Sex Tourism in Thailand: Root Causes and Gender Differences
Author: Cheng Zhang
1 Commentries
ABSTRACT
Thailand, one of the top five tourist destinations in Southeast Asia and the most popular holiday destination for young tourists, provides tropical forests, dazzling beaches, coral reefs, Thai cuisines and definitely sex tourism. This paper summarised the root causes of sex exploitation and gender differences in sex tourist motivations.
Key words: Thailand, sex tourism, prostitution, negative image, poverty, gender differences, motivations, children protection
Sex tourism, with commercial nature, is people from developed countries travelling to underdeveloped countries to consummate the sexual services of locals, according to Horner and Swarbrooke (2004). Nuttavuthisit (2007) noted the sex tourism industry takes various forms ranging from the production of videos, through to nude dancing, and tourism-related prostitution. It is one of niche tourism as it focuses on very precise small markets - the sex tourists. Currently, sex tourism is a million-dollar industry, particularly in some underprivileged nations around the world. People go over to foreign countries in what appears to be usual holidaymakers but indeed they are sex tourists, since they purchase sexual relations with local sex workers. The pull factors, according to Ryan and Hall (2001), were illegal sexual activities in home country and much lower price in sex tourism destination.
In Thailand, sex tourist is an important component of international tourism marketing. Nuttavuthisit (2007) argued the sex tourism was originated in the Vietnam War between 1960s and 1970s. US soldiers and American servicemen were major customers for Rest and Recreation (R&R). The involving number of prostitutes has growing rapidly from 20,000 to 400,000. Afterwards, Thailand has been associated with sexual paradise through word of mouth and media promotion.
Obviously, sex tourism had brought related problems. Thailand was one of the first Asian countries to be affected by AIDS in 1987, with a number of at least 2.5 million in the year of 2000, according to World Health Organization (2000). Combined with negative image, sex tourism became an issue of wide public concern and there has been a drop in tourist arrivals in Thailand, especially the family tourists (Nuttavuthisit, 2007).
Additionally, gay sex tourism and child sex tourism are very common in Thailand as well. Simply, gay sex tourism is for gays. Since the homosexuality became much broader accepted all over the world, there are more and more gays and lesbians tourists participate in sex tourism. Specifically in Thailand, according to Clift et al (2009), no laws against homosexual acts, gay host bars, and the Bangkok Gay Festival and Thai attitude towards homosexuality facilitated the growth of gay sex tourism. While, child sex tourism, tourists travel to foreign nations to engage in sexual activity with children, is another controversial issue, with approximately 2 million children are involved in illegal child sex tourism all over the world and 40 per cent of prostitutes in Thailand are children (Sex Tourism, 2009). On one hand, push factors of child sex tourism including lack of love and care; need for money and other basic needs; want for better life and family encouragement. On the other hand, pull factors including perception about tourists being wealthy; love and care shown by the tourist; money, food or clothes given by the tourists; instances of genuine help received from tourists and; prestige indeed encourage children being prostitutes. This was proved by Horner and Swarbrooke (2004).
Poverty, government actions and Internet are three major forces encourage sex tourism development in Thailand. First of all, poverty appears to be a significant root cause to push women and children into sex trade. With limited purchasing power, Thai women migrated to cities but there were only few industrial job opportunities; therefore, sex tourism is a way out of poverty. Nuttavuthisit (2007) stated that many sex workers in Thailand were engaged in the business to work off their families' debts and to sustain their family units in a rural economy and children themselves need money to meet their expenses because of an increasing culture of consumption and their high living expenses in a materialistic world. Secondly, profit stimulation blinded Thai government to the sex tourism industry. Without enough cooperation, coordination and assistance, the changing efforts eventually were in vain, even if they had tried. Finally, websites provide lots of picture and words about sex tourism, including previous experiences and bargain skills. Convenient access marketing channel and misleading information result in potential devastating impacts, according to Sex Tourism (2009).
Traditionally, the term 'sex tourism' is regarded as male clients for female sex workers; however, thousands of female are now increasingly becoming sex tourists in a large number. As for motivations, 'male sex tourists prefer to look purely for sexual encounters with strangers whether this is through brothels, strip clubs or local prostitutes' (Dabphet, 2010, p.3). Clift et al (2002) stated that female sex tourists were significantly more motivated to look for holiday romance. Overall, Horner and Swarbrooke (2004) strengthened that reasons why people participate in sex tourism is very personal and individual's reasons are distinctive.
To sum up, sex tourism is the oldest and controversial issue in tourism and will remain a subject of future fierce debate in children protection.
References
Horner, S., and Swarbrooke, J. (2004) International Cases in Tourism Management Oxford: Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann
Nuttavuthisit, K. (2007) Branding Thailand: Correcting the Negative Image of Sex Tourism, Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Vol. 3. pp. 21-30.
Sex Tourism (2009) Sex Tourism Industry [online]. [Accessed 18 March 2011] Available at: http://www.sextourism.net.
