Sex Workers in Thailand

Paper Summary:

This paper examines how prostitution in Thailand is practiced on such a large scale that it has become almost a way of life. The history of prostitution in the country goes back a long way, but it was internationalized during the Vietnam War when large numbers of American soldiers made Thailand their "R&R" base. Since then, an increasing number of sex tourists have patronized the sex trade in Bangkok and certain other cities. The sex workers in Thailand comprise both "free" and "forced" prostitutes, both of whom are exposed to a number of risks, such as exposure to dangerous diseases, exploitation, and violence. The profession does, however, provide a living for a large number of poor women, and the sex industry in Thailand is big business for many, including the thriving tourist industry.

Outline
History of Prostitution in Thailand
Causes of Prostitution in Thailand
Profile of the Sex Worker in Thailand
Health Issues
Effect of Prostitution on Other Thai Women
Helping Sex Workers
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"The single biggest cause of prostitution in Thailand is without doubt poverty. Poverty is, as Mr. Shahabudin notes, "a vicious force that drives families to sacrifice their daughters to prostitution". Most surveys of "massage girls" in Bangkok show that over 70% of the girls come from poor farming families and almost all of them send part of their earnings home to feed their families. Many of them come from refugee families who have lost their land on which they farmed previously; now these families have little choice but to send their children out for work in order to survive. The incentive for making income through prostitution in Thailand is overwhelming for poor peasant girls: Catherine Hill (1993) quoting Pasuk Phongpaichit, author of From Peasant Girls to Bangkok Masseuses ( 1982, 8) writes that prostitution in Thailand offers "wages up to twenty-five times the wages to women in other industries.""

More papers on Sex Workers in Thailand:

• Research Paper # 114327 : "Sex Tourism in Thailand"
• Analytical Essay # 141778 : "The Sex Trade in Thailand"

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