Sections Women's Are Prostitutes the Cheapest “Commodities” (sic) in the Philippines? (Part I)--As Updated
| Are Prostitutes the Cheapest “Commodities” (sic) in the Philippines? (Part I)--As Updated |
This writer joins for coffee several groups of Filipino-American men on weekends and, from time to time, on working days. While some of my acquaintances are indeed retirees (more like the DOM---Dirty Old Men), quite a few are in their early 50s. Do you know that one of the favorite topics of conversation is the ease and affordability of procuring call girls in the Philippines?
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Human trafficking cases in E. Visayas ‘alarming’
By Joey A. Gabieta
Inquirer
Last updated 01:23am (Mla time) 12/06/2007
TACLOBAN CITY—Eastern Visayas continues to be a source of women and children being sent to Metro Manila brothels and sweatshops, and the number of trafficking cases is alarming, according to the Department of Social Welfare and Development in the region.
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As one DOM commented, the cheapest commodity (sic) now in the Philippines is the Filipino call girl, AKA Guest-Relations Officer (GRO) in night clubs or in bars or working student. This DOM said that while prices of food, gasoline and other staple products keep on rising in the Philippines, the fees for the youthful Filipino practitioners of the world’s oldest profession remain steady. Why? The reason is the law of supply and demand. While there are more and more Filipino women willing to use their bodies to generate income, only the rich, the powerful or the influential in the Philippines and the foreign tourists, including the Balikbayan, can afford the “good (sic) times.”
From what I gathered, the usual rate for a decent-looking young Filipino woman is P1,500 per night or US$30 (roughly @ $1/P50). Rates can go up to $100 (P5,000) per night for the better-looking and younger call girls. Another DOM said that for $300 (P15,000) or less, one can have the short-time company of a movie starlet. And indeed, the rates in Metro Manila are way below those charged by brothels in Nevada and other sin cities in the United States, as one Fil-Am retiree explained to his buddies. And more often than not, the rate for a Filipino call girl is per night for unlimited action. The rates are much lower in the Philippine provinces, although often times the girls are supposed to be younger.
Prostitution may be a bigger “business” than illegal gambling such as the “jueteng” (numbers’ game).
Golf tours to the Philippines of Filipino-American sports enthusiasts have become popular because not only do the tourists play golf but they can also avail themselves of the services of GROs and young female companions who double as masseurs or what not.
Prostitution may be a bigger “business” than illegal gambling such as the “jueteng” (numbers’ game). According to many of the call girls, half of their fees go to the pimp or madam who is handling the business end of the oldest profession. The pimps (or madams) in turn take care of the politicians, the law-enforcement officers (LEO) and other nefarious hands that dip into, and profit from the sex trade. It has also been reported that many members of the Filipino Fourth Estate refuse to do investigative reporting on prostitution as the writers are given the trade’s “fringe benefits,” such as payment in kind or using another euphemism, “sampling” of the girls.
Some of the DOMs try to rationalize their use of young Filipino prostitutes like their “sick” argument that they are actually contributing foreign-exchange income to the homeland. There is also the argument that after all, as some of these Johns would say, eventually many of these Filipino DCs (sic) “graduate” to work as Japayukis in Japan or even work their trade in known sex-trade capitals in Asian, Europe or somewhere else. And why not let Filipino men taste them first like mangoes, before they are exported to Japan and other foreign destinations?
If you think that DC stands for District of Columbia or the DC-10 jumbo jet, you’re wrong. DC is the root word for DC-seis, DC-siete, DC-ocho or DC-nueve, which mean ages 16-, 17-, 18- or 19- years old. Some Johns consider a call girl old when she reaches the age of 21.
This writer has mentioned in several articles in the Women’s Section of the www.mabuhayradio.com the turning of many Filipinos as the modern-day version of the wartime “Comfort Women” in Japan. But alas, there are also tens of thousands of “Comfort Women” in the homeland. And there are many vested interests that profit from prostitution and the operation of bars, massage parlors and sauna baths – from politicians, both on the national and local levels, to the LEOs and even reportedly the communist and/or Muslim rebels.
To think that the Philippines is supposedly the only Christian country in Asia, where probably 75% of the population is Catholic and another 10% belongs to other Christian denominations. And to think further that the President is a woman and that the Philippines has many woman senators, congresswomen, female governors, mayors and local officials. So, how come the country is the home of so many poor women who have to use their bodies to earn their livelihood and even keep their families intact? Why does the Philippines continue to be the homeland of tens of thousands of women who are abused by a corrupt system, by foreign employers and vested interests?
(To be continued . . .)
Re: Polygamy Is OK to Discuss But Not Prostitution?
Dear Friends:
The homeland has a bigger problem in prostitution, which I discussed in the www.mabuhayradio.com. I do not know if you have read Are Prostitutes the Cheapest “Commodities” (sic) in the Philippines? (Part I) and it seems that not too many Filipinos, even Filipino Americans like to face reality and discuss it. And for the past days, many of you have been discussing the thread of the polygamy issue, as if it were the number-one problem of the Philippines.
