 (Wikipedia, 2006)
Commercial Sex Work (CSW)It is important to note that “officially, prostitution is illegal in Thailand, but this law is ignored and prostitution is widely tolerated”11. However, there are “economic, legal, social, and cultural factors”2 contributing to the prevalence of prostitution. Two of these factors include “the subservient and often powerless roles of women and of the poor … and extensive demand—including sex tours, lack of rule of law, and weak law enforcement, as well as high financial gains amounting to millions of dollars for organized [crime]”2. Another factor influencing prostitution is that there are few women in political positions, many women receive little or no education which results in having to take low paying jobs “forcing women to “take second employment” in order to fulfill their family obligations. Sex work has become a viable option since the sex industry can absorb women without limit”10. Condom UseThere are many factors that affect the usage of condoms in the sex trade and in other relationships. “Condom use by patrons’ ethnic origin was significantly higher among the western customers (76%) compared to foreign Asians (52%) and native Thai (27%)”1. In addition, “average condom utilization among CSW was 51% … far from the Thai Ministry of Public Health’s goal of 100%”1. Unfortunately, since “the AIDS prevention campaigns have focused on commercial sex, many young people having sex outside the sex industry do not identify themselves as being at risk and are unlikely to use condoms”7. “It appears that the nonuse of a condom is a very important symbol of trust in the relationship, and wives often have very little power within their relationships to insist on condom use”4. |
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