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Rangsimon Pholcharoenchit

Jordan Ruyle
Philosophy 3 ????
Report Version 1
10 October 2016
Ray- Great work so far on your report. You do a nice job of staying focused through
each factor paragraph, even as they describe complex aspects of prostitution in
Thailand. You also mostly remain true to the genre, keeping your report sounding
like a report in tone and in the type of data and facts presented. Overall,
your report works well. I recommend looking for places to make it more concise, as
it is about 200 words over the word limit. You shouldnt worry overmuch about
getting down to 900, but consider practicing conciseness and careful
selection of your examples. See my comments for further revision ideas- Ive
marked some grammar, but look for similar errors on your own.

Prostitution: A Report on Gender Inequality in Thailand


The recent State Departments 2014 Trafficking in Persons report has
downgraded Thailand to the lowest possible ranking, Tier 3placing
Thailand, along with North Korea, Syria and the Central African Republic
in term of human rights issues (Brown 2014). This, a blow to Thai
governments ego, is a reflection of its inability to stop human trafficking.
Although the scope of human trafficking encompasses many issues, this
report will only focus on a specific issueprevalence of prostitution in
Thailand. The most recent estimate of number if prostitutes in Thailand is
250,000 (Baccagno 2015). Of that figure, most of the sex workers are
women from the rural parts of Thailand. It is estimated that at least one of
every 100 working women is a sex worker. (Simpkins 1998) Because
prostitution is arguably a form of violence against women (Farley 2004), its
prevalence is shockingly reflects Thai societys tolerance towards this form
of violence. In her artical, The Privileged Lie of Gender Equality in
Thailand, Chia argues that such tolerance is propagated by the following:
Thailands history of sexual objectification of women; social acceptance of
prostitution as a necessary evil; economic pressures on women of lower
socioeconomic status; and lack of effective legal framework (2016).
History of Objectifications: The bars are temples but the pearls
ain't free
Although sex industry in Thailand is not a recent development,
western influence in the recent years have contributed to the form it has
taken today. Thailand has infamously known for prostitution since the end
of World War II. The states has fashioned itself as a Rest and
Recreation facility for foreign soldiers during the Japanese occupation and
later during the Second Indochina War (Latstetter 2000). By the end of the
wars, not unlike other developing countries, Thailand has began to
commercializes its sex industry (Simpkins 1997). Today, sex tourism in
Thailand accounts for approximately 6.4 billions US dollars annually, a
striking 10 percent of the nations entire GDP. Of that figure, 300 million

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US dollars are being sent into rural areas to support the family of sex
workers (Boccogno 2015). One study on tourists spending at Koh Samaui
a tourist destination not particularly known for sex tourismfound that 10
percent of tourists spending is on sex (Martin 2006).
Social Acceptance: Prostitutes play a crucial role in conserving Thai
values
Thais opposing views of premarital sexual experience of men and
women necessitates the social functioning of prostitution. Studies of urban,
middle class population at the turn of the century finds that 30.2 percent of
married men has previous sexual experience, while the same of married
women is a meager 0.03 percent (Francouer 1997). Such inconsistency
between men and women is only possible if those premarital sexual
experience of men are to be attained through the service of sex workers.
This notion is reflected by the finding from research on Thai Royal Army. It
is found that of the 97 percent of 21 year old samples that have had sexual
intercourse, 74 percent reports having their first sexual experience with a
female sex worker. In contrast, only 12 percent have had it with a lover,
and only a mere 8 percent with their girlfriend (Francouer 1997). Thus,
prostitutions in Thai society functions not only as a necessary evil needed
to preserv[e] the virtue of good women, but also as a sex educat[or],
providing a coming out of age men with sexual experience that is expected
of them (Francouer 1997).
Economic Pressure: Sex pays
Thailands wealth disparity has pushes women from rural areas into
sex industry. Simpkins argue that prostitution is the only mean a woman of
lower socioeconomic status can make significant earnings. In one estimate,
female sex worker can earn a relatively monument earning of 300 US
dollars per month, in contrast to 8 US dollar per month of an average
worker; the difference is a striking 20-40 folds (1998). Sex pays; and as
Thai society moves from agricultural economy to an industrial one, women
are being moved from their rural areas into the urban, where their
newfound role of a breadwinner for their parents forces them into this
lucrative business. In fact, a shocking estimate done in the 90s has found
that more than 1.2 million people are (almost 20 percent of the nations
population) are financially dependent on avenues earned through
prostitution (Simpkins 1998). Yet, the urban middle class women, who are
not subjected to the same economic pressure, fail[s] to empathize with
sex workers, disregarding them as immoral. Ultimately, as Chia argues,
Thailands gender problem is intimately connected to class (2016).
Ambiguous Legal Framework: Not to womens benefit
Thailands ambiguous law prohibiting prostitution does little to
protect women against this form of sexual violence. Rather, Thai
government seems to be preoccupied with upholding the Thai conservative
valuesabhorring female sex workers as immoral and absolving male client
of their guiltswhile attempting to profit from the sex industry (Chia
2016). Interestingly, prostitution is not illegal per se; Thailands Penal Code,

