Debating Sex Work: Voluntary or Forced?

The given assignment requires students to critically analyze the debate surrounding sex work, considering whether it can be considered as forced or voluntary. The views of sex workers are presented alongside the regulationist and abolitionist perspectives on prostitution, sex tourism, and trafficking. This assignment encourages students to think critically about the complexities of human trafficking and sex work, recognizing that the experiences of sex workers vary greatly depending on their context and circumstances.

Anthropology Essay

Discourses and debates related to sexuality are complex, and so are the challenges that
surround sexuality (Ilkkaracan, 2016). Considering the customs, traditions, mutual differences
and habits of people in south East Asian region, this essay evaluates the existing discourses and
debates that surround sex work. It further evaluates the consequences of these discourses for sex
workers in different parts of South East Asia. There are different debates surrounding sex work
and these have considerable consequences for sex workers in South East Asia.
The NGOs in Australia and Philippines are funded for AIDS education activities. There
had been contrasting assumptions of NGOs regarding the agency of women who work in sex
industry. More structural determinants of prostitution were inserted by the NGOs (Ballet and
Bhukuth, 2016). This indicates the colonialist tendency whereby the western women consider
themselves as agents while the Third World women consider themselves as victims. Hence, the
Third World women have often been described in association with dichotomous tendency. The
representation of western prostitutes has been done as abnormal, deviant as well as victims of
patriarchal society. Such women were considered as individually pathological. Strong links have
been considered between prostitution and sexual identity (Law, 1997). However, it can be
critically analysed that prostitution has been dominantly represented in the Philippines only
within the political economy of the country rather than sexual identity discourses. This plays a
major role in denying the agency of prostitutes but it equally highlights the issue of
empowerment being impacted by structural impediments.
In Philippines, prostitutes have been considered as the target of social hostility as they
were regarded as high risk groups for HIV/ AIDS. There is involvement of WHO (World Health
Organization) in the medical discourses of control which featured commercial sex workers. This
resulted in harassment of prostitutes whereby they had to undergo mandatory blood test (Law,
1997). In Philippines, prostitution is viewed as an option of employment that poverty stricken
females have to opt who do not have their families and need to support themselves. However, in
western countries, prostitution is considered as a choice. According to Law (1997), women in the
sex industry are struck in a struggle between more deterministic constraints due to which
prostitution appears as an opportunity for employment to them and their free will to enter into
prostitution.
1

However, it can be argued that considering prostitution as forced or voluntary choice,
both disregards and denies the sex workers from their human rights. There is a fundamental
difference of opinion which is concerned with the question whether prostitution can be chosen as
a profession by a person (O'neill, 2013). There is debate around the view that prostitution
corresponds to violation of human rights. CATW (Coalition Against Trafficking in Women)
considers prostitution as a form of sexual exploitation. Prostitution is not only considered as
violation of human rights but is also regarded as a reason behind subordination of women as a
group. For the past 100 years, the terms of international discourse on prostitution was defined by
abolitionist viewpoint. However, the view that considers sex work as a legitimate occupation
challenges the abolitionist view (Doezema, 1998 p.38). This is because, abolitionist views
considered sex workers as victims. But, there was another view, namely, the regulationist view
according to which, sex workers are considered as ‘fallen women’. This is due to the reason that
this view discourses prostitute as a woman who inevitably had to lead life as a prostitute in
response to vice, weakness or vanity.
The sex workers put the discourse that considers prostitution as a matter of choice
forward and this is in contradiction to both the abolitionist and the regulationist view. There is
still a debate whether women opt to be prostitute by rational choice or they are forced to enter
into sex industry due to deception or economic enslavement. While forced prostitution is
considered as violation of human rights, the international agreement does not condemn violation
of human rights of those who were not forced to become sex workers (Doezema, 1998 p.42).
This indicates that the international community supports the view of condemning only forced
prostitution as defilement of human rights. However, it can be argued that this does not provide
sufficient information on how to deal with voluntary prostitution. Moreover, focus is laid by the
institutions on checking forced prostitution rather than on rights of sex workers. This makes the
situation ironical where the sex workers have always demanded the right with which they could
speak for themselves (George, Vindhya and Ray, 2010).
Considering the discourses and debates surround sex workers, it is important to throw
light on Thailand’s middle class women who have been in controversies in the recent decades.
While pragmatic considerations are urged by medical discourse in the country, the prostitutes are
portrayed as victims by the social media. However, it can be critically evaluated that these
discourses seldom focus on the voices of the sex workers themselves. A prominent role is played
2