Thailand, one of the top five tourist destinations in Southeast Asia and the most popular holiday destination for young tourists, provides tropical forests, dazzling beaches, coral reefs, Thai cuisines and definitely sex tourism. This paper summarised the root causes of sex exploitation and gender differences in sex tourist motivations.
Key words: Thailand, sex tourism, prostitution, negative image, poverty, gender differences, motivations, children protection
Sex tourism, with commercial nature, is people from developed countries travelling to underdeveloped countries to consummate the sexual services of locals, according to Horner and Swarbrooke (2004). Nuttavuthisit (2007) noted the sex tourism industry takes various forms ranging from the production of videos, through to nude dancing, and tourism-related prostitution. It is one of niche tourism as it focuses on very precise small markets - the sex tourists. Currently, sex tourism is a million-dollar industry, particularly in some underprivileged nations around the world. People go over to foreign countries in what appears to be usual holidaymakers but indeed they are sex tourists, since they purchase sexual relations with local sex workers. The pull factors, according to Ryan and Hall (2001), were illegal sexual activities in home country and much lower price in sex tourism destination.
In Thailand, sex tourist is an important component of international tourism marketing. Nuttavuthisit (2007) argued the sex tourism was originated in the Vietnam War between 1960s and 1970s. US soldiers and American servicemen were major customers for Rest and Recreation (R&R). The involving number of prostitutes has growing rapidly from 20,000 to 400,000. Afterwards, Thailand has been associated with sexual paradise through word of mouth and media promotion.
Obviously, sex tourism had brought related problems. Thailand was one of the first Asian countries to be affected by AIDS in 1987, with a number of at least 2.5 million in the year of 2000, according to World Health Organization (2000). Combined with negative image, sex tourism became an issue of wide public concern and there has been a drop in tourist arrivals in Thailand, especially the family tourists (Nuttavuthisit, 2007).
Additionally, gay sex tourism and child sex tourism are very common in Thailand as well. Simply, gay sex tourism is for gays. Since the homosexuality became much broader accepted all over the world, there are more and more gays and lesbians tourists participate in sex tourism. Specifically in Thailand, according to Clift et al (2009), no laws against homosexual acts, gay host bars, and the Bangkok Gay Festival and Thai attitude towards homosexuality facilitated the growth of gay sex tourism. While, child sex tourism, tourists travel to foreign nations to engage in sexual activity with children, is another controversial issue, with approximately 2 million children are involved in illegal child sex tourism all over the world and 40 per cent of prostitutes in Thailand are children (Sex Tourism, 2009). On one hand, push factors of child sex tourism including lack of love and care; need for money and other basic needs; want for better life and family encouragement. On the other hand, pull factors including perception about tourists being wealthy; love and care shown by the tourist; money, food or clothes given by the tourists; instances of genuine help received from tourists and; prestige indeed encourage children being prostitutes. This was proved by Horner and Swarbrooke (2004).
Poverty, government actions and Internet are three major forces encourage sex tourism development in Thailand. First of all, poverty appears to be a significant root cause to push women and children into sex trade. With limited purchasing power, Thai women migrated to cities but there were only few industrial job opportunities; therefore, sex tourism is a way out of poverty. Nuttavuthisit (2007) stated that many sex workers in Thailand were engaged in the business to work off their families' debts and to sustain their family units in a rural economy and children themselves need money to meet their expenses because of an increasing culture of consumption and their high living expenses in a materialistic world. Secondly, profit stimulation blinded Thai government to the sex tourism industry. Without enough cooperation, coordination and assistance, the changing efforts eventually were in vain, even if they had tried. Finally, websites provide lots of picture and words about sex tourism, including previous experiences and bargain skills. Convenient access marketing channel and misleading information result in potential devastating impacts, according to Sex Tourism (2009).
Traditionally, the term 'sex tourism' is regarded as male clients for female sex workers; however, thousands of female are now increasingly becoming sex tourists in a large number. As for motivations, 'male sex tourists prefer to look purely for sexual encounters with strangers whether this is through brothels, strip clubs or local prostitutes' (Dabphet, 2010, p.3). Clift et al (2002) stated that female sex tourists were significantly more motivated to look for holiday romance. Overall, Horner and Swarbrooke (2004) strengthened that reasons why people participate in sex tourism is very personal and individual's reasons are distinctive.
To sum up, sex tourism is the oldest and controversial issue in tourism and will remain a subject of future fierce debate in children protection.
References
Horner, S., and Swarbrooke, J. (2004) International Cases in Tourism Management Oxford: Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann
Nuttavuthisit, K. (2007) Branding Thailand: Correcting the Negative Image of Sex Tourism, Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, Vol. 3. pp. 21-30.
Sex Tourism (2009) Sex Tourism Industry [online]. [Accessed 18 March 2011] Available at: http://www.sextourism.net.