South Korea launched a crackdown on Thursday on the sex industry as a new law targeting brothel owners, prostitutes and their clients went into force.
About 3 000 policemen raided red-light districts in Seoul and other major cities, hauling in 138 violators, including sex workers, brothel owners and customers, the National Police Agency said.
Police said the crackdown to enforce the new legislation would last for a month, but women’s groups and experts said it would take more than that to eradicate a culture of male exploitation.
”Prostitution has always been illegal but the past laws were not enforced forcefully. I hope the new law will help change the attitude about debauchery among many Korean men,” said Sohn Seong-Young, women’s studies professor at Dongguk University.
In Seoul more than 600 police officers, backed by 15 women’s rights activitists, raided brothels and barber shops and rounded up 38 people.
”Most of the brothels, massage parlours and barber shops shut down on the news about the crackdown,” said a police detective at Cheongyangri in eastern Seoul, famous for its red light district.
”But we found a barber shop engaged in prostitution and took three people into custody — the operator, two workers and a customer,” he said.
Some brothel owners and sex workers marched in the streets to protest the clampdown.
In ”Miari Texas” in northeastern Seoul, where skimpily dressed girls usually display themselves behind glass shopfronts to lure clients, scores of prostitutes and brothel owners confronted police in the streets.
”Save Miari! It is our home!” they shouted, pumping their fists into the air, according to Yonhap news agency, as police officers checked back alleys to pick up violators.
”If I can’t work here any more, I will look for the same job somewhere else,” said a woman who asked to be known only by her surname Shin. She said that she makes two to three million won ($1 746-$2 620) a month.
South Korea is battling rampant prostitution, especially by teenagers. Though prostitution has long been illegal, police have traditionaly turned a blind eye.
The new law stipulates much tougher punishment than the pre-existing anti-prostitution law.
Brothel owners who are engaged in exploitative or coercive sex trafficking now face up to 10 years in jail or 100-million won ($87 000) in fines, instead of five years’ imprisonment and 15-million won of fines.
Young women are often trapped into prostitution after being lured into accepting loans from brothel owners at exorbitant interest.
Statistics show 20% of male adults buy sex four times a month and 4,1% of women aged 20 to 30 rely on prostitution to make a living.
The sex industry accounts for more than four percent of the country’s gross domestic product, with its annual sales estimated at 24-trillion won ($21-billion) last year.
Experts says the existing laws banning prostitution and sex trafficking have not been vigorously enforced in South Korea because of its male-dominated culture, where men have few qualms about cheating on their wives.
In the past, those who were got caught buying sex walked free after receiving verbal warnings. But with the new legislation, customers risk serving time in jail, doing community work or being fined up to two million won.
The Korea Herald, an English daily, said in an editorial: ”What the law-enforcement authorities should realise is that they will have to wage a year-round war, not a month-long campaign, against prostitution.” – Sapa-AFP