pattaya: prostitution expected

The past couple of days in Pattaya have been joyously packed, visiting various organizations and participating in their outreaches. Here is a snipet...

The first night we walked along the main strips, from 'walking street' along 'beach road' where hundreds of women lined the benches waiting for customers. I guessed we saw about 1000 women that first night, and I thought that was immense. In fact, there are 20,000 people working in prostitution in this city. Seeing numerous faces, 20,000 starts to lose its distance.

A missionary we talked to, said that he met a 13 year old girl on beach road a couple months ago. He asked her how old she was, 'sixteen', and looked nervously back at what turned out to be her parents. Her parents were selling her out.

Yesterday we joined up with United Christian Ministries (all the local Christian orgs come together EVERY week to worship and pray for each other. beautiful.) Afterwards we had lunch atTamar's restaurant, which is one of their income generating projects for women exiting prostitution. They also have a bakery, a salon, card-making business, jewelry, and English-classes.

Tamar's salon was next, which is right on one of the main strips with bars all around. Even at 2pm in the afternoon, girls were sitting outside the nearby bars, some dancing in the streets, as I got a pedicure. The two bars next to us are 'ladyboy' bars, or transgender. I chatted with a woman who used to be a man at the next door bar. In asking her about her clients: "some of them are good, some are bad" she told me. She's from the north of Thailand, as most of them are. They come to work, mostly 'voluntarily'. They are free to go but feel there is no other economic option for them. Some are divorced and have kids to provide for

back home.

After salon time, we split up to do outreach with Tamar, Yonnie and I went with a Thai Tamar staff who used to work in the 'business'. She has been out for 6yrs and is soon back to her home village to work with children and women. We gave roses to three women who were

working in a bar. It was around 5pm, so business was slow and we were able to buy drinks for the girls and sit and chat with them for about 40 minutes. It was very different from outreach with Nightlight were we had to watch the girls dance and then try and talk with them over blaring music. One of the girls, spoke English pretty well. She had an American boyfriend for about 6 years, he's 68 now and is a retired teacher. He recently had a stroke so his family, wife and children, came over from the US to care for him and bring him home. She said they treated her well, as he had, even though she was his Thai mistress.

That night we also briefly walked around an area known for child prostitution and sweatshops (24/7 tailors). Child prostitution is very hidden, some areas are completely blocked off. So we didnt see any children. However numerous small family-run tailor factories were open and running. We prayed through the streets and for a building that a missionary family is thinking about buying to provide a play area and activities for the children.

Thursday morning, we entered into a different world...Thai jails. We handed out sandwiches and water and tried our best to chat through the bars, but mainly using hand signals as the ones I 'spoke' to we're mainly Cambodian. They come to work in Thailand, the girls in the bars, the men in construction. Many apparently come knowing there is a risk that they will work and then their employers will report them and will get deported unpaid. Since tiny food portions are distributed twice a day, unless people have family in the area and can bring food, the inmates go hungry. So, the local Jail Ministry does what the police allows them to...gives out food and water.

Its a privilege to be here. There are so many more stories, and photos. But hopefully this gives a taste.