Thai thought about the sex industry is inscrutable
Last month's recommendations by a UN body to promote gender equality in Thailand and end prosecution of female sex workers who are rounded up during violent raids in hospitality establishments got me thinking.
While the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, or CEDAW, had the audacity to make such suggestions in a 14-page report published July 24 from Geneva, in reality such suggestions are much easier said than done. .
Please do not consider me a supporter of the criminalization of “women in prostitution” as CEDAW has described it. In fact, I am in favor of legalizing sex work, as long as these workers themselves choose this work, which people who despise it call prostitution. They would then no longer have to be ashamed and would therefore no longer be exploited. They would even have to pay taxes on their income.
While I personally don't use sex for money, I think we should be candid and not guided by a moral compass. Who am I to look down on sex workers and feel morally superior when there are people in many other professions who sell their souls to the highest bidder. Think of people who make a lot of money to convince us that their products or services are the best in the business, regardless of what the reality may mean. And that's just the beginning.
Sexpats and Thai sex clients who want the sex industry in Thailand to be legalized one day have to face a number of factors. One of the most obvious major obstacles is the urge to preserve the image or face of Thailand. The skin of the Thai's loss of face is so thin that many people cannot bear to see their country associated with red light districts and sex tourism, no matter what the reality is. Decent and morally upright Thais will not speak of Bangkok as a place where prostitution is prevalent, even if the reality is different. Legalizing prostitution or even ending the criminalization of women in prostitution can therefore only be a pipe dream.
If you are still not convinced, think about the need for these Thais to safely maintain moral values. Calling someone a whore or or karii (กะหรี่) gives some people the feeling of being above that. Somehow the moral hierarchy has to be maintained and some professions have to be valued much lower than others, fair or not. Prostitution as a profession remains the lowest of the low for most people
In Thailand, it's hard to imagine how sex workers would ever be treated like any other worker – like in Amsterdam's notorious red light district, where scantily clad ladies openly try to seduce you for paid sex from behind a window. Here in Bangkok's Patpong, Nana, Soi Cowboy and elsewhere in Thailand, such as Phuket's Patong Beach or Pattaya's Walking Street, this meat trade is illegal, despite what one sees with one's own eyes.
Perhaps it has to do with men's desire to control women's reproductive systems, which sex work challenges. People also traditionally tend to think of sex as something ideal that cannot be practiced without love.
I must confess that in my subconscious I still think sex work is wrong. Trading sex for money is never easy to accept, although we should try to see it as any other monetary transaction. In any case, legalizing sex work or even thinking about it breaks a well-defined moral code, but it is certainly an alternative way of looking at the sex industry.
Are the Thais ready and mature enough to break through the inscrutableness of their thinking?
Source: Pravit Rojanaphruk editorial in The Nation
About this blogger
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Bert Gringhuis (1945), born and raised in Almelo in the beautiful Twente. Later lived for many years in Amsterdam and Alkmaar, working in export for various companies. I first came to Thailand in 1980 and immediately fell in love with the country. Been back many times since then and moved to Thailand after my (early) retirement as a widower. I have been living there for 22 years now with my somewhat younger Thai lady Poopae.
My first experiences in Thailand as a kind of newsletter sent to family, friends and acquaintances, which later appeared under the name Gringo on Thailandblog. Many, many articles followed those first stories and that has grown into an almost daily hobby.
In the Netherlands still an avid footballer and football referee, but the years are starting to tell and in Thailand still avid, but the pool billiards is really of inferior quality, ha ha!
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The above translated story by the excellent journalist Pravit Rojanaphruk is not in The Nation where he left a few years ago but on Khaosod English, see the link:
http://www.khaosodenglish.com/opinion/2017/08/05/legalizing-thailands-sex-industry-unfathomable/
Pravit is a declared opponent of military rule and was recently charged with sedition and violation of the Computer Act, which carries a maximum prison term of 10 years. Maybe he doesn't belong in Thailand (irony).
Quote:
"I must confess that in my subconscious I still think sex work is wrong."
That is, I think, a mistranslation. Pravit says "unsettling," which is "confused, upset, insecure," not "wrong."
Prostitution in Thailand is prohibited by law. This means that prostitutes can be prosecuted, discriminated against and sucked out. The law cannot help them. The first requirement is that Thailand decriminalizes prostitution.
I really don't understand this discussion about sex work anymore. Let's leave out forced sex, so where people, male or female, are forced to have sex with another creature against their will.
If we exclude this category, then sex work exists all over the world. As a Christian you enter into a marriage for that and with other religions or whatever they have found other commitments to allow couples or groups to have sex with each other that is accepted by the community. There has to be reproduction, of course. And how can you cheat with a girlfriend you've done it with for years before your marriage?
And who actually works during sex? I have never experienced sex as work and I have never been told by my sex partners that they experienced it as work. The costs were simply shared together. We call that pleasure.
What a vulgar view of Christians!
As Christians, you enter into marriage for sex!
Ever heard of the word love?
Its 2 components are : agape and eros.
I would say “It must be confessed here that at subconscious level, I still find sex work rather unsettling.” translate as “I must confess that, on a subconscious level, I still find sex work disturbing.”
Or possibly 'uncomfortable'.
Perhaps 'subconscious level'. Know that you think it, but not with clearly defined thoughts, so more intuitively.
