British Brothel Fugitive Held In Thailand

[StateSix]

At one time I worked with the US Justice Department. I was involved in a case where Thai women were being smuggled into the US for prostitution. Typically they had 2 or 3 VISAS that they used repeatedly to bring new girls in. They would then mail the same passports back to Thailand and bring in two more. The new girls looked similar enough to the ones in the picture (both being Thai) that the screeners at the immigration desks couldn't tell the difference.

They would often pick the same lines each time and would look for white men who they guessed couldn't tell one thai girl from the next. From conversations that I translated these women certainly enjoyed being prostitutes and after being shipped back to Thailand, they were often able to sneak back into the country illegally after just a short time.

I am not sure if security has improved since 9/11. I doubt it would be hard to find a Thai prostitute within 5 miles of me though.

As far as statistics, Thai women are certainly more involved in prostitution than most other nationalities. It is thought that over a million Thai women are prostitutes overseas and more than that within Thailand. While it seems like a horrible stereotype to say that Thai women are prostitutes, there are certainly underlying statistics to this stereotype. Most stereotypes have a reason for being. While only 5-10% of Thai women are prostitutes, that number is incredibly high when you compare it to 1% of American women. If prostitution was acceptable in the US though, the number of US women involved would likely be equal to the number in Thailand.

The frightening part about such high numbers is that prostitutes generally become alcoholics, drug addicts and eventually high suicide risks.

I realize that no one wants to be lectured to but people who support prostitution are responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of women annually due to suicide or homicide.

Thai women are wonderful, beautiful people. I am married to one. They are kind and gentle and unselfish. Unfortunately, they are often taken advantage of by men who could care less about their emotional well-being.

Strangely enough, prostitutes report a much higher self-esteem than non-prostitutes. They often feel beautiful because men want them and many are well-paid. This perceived higher self-esteem is an illusion however as so many are destroyed by illegal drugs and depression leading to suicide.

Hmmm, 1 million Thai women are prostitutes overseas, and even more here in thailand. Where exactly did you get these statistics from?

Where is the evidence to support your claim that prostitutes generally become alcoholics, drug addicts or high suicide risks? If they have such high self esteem, why do they suffer from depression?

Thai women are like women everywhere. Some are 'wonderful and beautiful', and some are out to get what they can for themselves. The same applies to men also.

[gingaa]

At one time I worked with the US Justice Department. I was involved in a case where Thai women were being smuggled into the US for prostitution. Typically they had 2 or 3 VISAS that they used repeatedly to bring new girls in. They would then mail the same passports back to Thailand and bring in two more. The new girls looked similar enough to the ones in the picture (both being Thai) that the screeners at the immigration desks couldn't tell the difference.

They would often pick the same lines each time and would look for white men who they guessed couldn't tell one thai girl from the next. From conversations that I translated these women certainly enjoyed being prostitutes and after being shipped back to Thailand, they were often able to sneak back into the country illegally after just a short time.

I am not sure if security has improved since 9/11. I doubt it would be hard to find a Thai prostitute within 5 miles of me though.

As far as statistics, Thai women are certainly more involved in prostitution than most other nationalities. It is thought that over a million Thai women are prostitutes overseas and more than that within Thailand. While it seems like a horrible stereotype to say that Thai women are prostitutes, there are certainly underlying statistics to this stereotype. Most stereotypes have a reason for being. While only 5-10% of Thai women are prostitutes, that number is incredibly high when you compare it to 1% of American women. If prostitution was acceptable in the US though, the number of US women involved would likely be equal to the number in Thailand.

The frightening part about such high numbers is that prostitutes generally become alcoholics, drug addicts and eventually high suicide risks.

I realize that no one wants to be lectured to but people who support prostitution are responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of women annually due to suicide or homicide.

Thai women are wonderful, beautiful people. I am married to one. They are kind and gentle and unselfish. Unfortunately, they are often taken advantage of by men who could care less about their emotional well-being.

Strangely enough, prostitutes report a much higher self-esteem than non-prostitutes. They often feel beautiful because men want them and many are well-paid. This perceived higher self-esteem is an illusion however as so many are destroyed by illegal drugs and depression leading to suicide.

An intelligent post overall. My only quibble is with a bit of the wording, and a couple factors you haven't mentioned.

Of course it IS a "horrible stereotype to say that Thai women are prostitutes". One wouldn't make the mistake of saying, for example, that (under aged) Cambodian girls are prostitutes, and yet many are. One would more likely find the girls innocent whether or not they seemed, in anyone's eyes, to have "enjoyed being prostitutes". Instead of labeling the girls, one would think about the societal factors that propelled the girls into the business, who was profiting from it, and who were the customers. Other labels, such as "pimp" and "pedophile" might more likely be cast about.

In the case of the number of Thai prostitutes in the world, some may either blame the girls themselves, or worse, blame all Thai women by casting the group as somehow more prone to prostitution and hence inferior beings. But, would it make more sense to find fault, or shortcoming, with whomever was behind the exceptionally high number of Thai women ending up in prostitution?

I was just reading a compilation of Thai literature, and in the introduction there’s a section dealing with the American influence on the Thai intellect during the Vietnam War era. It also mentions the impact of the massive build up of U.S. military in Thailand between 1961-1972. After 1968 there were over 46,000 U.S. servicemen in Thailand, and, according to the authors, this caused a vast increase in Thai prostitution. In the first six months after after a U.S. military base was installed in the township of Takhil, the monthly number of Thai prostitutes getting checkups for VD rose in that town from 91 to 2,954.

While Thailand has always had prostitution (same as everywhere else), the massive increase of Thai women involved in prostitution in the last half of the 20th century may reflect more on the weaknesses and proclivities of Western men than on the character or disposition of Thai women. And then wouldn’t it be ironic if in the 21st century Western men didn’t question themselves when they stereotyped Thai women as prostitutes. Are the pimps and “Johns” exempt from criticism?

Edited June 8, 2006 by gingaa

[meom]

"It is thought that over a million Thai women are prostitutes overseas and more than that within Thailand."

That seems to be a very big number - if we assume say 30 million Thai females then look at their demographic spread you are looking at a very high % of girls/women between say 15 and 35 are prostitutes?

Chulalongkorn University apparently did a two year study into the industry early 90's and came up with a figure of around 200,000 prostitutes within Thailand.

[FlyingDutchman]

There's a famous San Francisco police officer who poses as street prostitute, and as soon as she has enough evidence that you are going to pay she pulls out the shackles. The real version. And backup.

I hear she's very attractive, too. Which goes to show that some countries go *just a bit overboard* with weeding out illegal prostitution

Yes, I know about this practise; to provoke is illegal in the Netherlands. The American's have even provoked a Dutch bloke in Spain to provide them with drugs and had him extradited. Now tell me ... let's say you are not an angel, walking the streets or enjoing your holiday. One bloody pretty 'gal' walks upto you and her 'thing is obvious' [you think] or some blokes ask you to make a fortune with 'a little deal'. Personally I've never paid for sex, nor have I done a drugs deal. However, I can imagine me having a noughty day and think to my self : 'Well, once going with a prostitute can't be wrong', or, being a Dutch and the Dutch are great slave- and drugdealers since the 16th century ['koopmansgeest', translates as 'merchants mind'], I might be persuaded into a one-time lucrative deal. So provoking is a crime on itself .