Prostitutes from China take over

MAINLANDERS are fast replacing other Asian women as the most common foreign prostitutes in Hong Kong, according to the police.

In the first nine months of the year, the number of prostitutes arrested from Thailand, the Philippines and Malaysia dropped from 186 to 16 in Kowloon West, while those from China rose from 16 to 107 Kowloon West is one of the main areas for vice and the figures are representative of the rest of the territory, police said.

They said mainland prostitutes aged between 20 and 24 usually came to Hong Kong on two-way permits and were controlled by small syndicates.

Such prostitutes did not seem to worry about getting caught and deported after serving three months' imprisonment, a police source said.

Other Asian women were not coming to Hong Kong because they did not want to face a jail sentence for breaching immigration laws.

Mainland prostitutes charge from $200 in a low-class villa to $1,500 in a high-class hotel.