by the middle class Thai women in debates about sex workers. Thailand has been assumed as a
nation that is heavily dependent on the image of women in relation to sexuality. Prostitution
became a focus area only after the spread of HIV/ AIDS. Thailand is characterized by high
consumption of commercial sex services by the local population. This has led to expansion of the
sex industry in the country (Cook, 1998 p.255).
Moreover, the industry has seen introduction of various structural aspects only due to the
social hierarchical concerns of Thai clients. The Thai discourse contrasts prostitution with
marriage. There has been concern regarding the spread of HIV to children and wives of the
client’s of sex workers which has focused the attention on bringing changes in sexual behaviour
of Thai men. This has also led to the married women live with increased power. The Thai
discourse is characterized by cultural devaluation of Thai women where they are viewed as
having inferior karma. However, the depiction of Thai women, according to western countries,
have been related to commodification. In the rural Thailand, the young women are viewed as
dutiful daughters who support their families during the time of agricultural decline by becoming
sex workers (Cook, 1998, p.261). Thai discourse is based on the sacrifice and dedication of the
young Thai women towards their families.
In South East Asia, sex workers are increasingly being viewed as victims of global
political economy. They are also regarded as casualties of tourism development (Gothoskar and
Kaiwar, 2014). Multiple forms of paid sex were revealed through the AIDS research in south
East Asia. Asia was considered as the high risk place for HIV/AIDS. It was during this time that
sex workers were regarded as majorly responsible for the increased prevalence if HIV/ AIDS
(Law, 2000). The southeast Asians sex workers were presented as prey to the deadly human
immune virus. In this regard, the increased emphasis was paid by the aids prevention activities
on sexual relations between Asian women and western men. Further, AIDS education activities
were permeated with the representation that the body of sex workers of Asian countries is being
invaded by foreign powers. There were dichotomous models of power. Colonized nationalist as
well as the feminist discourse of masculine oppression led to the development of stereotypical
images of Asian women which appeared as exploited and passive victims (Doezema, 2001).
However, it can be critically evaluated that by grouping women and children in the same
category of being sexually vulnerable, the women are reduced to the status of children. This
denies them from the agency of adulthood.
3

Development taking place in the European countries indicated tension between the
universal rights and liberalism. European men considered it loss of male sovereignty to extend
the universal rights to women (Freedman, 2017). This represents the intense anxiety of the
European sex tourists towards the corporeal matters. However, there is a resonation between this
anxiety and post – enlightenment discourses about civilization and nature. The Cartesian and
Christian traditions viewed body as a part of physical world and thus assumed that it must be
controlled (Davidson, 2001). Assumption of racial hierarchy provided power to white men to
exercise control over their own boy only by controlling the women’s bodies. This made it their
natural right to gain access to woman’s body. Furthermore, it is based on the view that self
control over white body is characterized by dominance over other bodies.
Further, in the 19th century, the discourses regarding sexuality, race and gender informed
each other (Busza, 2014). The model of community formation was based on establishing links
through exchange of women. Female sexuality and sexual differences were considered as an
important factor in maintaining community boundaries. These discourses that depict the
subculture of male heterosexual sex tourism ,have significant impact on the safety, health and
well being of women of the countries which it targets. European self reclaims a particular vision
about self by sexually objectifying others (O’Connell Davidson, 2001). The dominant discourses
on race and gender are repeated and strengthened by the White supremacist discourse.
The feminists have been politically divided upon the topic of prostitution, nature of
exploitation and debate around anti- trafficking conventions. Abolitionist activists argue that
prostitution is counted under exploitation where trafficking denotes sexual slavery. However, it
can be argued that according to activists in opposition, ‘sex work’ is a choice and the agency for
women is undermined by considering the discourse on trafficking (George and Panko, 2011).
The trafficking discourse has been formed on the basis of Foucault’s discourses on sexuality
which regulates sexual identities. It is argued by the Foucault’s discourse that certain kinds of
subjects that have been produced by contemporary sexual discourse are marked as being both
vulnerable and sexual (Alvarez and Alessi, 2012). Therefore, this discourse assumes that these
subjects need protection and include children and youth. In contrast to tis, the subjects that are
predators and regarded as dangerous are the paedophiles.
Considering the case of female trafficking, the women are considered to be sexual slaves
and the international sanctions and state laws are applied to check and prevent this practice.
4