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Title IX, Section 286, only prohibits any person from subsist[ing] on the
earning of a prostitute, even if it is some part of her incomes (aHennessy
2012). Moreover, under the Prostitution Act
Simpkins concludes that sex industry [i]s not imposed on Thailand
against its will (1998).
As illustrated, the aforementioned factors has emplaced propagated
prostitution in Thailand. The issue of prostitution, a form of violence against
women, must be addressed holistically from different perspectives. This is
not simply to bump Thailand up from the Tier 3 category, but to resolve a
deep rooted issue within Thai society in the context of a global goal to
achieve universal human rights.

Sources
Julia Boccagno (11 November 2015). "Thailand's trans sex workers seek
empowerment, not pity". Asia Correspondent. Retrieved from
http://asiancorrespondent.com/2015/11/thailands-transsexual-workers-seekempowerment-not-pity/.
Jasmine Chia (30 March 2016). The Privileged Lie of Gender Equality in
Thailand Harvard International Review. Retrieved from
http://hir.harvard.edu/privileged-lie-gender-equality-thailand/.
Latstetter, Jennifer (2000). "American Military-Base Prostitution". The
Monitor: Journal of International Studies. College of William and Mary, 6.
Retrieved from https://web.wm.edu/so/monitor/issues/06-2/6-latstetter.htm.
Dulcey Simpkins (1998) Rethinking the Sex Industry: Thailand's Sex
Workers, the State, and Changing Cultures of Consumption. Issue title:
Unequal Exchange: Gender and Economies of Power, 12. Retrieved from
http://hdl.handle.net/2027/spo.ark5583.0012.005.
Lorna Martin (25 Jan 2006). "Paradise Revealed. The Taipei Times.
Retrieved
http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/archives/2006/01/25/2003290710.
aHennessy; kilikina (27 Jun 2012). "Current Legal Framework: Prostitution
in Thailand". IMPOWR.org. ABA. Retrieved from
http://www.impowr.org/content/current-legal-framework-prostitution-thailand .
Melissa Farley (1 October 2004). Prostitution Is Sexual Violence.
Psychiactric Times. Retrieved from http://www.psychiatrictimes.com/sexualoffenses/prostitution-sexual-violence.
Sophie Brown (21 June 2014). Tackling Thailand's human trafficking
problem. CNN. Retrieved from
http://edition.cnn.com/2014/06/20/world/asia/thailand-trafficking-report/ .
Francoeur, Robert T., ed. (1997). The International Encyclopedia of
Sexuality: Thailand. New York: The Continuum Publishing Company.
Retrieved from http://www.sexarchive.info/IES/thailand.html.

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Error analysis key with examples


.. = article error
.. = verb error/ wrong tense, problem forming the verb, or subject-verb error
.. = word form error
.. = word choice error- inaccurate word choice or collocations error
.. = noun ending/ singular or plural error
.. = sentence structure- punctuation, confusing grammar, or word order problem
.. = word missing
.. = pronoun reference unclear
.. =wrong, missing or misused preposition
Examples below

.. = article error
It is a most interesting book I have read. Steve Jobs is the leader of the Apple.
.. = verb error/ wrong tense, problem forming the verb, or subject-verb error
We didnt completed the job yesterday. Disposing of electronics properly becomes a major issue.
.. = word form error
Her father is the most success software engineer in the firm.

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.. = word choice error- inaccurate word choice or collocations error


The team is putting emphasis to their defense. Hybrid vehicles need more workers for
production.
.. = noun ending/ singular or plural error
We have enough homeworks to last a week. The wastes have to be dealt with properly.
.. = sentence structure- punctuation, confusing grammar, or word order problem
I like apples they are delicious. The manager bought yesterday a new computer.
.. = word missing
They are interested going with us to the concert.
.. = pronoun reference unclear
We enjoyed the book and the movie, but it was more violent.

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