Interesting piece that deserves a reply. It is important to note that the sex industry consists of a complex whole in which people can become entangled. There are also undeniably different parties involved in this. Different rules apply to this and the most important ones are the women and men who work as prostitutes and the people who feel the need to visit this target group for their personal pleasure. And not last, of course, the pimps and exploiters and people of pernicious disposition. This group must of course be dealt with harshly and provided with the necessary punishments.
Personally, I think it's wrong and disapprove of the behavior of many who work in this industry.
A woman is much more than a number and a body with some holes in it. A woman is perhaps the most important creature on earth. She gets the children and often raises them lovingly. I have great respect for women and other people who have their moral compass pointing in the right direction and who live up to the values and norms that contribute to a balanced and loving society in which life is good. What must be prevented is, among other things, the situation that the ladies and gentlemen with back numbers sit in display cases, or stand on bars and move around, in order to be chosen by people who apparently have a need for it. Degrading and degrading if you ask me.
Many of the ladies and gentlemen working in this sex industry think or say that they have no choice because money has to come in for the family, etc. So there is a great lack of opportunities in society for this group to behave in a different way. to be able to develop. A government must put a stop to this and ensure an end to this situation. It has already been stated that re-education should be given to all who are engaged in this in the wrong way and, among other things, education should be offered, so that there are alternatives for this type of wrong behaviour. There is a lot to be gained from the basis there. Thailand is a country that is perhaps best known in the world for its ladies of easy virtue. Not something to be really proud of and this is recognized by, among others, the current government, which therefore strives for fewer of these types of ladies and gentlemen. A step in the right direction that I think could be used a little higher and not peppered with a double standard. I am therefore not in favor of legalizing the office of prostitute as in the Netherlands, an independent profession, because many abuses can still be observed there. Incidentally, articles can be found on the internet for those who find this interesting. It was not without reason that the Amsterdam ramparts had to be tackled to a portable and presentable proportion. This is no different in Thailand. I am in favor of allowing some sex workers to do this work under strict conditions, but more from a medical perspective. In any case demonstrably voluntarily (and that is not easy to judge, I can share with you) and under medical supervision with the concern not to get venereal diseases, etc. Of course much more is needed to give this target group a better reputation and I I think you can all contribute to this with your own examples. I would very much like to see this problem addressed properly and broadly. The people who do this work against their will deserve an alternative and are worth fighting for. A society that does not stand up for these kinds of abuses gets a big fail from me. In my view, in this context, a government cannot earn money from this kind of work, just as there are reprehensible other professions, in which those involved do all sorts of things without scruples that the daylight cannot bear. This has already been mentioned in the section on which this is based, and that is correct.
Finally, legal rules do form the basis and I am not against the fact that prostitution is punishable by law and must therefore be enforced. Perhaps further rules could be formulated that could benefit the handicapped group that can be medically assisted in the field of sex, and that would have to be described differently.
Oh yes, I read another piece about prostitution in India where there is a great demand for Thai ladies. Can they be exploited again? What a world it is in which we live.
Here's the uhrl for enthusiasts.
http://search.bangkokpost.com/search/result_advanced?category=news&columnistName=Thomson%20Reuters%20Foundation
https://www.bangkokpost.com/news/world/1303147/thais-in-demand-at-indian-sex-massage-parlours
My first girlfriend bleached her hair for years. After a week or two, we had sexual intercourse for the first time.
Somehow that prompted her to ask me for money from now on “to look nice”, including to have her hair bleached. After all, she did it “all for me”.
I don't really see how this is any different than taking home a nice, smiling Thai beauty and having a good time together for a fee.
In fact, I ended up with the love of my life and a blushing healthy Luck-Krueng, and they still love each other 10 years later.
There is far too much blah blah blah being sold on this subject. It is the oldest profession in existence and in Thailand I have never seen a person go against his or her will with a 'client'. A lot of hypocrisy, yes, but when push comes to shove it's them for the money and the customers for the pleasure and usually with mutual respect.
sex is simply one of the necessary human needs, like air, water, food and affection, without which we die. Sex is necessary for reproduction and the fact that all kinds of pleasant emotions and feelings are experienced makes it more attractive and satisfying. The religious world has attached all kinds of obligations to it such as a marriage, which has been staged to channel the debauchery of the mob. The high classes, also within the religion, were allowed to go their own way. Love is not a condition for sex, but it can make it more pleasant. But love can also become very oppressive, for example through jealousy and possessiveness. That in turn makes sex less attractive within the relationship and more enjoyable outside of it. Also within a marital relationship, women are simply paid for their sex and their availability for multiple services such as cooking, running the household, raising children, care, etc. To link all kinds of moral issues to sex is blinding.
What I increasingly dislike is venting opinions about these people, as a customer or as I call it: hostess, without having spoken to a single person. I myself can fill a book with my experiences, but yes, the taboo. Besides, I'm not much of a stylist. I myself once posted something on She-spot , an erotic women's site that leaves ample room for men and even has a Whores section. well, all hell broke loose: I was one of those who 'sticks his cock in everything' (I've been impotent for 5 years after prostate surgery, always ask first if that's a problem for her), if I say 'so felt sorry for them, why didn't I just give them their money?', well I see them arrive in a fancy sports car, and earn this money themselves by taking bicycle wrecks off the street and fixing them up. One also said: it is a transaction, no more and no less. Well, I have a nice Facebook friendship with an angel in Bangkok (real Isan girl) after my Patpong exploration, for 6 years now. A world has opened up for me, and I can only admire the women who defy all disapproval. Although again I know nothing about abuse, although it also occurs in marriages.