However, the notion of females being vulnerable during trafficking provides the nation states
with the right to protect them. This is done with the help of practices that exclude from crossing
borders. Therefore, the notion of vulnerability is not only applicable to the victims of trafficking,
but also to the threat to borders of nation states. Sexuality is regarded as being amplified which
considered in relation to children (Wiss, 2012). Though childhood is known as the domain of
spontaneity, freedom and play, children cannot be blamed for provoking their own sexual abuse.
Trafficking discourse has recently emerged and assumed the place of an international
governance issue. This reflects on the racialized social panic at the end of the 19th century.
According to this discourse, globalization has been regarded as the main reason behind mass sex
slavery of women and children in the modern world (Brown and et.al., 2010). Considering the
historic and contemporary debates, the trafficking discourse laid emphasis on sexual exploitation
of women and children. When anti- trafficking legislation was produced over sex work, there
were conflicting feminist debates of moral as well as political nature. The Palermo Protocol
provided the first international legal definition of trafficking (Lainez, 2010).
From the discourses and debates, it can be concluded that prostitution has been regarded
as exploitation or personal choice, based on different views. The abolitionist view considers sex
work as exploitation. In contrast to this, the view developed by the sex workers considers
prostitution as a matter of choice. This is still a debatable issues whether sex work can be
considered as forced or voluntary as the views of sex workers contradicts with bit the
regulationist and the abolitionist views. The discourses on trafficking considers prostitution as
sexual exploitation. The various fundamental discourses on sex workers have been based on the
debates from prostitution, sex tourism, and trafficking. At some places, sex workers have been
considered as victims while at other places they have been regarded as fallen women.
5

REFERENCES
Journals and books
Alvarez, M. B. and Alessi, E. J., 2012. Human trafficking is more than sex trafficking and
prostitution: Implications for social work. Affilia. 27(2). pp.142-152.
Ballet, J. and Bhukuth, A., 2016. Recruitment Patterns of Child Trafficking in Madagascar: An
Analysis Based on Missing and Recovered Children. Journal of Human Trafficking. 2(3).
pp.235-254.
Brown, G. and et.al., 2010. Sexualities in/of the Global South. Geography Compass. 4(10).
pp.1567-1579.
Busza, J. R., 2014. Prostitution and the Politics of HIV Prevention in Cambodia: A Historical
Case Study. Studies in gender and sexuality. 15(1). pp.44-53.
Cook, N., 1998. Gender and Power in Affluent Asia. Routledge
Davidson, J. O., 2001. The sex tourist, the expatriate, his ex-wife and her ‘Other: The politics of
loss, difference and desire. Sexualities. 4(1). pp.5-24.
Doezema, J., 1998. Global Sex Workers Rights, Resistance, and Redefinition. New York:
Routledge.
Doezema, J., 2001. Ouch! Western Feminists ‘Wounded Attachment’ to the Third World
Prostitute. Feminist review. 67. pp.16-38.
Freedman, J., 2017. Selling sex: Trafficking, prostitution and sex work amongst migrant women
in Europe. Gender and insecurity: Migrant women in Europe. pp.119-136.
George, A., Vindhya, U. and Ray, S., 2010. Sex trafficking and sex work: Definitions, debates
and dynamics—A review of literature. Economic and Political Weekly. pp.64-73.
George, B. P. and Panko, T. R., 2011. Child sex tourism: Facilitating conditions, legal remedies,
and other interventions. Vulnerable Children and Youth Studies. 6(2). pp.134-143.
Gothoskar, S. and Kaiwar, A., 2014. Who says we do not work?. Economic and Political
Weekly. 49(46).
Ilkkaracan, P., 2016. Deconstructing sexuality in the Middle East: challenges and discourses.
Routledge.
Lainez, N., 2010. 8 Representing sex trafficking in Southeast Asia?. Sex Trafficking, Human
Rights, and Social Justice. p.134.
Law, L. 2000. Sex Work in Southeast Asia: the Place of Desire in the Time of AIDS. London and
New York Routledge.
Law, L., 1997. Sites of Desire, Economies of Pleasure. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
O'neill, M., 2013. Prostitution and feminism: Towards a politics of feeling. John Wiley & Sons.
6

Wiss, R., 2012. ‘No Minors Allowed’: Outsider Bar girls and Trafficking in a Philippines Sex
Tourism Industry. Young Lives Changing Times. Online proceedings of the symposium
‘Young Lives, Changing Times: perspectives on social reproduction’, edited by Ute
Eickelkamp. Sydney: University of Sydney 8 – 9 June 2011.
7