Who Are the Clients and What They Say about Prostitution in South-East Asia?

Abstract

Investigating the clientele of prostitutes in order to have a better knowledge of their expectations and practices, to reveal the reasons for their behaviour, is not easy. This penetration of the intimate sphere of the person contradicts deep desires to preserve anonymity and to remain faceless. They want to enjoy clean consciences, by denying any acknowledgement of personal responsibility. This is one of the reasons why clients, although key players in the prostitution industry, have not received the attention of social researchers. Feminists regard this gap as a deliberate omission due to the tacit acceptance of male privilege in the control of sexual practices. Studies focus much more on supply than on demand because of the moral stigma surrounding the subject. There are methodological difficulties in identifying the diversity and heterogeneity of clients. Through 38 interviews with local and foreign clients of Asian prostitutes in Indonesia, Thailand and Hong Kong, and the testimonies of 15 Indonesian prostitutes, this paper to identifies the motivations, justifications, and profiles of men paying for sex. In the West, the subject in itself is taboo so there are few rewards to declare oneself “the client of a prostitute”. Our interviews show similar aversions in Asia. Anonymity avoids shame and the redefinition of commercial payment into various alternative narratives building on the unequal status of the women in economic, social, and cultural terms protects the male sexual privilege.