A Motion to Decriminalize Prostitution

It is very ironic that in a conservative and religious country like ours, prostitution is as rampant as theft. We can see prostitutes almost everywhere. Besides red-light districts like Ermita, prostitution exists in massage parlors, old movie theatres, malls, and even inside homes. The num er of prostitutes is also overwhelming. In !""#, there are $%%,%%% to &%%,%%% prostituted persons in the 'hilippines and ()&,%%% of them are women and children *Kyodo News, !# +ugust !""#,. This was more than a decade ago and surely, the num ers have changed. To get to the root of this pro lem, it is right for us to know when prostitution started. -urprisingly, this industry is already active even in the first civili.ations in /esopotamia. +ccording to the documents written y 0erodotus, -umerian kings made temples called 1houses of heaven2 where sacred prostitution was a common practice. In the 'hilippines, prostitution flourished during the 3alleon trade where seamen were catered for their sexual needs. This industry evolved with technology through years and now, there are different means in which prostitution can happen such as cy ersex and pornography. If prostitution is an immortal industry attached in our culture and society for thousands of years, there is no point in denying that this will prevail. 4ur government has esta lished laws against human trafficking and violence against women and children, ut they can5t face it head-on. If we can5t extinguish prostitution, the only way we can handle the situation is to manage it. 6egali.ing prostitution will ring more

enefits not only to the prostitutes and their consumers, ut also to the whole country as well. 6egali.ing prostitution will give protection to the people involved, especially women. In the current situation, prostitutes risk their safety. By engaging in this kind of transaction, prostitutes do not have the assurance that their customers will pay them right, treat them well, and keep them safe from sexually transmitted disesases. There are also cases of rothels and pimps who maltreat the poor prostitutes and take their rightful income. Worse, when the prostitutes feel that they are maltreated, they can5t 7ust go to the police and say that their pimps starve them. Instead of helping them, the police will arrest them for vagrancy. By legali.ing prostitution, provisions can e made

regarding pimps and rothels wherein the prostitutes will get the full worth of their work and their right to e protected. +nother kind of protection that they can avail if this will push through is sexual health. This is very important since it also concerns the health of the whole community. +ccording to 0ealth -ecretary 8a ral, it is possi le that the num er of 0I9:+I;- cases will e more than (%,%%% in 7ust three years. -ex education and health enefits such as regular check-up and access to contraceptives can e mandatory for these commercial sex workers. This is also eneficial to the customers ecause they can e assured that they are safe from -T;5s. In addition to this, it can e added to the law that ena les 0I9-positive prostitutes to work only for 0I9-positive customers. Besides protection from -T;5s, this can also lead to less cases of a ortion. <emale prostitutes are more likely to a ort an unwanted pregnancy rather than to keep it. If proper education is presented to them, there will e less cases of unwanted pregnancy and thus, a ortion.

'eace and order can also e achieved y the communities that are affected y this industry if prostitution will e legali.ed. =eigh orhoods surrounded y these illegal esta lishments are exposed to many dangers as much as the prostitutes are. If these esta lishments can e regulated, there can e provisions where prostitution will only e allowed in a certain place, away from residential, educational, and other pu lic areas. With this, security officers can easily maintain order in the prostitution work place and increase the security of the community. /oreover, decriminali.ing prostitution can also e a way of preserving the moral standards of the society y creating a >cleaner5 environment. This may sound ironic to my proposition ut we must reali.e that we already have a moral pro lem at hand. een

;uring my high school years, I was already aware of the prostitution that had

taking place in the same street our school was uilt. I was 7ust lucky that I have parents to guide me. ?nfortunately, not all mem ers of the youth have people to guide them and explain to them the works of the society. If only these esta lishments can e regulated such that they will operate discreetly and orderly according to a set of rules given y the government, morality shouldn5t e an issue. Economically, our country will greatly enefit from this. +ccording to a night life travel log, 'hilippines is one of the top sex tourist destinations in +sia. If prostitution will e regarded as a regular 7o , it can e taxed and its proceeds can e used y the country. It is somewhat like gam ling, only in a different degree. <or the prostitutes, legali.ing their profession will make their prices standardi.ed and help them earn more. 'utting aside our moral and ethical issues, we can look at it at a different point of view. =o matter how our society detests prostitution, there are still people who choose

to engage in what most of us think as immoral. Though we are all aware of its dangers, many are still ready to risk everything 7ust ecause they think it5s the only choice they can make. We can5t stop anyone from choosing this path ecause it5s their right ut we can help them y protecting them. We should also consider that not every ody in this country has the same views and morals as the 8hristian ma7ority. In fact, one of my professors knew a couple who do prostitution not ecause of poverty, ut ecause they en7oy what they are doing. 4ur culture is 7ust too diverse to e governed y a single view. We must open our eyes and learn to understand that each of us has our own individuality that should also e respected. I 7ust want to make it clear that I don5t encourage prostitution. I still elieve in the sanctity of the act ut I know that my views, or anyone5s, should not e imposed to those who don5t. We all have the freedom to choose and we choose ased on our

views, iases and situation. -ometimes, our choices entail risks and dangers and it5s the government5s 7o to protect us. 'rostitution is also one of these choices. 'rostitutes choose this field ecause of their own reasons. ;on5t they deserve the same freedom and protection@ Though I know that this may never happen, or at least not as soon as my life span permits, I still hope for a change in our country. I hope for a 'hilippines that is mature, progressive and less ironic than the way our society works now.

-ourcesA httpA::www.newsflash.org:B%%$:%B:tl:tl%!BC$$.htm

httpA::www.uri.edu:artsci:wms:hughes:philippi.htm httpA::civilli erty.a out.com:od:gendersexuality:tp:0istory-of-'rostitution.htm httpA::www.reuters.com:article:B%!%:%(:%$:us-philippines-hiv-id?-TDECB((&BB%!%%(%$ httpA::www.nighthawk7ourneys.com:nightlife- log:top-sex-destinations-sex-travel-placesworld-sex-destinations: