A city of opportunities for foreign prostitutes
Thailand is known as the land of smiles and the land of a low cost of living and for some foreigners, especially Pattaya, is considered the city of opportunity. A prostitute from Cambodia, who works in a bar in Walking Street, said that is why she came to Pattaya five years ago.
The city has improved her life and she wants to stay as long as possible. “I started as a waitress in a restaurant,” said Khmer, as she called herself. Then a friend told me that I could earn more money with certain tourists, which I did. I don't really care how I make my money as long as I earn it. The earnings are more than enough. In my country I would earn only ten percent compared to here.
Khmer: “It is striking that more and more African women are coming, but that is not a problem for me. These women also want to try to get a better life. African women's clients are not the same as ours. Whites are more into Asian women, Arab men and men from India are more into dark girls.”
A study by Surang indicated that most of the foreign prostitutes in Pattaya are from Cambodia and Vietnam, while the foreign sex workers in Bangkok are more from Laos and Burma. Thai men prefer this. Thai women are moving back to Singapore, Japan and South Korea. Prostitutes feel safer in Pattaya than in Bangkok and it is not “strictly regulated”. Moreover, they work independently here and are not forced by anyone.
Police chief Apichai kropetch admits that the number of African women in Pattaya has risen since 2015. They enter the country as tourists with a visa and as soon as the opportunity arises, they look for customers. If they are arrested, the identity will be established and action may be taken. He adds that the police are doing everything possible to ensure that the law is enforced. As a result, crime in Pattaya fell in 2017. The police try to keep everything under control.
Apparently no workpermit is required for this work. According to a Thai twist of thought, it may be that prostitution does not exist in Thailand! If there is no prostitution, this is not work.
Striking and always positive to read in such an article about prostitution, is that these girls in Thailand apparently really work for themselves.
Offering paid sex is not the most obvious job at all, but if another (usually aggressive) idler (as in Western prostitution) comes to claim his share, then it becomes really reprehensible and tragic.
So I'm happy, even if it sounds naive, that those girls can get out at any time and meanwhile can work entirely for their own account.
That way they know why they do this work!