Newsgroups: bit.listserv.seasia-l
Date:         Tue, 6 Oct 1992 21:07:49 PDT
From:         "(Coban Tun)" <tun@QUARK.SFSU.EDU>
Subject:      Burma/Thailand Prostitution at Ranong

SOCIAL  ISSUES

                 Women  and Prostitution

There are several brothel gangs in Thailand and Burma,
especially in Thailand's border city Ranong opposite of Burma's Victoria
Point, which prey on young Burmese women. At the present time, young
women in Burma are seeking jobs as the economy in Burma is getting
worse under tight militarization caused by the civil war of the past
40 years. Most of the young women are around 16 years of age. The
Burmese gangs persuade the young women to work on the Thai side as
waitresses or as factory workers. In fact, these young women are to
be sold to Thai brothel gangs.

Most of the girls are from rural areas in Burma. When they arrive
at the brothel, most of them are still not aware that they will be
forced to work as prostitutes. However, when they realize their fate,
it is too late as they will have no opportunity to escape from their
house arrest in the Thai brothels.  Even if they can escape from the
brothel, they have no ID cards in Thailand.  On the Burmese side,
if they fall into the hands of Burmese police or army officials, they
will be handed back over to either Burmese or Thai brothel gangs.

Security officials from both countries are involved in the brothel
gangs. For example, the Burmese gangs reportedly give bribe money
to Burmese police and army officers to smuggle the young women into
Thailand.   The Thai gangs also have to give bribe money to Thai local
authorities in Ranong to ignore the illegal immigrant status of the
Burmese girls.

At the present time, there are around 1,500 of this kind of Burmese
prostitutes in Ranong, Thailand. They are put into prison-like rooms
in the brothels. Their meals consist of boiled leaf soup for lunch
at 9 o'clock and the same for dinner at 4 o'clock. Except for these
two meals during the day, there is no food for them.  They are fed
fish soup or other cheap meat only one day per week.

The customers have to pay 50 baht to the Thai brothel for 20 minutes
to sleep with the girls and 200 baht for sex with the girls for the
entire night. However, the girls get only 200 baht (approximately
US$8) as a monthly salary. Apart from the small salary, the girls
get tips from the customers. When there are no customers, they have
a time to rest in the detention hall.

Even when the girls are sick, they can not rest but sometimes they
are given medical treatment which  is not enough for them. Sometimes,
the sick girls are reported to have been killed with a dose of some
strong medicine by some brothels as the medical care would reduce
the brothel's net profits.  The exact names of the brothels where
this has happened has not yet been reported. If the girls try to escape
from the brothel and are caught, they are tortured by the pimps and
brothel owners.

In Ranong, although most of the women are sold by Thai and Burmese
gangs, some are working as prostitutes for their survival. Therefore,
most of the women need help for their escape. International friends
need to take effective actions against the local authorities and brothels
in Burma and Thailand.

There are more than twenty brothels, including hotels, in Ranong.
Some of the brothel's and hotels' names are: Nadi (1), Sinoretan,
Bath 30, Wedar, Nadi (2), Victoria, Nault Mai, Lusi (1) and Lusi (2).

The problem is not simply an isolated incident in the small town of
Ranong.  More and more young girls from Burma, many of them from minority
groups, and many of them as young as 10 and 11 years old, are being
forced into an international slavery market.

An underground brothel in Bangkok was recently raided by the police
and more than 20 young Karen girls from Burma were rescued.  Most
of them had already contacted the HIV virus which leads to Aids. All
of the girls were illegally in Thailand, and none of them spoke Thai.  They
had been brought to the border area, perhaps by Burmese military personnel,
and sold to a Thai gang.

After a time working in Thailand, the girls are sometimes sold to
other cities in Thailand, or are traded overseas to countries like
Japan, Singapore, Germany or Australia.  One can only imagine what
this is like for a young village girl who has no idea what exists
outside the boundaries of her small mountain village.

The fate of these young girls once they are "rescued" is as sad as
the situation they were rescued from.  They will be sent back to Burma
where they will probably be eliminated by a military regime which
cares little for its own healthy people, and nothing at all for those
infected with the HIV virus.

The gangs, especially those in Thailand, have no interest whatsoever
in the lives of human beings.  They buy and sell these young tribal
girls like any inert commodity, use them, sleep with them, make money
off of them, infect them with Aids, and then discard of them.

Unless there is a drastic change in Burma, the lives of more and more
young girls will be destroyed for the enjoyment and profits of a few
people who are protected and assisted by those in authority.