Aside from tens of thousands (if not hundreds of thousands) of young women prostitutes in the Philippines (and abroad like the Japayukis in Japan), there are more-than 100,000 child prostitutes in Metro Manila alone. The country has become the paradise of foreign perverts, maniacs and pedophiles masquerading as tourists. And all Filipino Americans would like to protest is the perceived insult made by the scriptwriter and cast of the TV show, "Desperate Housewives."
The fact is that many male Overseas-Filipinos, including many supposedly "macho" Filipino Americans, love to talk of protecting human rights, especially the rights of minority women, and yet the first thing that they do when they arrive in the Philippines for a vacation or a business trip is to get the services of a Filipino prostitute (whether female or male, in some cases). The same Filipino-American males wouldn't dare solicit a prostitute in Sunset Avenue of Los Angeles or in the asphalt jungles of Manhattan, NY, because of frequent sting operations being done by police authorities. But many totally leave their common sense, good sense and respect for Philippine law when they arrive back in the homeland.
Would anybody care to comment on these observations? If we, Overseas Filipinos, want to make things happen for the better in the homeland, we must start dealing not only with the political abuses, government graft and corruption, illegal gambling and human-rights violations but also with mundane matters such as prostitution, pedophilia, etc., etc. After all, as Ms. Lourdes remarked about the "human female body, 'A person's body is said to be a temple of God.'"
Mabuhay,
Bobby M. Reyes
Editor
www.mabuhayradio.com
In a message dated 11/26/2007 4:05:21 P.M. Pacific Standard Time, easimedia@com writes:
Virgin this, virgin that? How about virgin oil for
virgins? I mean oil for votary candles with the
message: heaven forgive non-virgins.
If you wonder why the holy books do not talk of the
rights of women to have many spouses, I believe it is
because it is the woman who carries the unborn baby.
While a baby is in his mother's womb, he is free from
hunger and thirst. He is in paradise on earth. The
moment he is born, he is on his own, and his first
cry---waaa, waaa! means he has come out of paradise
and eternity. Problems here and there.
This paradise is in the human female body. A person's
body is said to be a temple of God. Should not sexy
sex be sacred? Frequently, demeaning this God-created
paradise leads to sick bodies, as in AIDS cases.
Sorry na lang, no polygamy in true paradise.
Lourdes
Then let us discuss prostitution.
There are women who do this because they were forced to, and there are women and men who do this by choice. There are even men and women who enjoy this work.
People no matter who and what they are should have ample alternatives in life, choices of work without the dangers. Those who chose prostitution should not have the fears of contracting disease. They all should carry condoms. Those who choose this type of work should have the right to do so.
Those who were forced should have the choice to get out of such a job.
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Dear Copper:
Thank you for your input.
RE: "Choices of Work." Are you then in favor of legalizing prostitution like in some cities in Nevada or Germany? There is the argument by those who propose to legalize it that society can protect better the workers (registered prostitutes) and the Johns (customers) not only by providing the right tools (like condoms) but also regular health checkups, blood tests, etc.
Any more comments?
Mabuhay,
Bobby M. Reyes
Editor
www.mabuhayradio.com
Sorry to make light of such a serious topic, I just could not resist...
Back to the topic of prostitution:
I don't think that ANY amount of laws can stop prostitution. It's the world's oldest profession for a reason, and it's in every corner of the so called "civilized" world - the Philippines included. In some places, they've realized that and made it LEGAL - that way they can tax and somewhat control it. But legal or not, they can not STOP it.
What makes it appalling in the Philippines is the presence of the "Poor Prostitute" - that is until you realize that a lot of them aren't "poor". At least not by the local standards. P1,500 per night? It would take Master Carpenter a whole week to make that kind of money, working only with hand tools 8 hours a day. In terms of monthly income, what is four days worth of work for the prostitute is a whole month of hard labor for the MASTER Carpenter.
But it is true that these "poor" prostitutes only get a percentage of that money. And that they are abused and exploited by their handlers who can get away with it because it IS illegal. Complaining to the police would only put them (the prostitutes) in double jeopardy.
Even then, to some, it is still the more attractive, if not only option.
So the problem then becomes "How to make it so that the Master Carpenter can better afford the services of the prostitute"?
Hahahaha... I know it comes of as silly, but seriously think about it...
Once you've solved the problem of the master carpenter, the Laws of Supply and Demand take over. More demand would translate to higher prices. Higher prices then solves the problem of the "Poor Prostitute" - who effectively becomes a rich prostitute. Also, if you do manage to solve the problem of the Master Carpenter REALLY well, then perhaps you will see more prostitutes turn into Master Carpenters themselves - as that would become the more attractive option.
Of course, you would first have to remove the exploitive "Employers" from the equation, and that's a whole slew of other problems, and probably the biggest one at that. Legalizing it really just means more Laws. Laws are only as effective as its enforcement. We all know where that path leads...
