Mainland sex workers in Hong Kong seek money, travel and tend to be married with children
Mainland sex workers in city and Macau tend to come from rural areas, seek travel, work long hours and often face exploitation, study shows
She's 32 years old, married, has children and wants to see the world.
That's the typical profile of a mainland woman who chooses to work as a prostitute, according to a new report based on a study of more than 300 migrant sex workers in Hong Kong, Macau and Shenzhen. It also included a small number of women working in Jinan in Shandong province.
The year-long study was a collaborative effort of four groups that provide support for sex workers including Zi Teng in Hong Kong, Chi Tang in Macau and two similar groups in Shenzhen and Jinan.
The report was released just days before the International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers on Wednesday and follows a series of sex-related murders in Hong Kong.
While the insights from the report are limited, it is one of the few studies in recent years to give a comprehensive insight into the working conditions for mainland migrant sex workers.
In Hong Kong, most women arrested for vice-related offences are from the mainland; 96 per cent of those arrested for sex work between 2010 and last year were from there, police figures show. While working as a prostitute is legal in the city, sex workers can fall foul of the law if they operate in groups or solicit clients in public. Mainland prostitutes on visitor visas have been known to violate immigration laws.