Streets now home for C. Java hookers<\/p>\n
By Haryoso<\/p>\n
SEMARANG (JP): The reform movement which has swept the country
\nnot only knocked the country's president from his perch of 32
\nyears, it sparked a moral movement which is increasingly
\naffecting the prostitution industry here.<\/p>\n
Since the reform movement hit the country earlier this year,
\nthe city has seen the closure of its two largest prostitution
\ncomplexes: Sunan Kuning and Gambilangu.<\/p>\n
\"We were compelled to close these two dens of prostitution by
\npublic pressure. And it has been good for all of us,\" Semarang
\nmayor Soetrisno told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
The mayor said he hoped the women from Sunan Kuning and
\nGambilangu would return home and change profession after the
\ncomplexes were closed down.<\/p>\n
But Soetrisno's hopes have not been realized because hundreds
\nof women who used to work in the complexes have now set up shop
\non the city's roads, squares and hostels.<\/p>\n
\"After our brothels were sealed off we started to look for
\ncustomers on the street. We usually agree a rate then go to a
\nnearby hostel. Even if a customer wants to take me to an empty
\nbuilding I do not refuse,\" 27-year-old Rani said on Jl. Pemuda.
\nShe used to live and work in Sunan Kuning.<\/p>\n
The mother of a 7-year-old son normally charges her customers
\nRp 100,000 (US$7) for a whole night or Rp 50,000 for two hours.<\/p>\n
She said that working at a legal prostitution complex like
\nSunan Kuning was better than working on the streets because there
\nshe could earn more and got regular free medical treatment.<\/p>\n
\"At Sunan Kuning I could earn at least Rp 250,000 a week, but
\nhere it's so hard,\" she said.<\/p>\n
Marni, 26, also said her income had dropped from Rp 300,000
\nper week to Rp 200,000 per week since she was forced to move out
\nof Sunan Kuning.<\/p>\n
Dar, a 40-year-old man who regular takes advantage of the
\nservices on offer, confirmed that the closure of the brothel
\ncomplexes had not affected him. Women, he said, were still
\navailable on almost every corner in the city.<\/p>\n
\"It's better now. I can get better bargains. I can find
\nbeautiful girls and get a 30 percent discount,\" he said.<\/p>\n
A 37-year-old street hawker boasted that he could get a
\nbeautiful girl for two hours for only Rp 50,000.<\/p>\n
But he said he had to be careful when picking girls up on the
\nstreet because of the risk of contracting dangerous diseases like
\nsyphilis, gonorrhea and AIDS.<\/p>\n
\"I always use a condom and I pay frequent visits to my
\ndoctor,\" the vendor said.<\/p>\n
He voiced rare support for the controversial idea that the
\nlocal administration should provide a legal site for prostitution
\nto control the spread of sexually transmitted disease.<\/p>\n
Diponegoro University public health expert Soebowo agreed with
\nthe vendor, saying that the spread of prostitution on the streets
\nof Semarang could lead to the spread of disease, especially among
\nthe younger generation.<\/p>\n
\"I dare say that more young people in Semarang will contract
\nsexually transmitted diseases,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He estimated there was a 10 percent chance of contracting a
\nsexually transmitted disease through having sex with a
\nprostitute.<\/p>\n
He argued the only way to eradicate prostitution in Semarang
\nwas to provide all the women with suitable alternative jobs which
\npaid well enough to allow them to make ends meet -- impossible
\nwhile the crisis persists.<\/p>\n
\"It is understandable that they have started to operate on the
\nstreets after their complexes were closed down.\"<\/p>\n
Therefore providing them with shelter would a better
\nalternative to letting them operate on the streets, he said.<\/p>\n
Cultural observer Darmanto Jatman said that prostitution would
\nnever disappear in Semarang or anywhere else. People can only try
\nto minimize their operation, he said.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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