a mess they make of the Southern environment tomorrow.... It is called a Thai 'estimate'....hhahahhhaaaaaaa uniformguy [Took out a comment which might be taken the wrong way by certain people - KS] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cardinalblue Posted December 5, 2004 Report Share Posted December 5, 2004 While thailand is a great place to live and offer many advantages over my culture, one thing i am not sold on is their skills when it comes to academics and anything associated with it... Like doing social research or conducting studies in order to produce meaningful data and then translate that data into useful information and then to real life application.... Hell, they don't know how many hookers there are within reason and might be missing by a half million or more? Any number they collect and provide is suspect in my book. One of my job duties is to read academic research papers for proper english but i come away appalled by their lack of analytical, problem-solving, and reasoning abilities. It is just horrendous and we are talking about educated thai folks (masters or PhD) who were mainly educated in the west granted at lesser universities (non-accredited, minor or non-competitive schools) than i am used to. I am talking fundamental stuff here like left-brain cognitive abilities... Cardinalblue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shygye Posted December 5, 2004 Report Share Posted December 5, 2004 Elef, You are forgeting the large Thai scene. Any town will have some karaoke, massage, or brothel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnyk Posted December 5, 2004 Report Share Posted December 5, 2004 IMO P4P is a fluid scene in LoS. Many girls drift in and out over time. Some work seasonally, others over a short period when they have a cash need (sick buffalo), some otherwise straight girls dabble for extra cash (Sukhumwit Saturday Night). An advanced first world government stats agency would have a hard time tabulating the numbers, let alone a government as disorganized, corrupt and capricious as you-know-who. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rickfarang Posted December 5, 2004 Report Share Posted December 5, 2004 So, per johnnyk's explanation, you really can't assign a single number it. One would have to define prostitution, and probably plot the number of people involved in it as a function of something - like time or the month, or the season. Its really too bad they can't paint a more clear picture. Yes, it was an interesting article. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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