In the end, it boils down to one root cause - corruption. How do we solve THAT?!
Easy, we all go back to the live in the Philippines. Why would that help? Because anyone who is smart enough, rich enough, skilled enough - basically anyone who is capable of leaving, has left or has plans to leave the Philippines. The Philippines has been hemorrhaging intellectually, financially, even morally for years now. From our doctors to our teachers, and even our priests.
Yes, Ladies and Gentlemen, we have to share the blame. Is it any wonder that the Philippines is in the shape it’s in?
Oh there are a few good souls who have stayed, by choice or otherwise, but their numbers dwindle by the day and they are in need of reinforcement. More often than not, those that are still there are there simply because it is easy pickings for them to exploit the country even further. They too will leave as soon as it gets too hot for them.
Think about THAT for while...
There are also male prostitutes, but they are not crucified like their female counterparts because they are men.
Eddie AAA Calderon
Minneapolis, MN
"...we must start dealing not only with the political abuses, government graft and corruption, illegal gambling and human-rights violations but also with mundane matters such as prostitution, pedophilia, etc., etc. After all, as Ms. Lourdes remarked about the "human female body, 'A person's body is said to be a temple of God.'"
That is it Bobby prostitution is as old as "time" itself, it will always be around. St. Augustine himself observed that if you do away with prostitution the world wll convulse with lust.
Lourdes' is a biblical solution not only to the sins of the flesh but also to those that violate the covenant of God; all is not yet lost if we cultivate the virtue of faith, the virtue of hope and most of all the virtue of love..
JR
Batangas City, Philippines
By Joey A. Gabieta
Inquirer
Last updated 01:23am (Mla time) 12/06/2007
TACLOBAN CITY—Eastern Visayas continues to be a source of women and children being sent to Metro Manila brothels and sweatshops, and the number of trafficking cases is alarming, according to the Department of Social Welfare and Development in the region.
DSWD officials said the number of human trafficking cases was increasing despite efforts to stop them.
“Eastern Visayas remains to be a sending region,” said Leticia Corillo, DSWD regional director.
She said the victims were mostly children and women who were recruited by trafficking gangs. The victims end up working without pay in brothels and sweatshops in Metro Manila, she said.
Last year, the number of human trafficking cases reached 185, up from only 108 in 2005, Corillo said.
From January to June, the DSWD monitored 108 cases of human trafficking. Over 70 percent of the cases involved women, while the rest involved male and female children aged 13 years to 17 years, she said.
Since the campaign against human trafficking started in 2004, the regional DSWD has filed eight cases against traffickers, Corillo said.
The cases remain pending in various courts, she said.
Violators of Republic Act No. 9208, otherwise known as the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003, face up to 20 years imprisonment and fine of up to P5 million.
Corillo also lamented that local executives, even in areas where human trafficking was prevalent, were indifferent to the problem and not keen on acting on it.
She appealed to them to establish a council to protect women and children as a way of combating the increasing number of human trafficking cases.
Corillo said most of the victims that the DSWD rescued came from the towns of Paranas and Jiabong, and Calbayog City in Samar province, and Mapanas and Las Navas in Northern Samar.
The exit point for victims bound for Luzon is Allen town in Northern Samar.
Corillo also said that the recruiters were often distant relatives of the victims.
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/...ticle_id=105096
You cannot simply end the problem by arresting the culprits. They will keep on going.
The root cause is poverty.
Address that and you wont need to monitor the problem on human trafficing that much anymore.
As for the military,... DO YOUR JOB. ......... END THE INSURGENCY,..... NOW!
As for the government and NGOs, .... help build the local economy and provide livelihood opportunities for these hapless folks.
The AFP with it's Engineering Brigade and CMOs can help start the growth in the affected areas.
They can start with livelihood training, building roads, markets, bridges, sea ports and schools.
Lastly, dont focus on Mindanao alone. Hindi lang Mindanao ang naghihirap!
Dapat nga sisihin diyan yun mga landlord na Muslim na ginagamit ang gera para sa pansarili nila.
Pati Islam dinamay sa gera para makapanloko ng mga kawawang mahihirap at walang kamuwang-muwang na Kababayan natin na mga Muslim. Jihad pa daw kuno. May jihad ba na ang layunin ay manloko ng kapwa at ipahamak ito para sa pansariling kapakanan?
Pati as Bikol na marami ang nasalanta ng kalamidad ay marami din ang napapalapit sa "kapit sa patalim" na pamumuhay. Kasama din ang Marinduque at Samar areas.
Sila din ay nangangailangan ng Tulong.
Again, ...
... you cannot simply end the problem by arresting the culprits. They will keep on going.
The root cause is poverty.
Address that and you wont need to monitor the problem on human trafficking that much anymore.
As for the military,... DO YOUR JOB. ......... END THE INSURGENCY,..... NOW!
As for the governrment and NGOs, .... help build the local economy and provide livelihood opportunities for these hapless folks.
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