Thai protests inspire sex workers to break the prostitution taboo

Thailand’s pro-democracy protests have already broken one taboo by demanding reform of the monarchy. Now they are helping to break another. Sex workers inspired by the protesters’ drive for greater political rights are demanding the embattled government decriminalise prostitution, too. While Thailand is home to hundreds of thousands of sex workers – and its massage parlours and Go-Go bars are popular with tourists – prostitution is technically illegal, even if the authorities largely turn a blind eye. With the coronavirus pandemic and restrictions on travel making it difficult for sex workers to earn a living, many are now hoping that as the youth-led protests sweep the country calling for Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha to step down and for the military-sponsored 2017 Constitution to be rewritten, change is finally in the air. Among the faces at recent protests, one in particular has stuck out – that of sex worker and LGBTQ activist Sirisak Chaited. “He is a colourful figure,” said Fawn, 30, a fellow protester. “Everybody wants to take pictures with him and he has so many jokes and punchlines, such as ‘prostitution is not a crime’, when he speaks on the stage.” Sirisak, 38, who this month attended a protest by the activist group “Seritoey Plus” (Free Gender) in Bangkok’s business and nightlife district of Silom, is both a speaker and participant in the demonstrations. He shares aspects of his life as a sex worker and discusses gender discrimination in a country where the Buddhist faith means such topics are usually off limits. He has found young protesters embrace him and view what he does for a living as being a service. “It’s not just [providing] sex, oftentimes it includes dancing or performing,” Fawn said. “It is no different from other jobs.” This attitude of openness has permeated the protests, which have drawn tens of thousands of participants even without a clear leader. Thai protests: LGBT activists call for gender and marriage equality Taboos and criminal offences – such as criticising the country’s most revered institution, the monarchy – have been neutralised in unprecedented ways by the young who want to see reform across all levels of Thailand’s political hierarchy. Sirisak has connected politics with gender activism, using the demonstrations as a platform to collect signatures to repeal the 1996 Prevention and Suppression of Prostitution Act, a law he said was aimed at “shaming sex workers”. “But if the law really works, why are there still prostitutes in Thailand?” he asked. “There are about 300,000 sex workers of all genders in Thailand, contributing tens of millions to the economy and the state budget. But we receive so little support in welfare.” Sirisak said the Prostitution Act allowed for corruption and exploitation. “Sex workers are subject to police fines if arrested. But sometimes we are arrested, not for prostitution, but for loitering or breaking traffic regulations. Some police have turned to this regulation to line their pockets by collecting bribes, in the form of sex or money, from sex workers in exchange for letting them work. “Katoey [a male-to-female transgender person] have the worst experience when arrested. Police put them in the back of the car and remove their clothes before throwing them out on the road.” Sex workers sell services, not bodies. We have the same dignity as everybody Sirisak Chaited Sirisak wants sex workers to receive legal protection and fair treatment as citizens so they can speak up against abuses and injustice. “Sex workers sell services, not bodies,” he said. “We are not meat. We have the same dignity as everybody.” Sirisak draws hope and courage from the young protesters. “They refuse to back down and they have so many new ideas about how to push for the agenda on rights.” A SPACE FOR CHANGE Associate Professor Chalidaporn Songsamphan, a political science lecturer at Thammasat University, said sex-worker issues had surfaced at the protests because “marginalised groups found that public policy did not work for them”. This was because the “bureaucratic authoritarian state” in Thailand had been strengthened following coups in 2006 and 2014, she added. “The protests have become a space for those with the will to see changes in Thailand,” she said. “A variety of issues and a discussion on how to coexist have been raised because there is a lack of space elsewhere for this. Covid-19 also propelled this because when sex workers ask for state support, they do not receive the same level of recognition or access as people in other professions.” Sex workers were among those hit hardest by the pandemic, said Thanta Laovilawanyakul, 49, a member of Empower Foundation, a Thailand-based non-governmental organisation for sex workers. Bars and massage houses have reopened but with few tourists, sex workers have had to find other means to survive. If the prostitution act were repealed, she said, “at least we would have the right to negotiate at work”. As Thailand’s protests snowball, royalists blame hidden foreign hand Inequality and difficulties in upwards mobility in Thailand have prevented many accessing basic rights such as education, accommodation and health care. Democracy would bring a better quality of life for sex workers because more public participation would mean policies could better deliver, Thanta said. She has attended the protests, and said that the young protesters had “spoken many truths that Thailand has avoided. If their demands can be implemented, Thailand will progress”.