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Dave The Dude
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CRIMINAL LAW IN THAILAND Part 48: Sex crimes _ call girls and business models
In recent weeks we have examined the laws of Thailand relating to prostitution. Now we're looking at examples to which these laws are applied.
Here's an interesting series of examples that reflect the mores of Thai society behind the law.
Let's say O, 25, has her own cottage industry. Her customers come from references. They call her and she goes to their homes or hotel rooms, where they pay her for sex. Is O committing a crime under Thai law? In theory she might be, but as a practical matter, there is little enforcement of prostitution laws between consenting adults in private homes or hotel rooms.
Now let's change the facts of this example. It's the same situation but O is 17. Even though the service is rendered in the same place, and the same law would be applicable _ Section 8 of the Prevention and Suppression of Prostitution Act _ the practice is that the customer would be subject to a fine and imprisonment of between one and three years, because of the nature of the crime. In this case, the Thai authorities would, as a matter of practice, actively seek arrest and prosecution.
What if the customers don't know that O is 17 and she makes sure they don't by wearing a lot of makeup and telling them she's 21? If a customer could convince a judge that he truly didn't know O was under 18, this would be a defence to prosecution.
Here's another variation. Assuming, again, that O is 25. Let's say she decides to increase her market penetration by dressing provocatively and standing on the street corner near her apartment? Now she is violating Section 5 of the act but is only subject to a maximum fine of 1,000 baht, because she's soliciting in a public place.
If O looks for business in in a bar or place where there are other prostitutes, she is also subject, if arrested, to up to a month in jail, for violating Section 6 of the act. Likewise customers arrested for either picking O up on the street corner or going to a "prostitution establishment", which can be as innocent-seeming as a bar where there are bar girls available for hire, are subject to identical penalties.
Now let's see how the law reacts if O decides to expand her business. She hires three friends, all 21 or older. They work out of O's apartment. The business model is simple. Customers call and O dispatches one of her employees to service the customers, similar to the first example, above. But this situation is gravely different under Thai law. Now O is violating Section 11 of the act, which would expose her, as a manager of a prostitution business, to a fine plus three to 15 years' imprisonment. O is also exposed to a raft of other penalties under the Thai Criminal Code, discussed in past weeks. And if any of her employees are 18 or younger, O faces drastically increased penalties.
What about O's employees, and their customers? If everything is done on an individual basis in the customers' houses or hotel rooms, and if O's employees are not underage, they are theoretically exposed, but in practice probably won't be prosecuted.
- Published: 29/05/2011 at 12:00 AM
- Newspaper section: Spectrum
In recent weeks we have examined the laws of Thailand relating to prostitution. Now we're looking at examples to which these laws are applied.
Here's an interesting series of examples that reflect the mores of Thai society behind the law.
Let's say O, 25, has her own cottage industry. Her customers come from references. They call her and she goes to their homes or hotel rooms, where they pay her for sex. Is O committing a crime under Thai law? In theory she might be, but as a practical matter, there is little enforcement of prostitution laws between consenting adults in private homes or hotel rooms.
Now let's change the facts of this example. It's the same situation but O is 17. Even though the service is rendered in the same place, and the same law would be applicable _ Section 8 of the Prevention and Suppression of Prostitution Act _ the practice is that the customer would be subject to a fine and imprisonment of between one and three years, because of the nature of the crime. In this case, the Thai authorities would, as a matter of practice, actively seek arrest and prosecution.
What if the customers don't know that O is 17 and she makes sure they don't by wearing a lot of makeup and telling them she's 21? If a customer could convince a judge that he truly didn't know O was under 18, this would be a defence to prosecution.
Here's another variation. Assuming, again, that O is 25. Let's say she decides to increase her market penetration by dressing provocatively and standing on the street corner near her apartment? Now she is violating Section 5 of the act but is only subject to a maximum fine of 1,000 baht, because she's soliciting in a public place.
If O looks for business in in a bar or place where there are other prostitutes, she is also subject, if arrested, to up to a month in jail, for violating Section 6 of the act. Likewise customers arrested for either picking O up on the street corner or going to a "prostitution establishment", which can be as innocent-seeming as a bar where there are bar girls available for hire, are subject to identical penalties.
Now let's see how the law reacts if O decides to expand her business. She hires three friends, all 21 or older. They work out of O's apartment. The business model is simple. Customers call and O dispatches one of her employees to service the customers, similar to the first example, above. But this situation is gravely different under Thai law. Now O is violating Section 11 of the act, which would expose her, as a manager of a prostitution business, to a fine plus three to 15 years' imprisonment. O is also exposed to a raft of other penalties under the Thai Criminal Code, discussed in past weeks. And if any of her employees are 18 or younger, O faces drastically increased penalties.
What about O's employees, and their customers? If everything is done on an individual basis in the customers' houses or hotel rooms, and if O's employees are not underage, they are theoretically exposed, but in practice probably won't be prosecuted.