Issue No.8
Table of Content
From the EditorStarting from whether it is legal...
My Story
Madam Chow's Mailbox
Sex and Scarcity: Rebuild Confidence and Create Tomorrow Volunteer Training Course
Work report
In the last issue, Zi Teng examined the laws that affected sex workers. The court cases showed that those charged guilty of sex trade were mostly self-employed sex workers' streetwalkers. They were charged with "soliciting for an immoral purpose". In this issue, Yan Yan concludes her investigation and observation of court cases. For those sex workers who plead guilty after their arrest or those who submit to paying fines for their "crimes", some of them simply want to avoid any trouble; others see it as their fates; and a number of them just do not understand what happened. Even if we do not go into question like whether the law itself is reasonable, whether the jurisdiction is prejudged, Yan Yan's stories let us know the other side of the story---that sex workers do not understand the law, they do not understand that sex work itself is not illegal. It is their bad experiences that make them distrust the judiciary and lead them to fatalism.
Starting from whether it is legal
I interviewed twelve or thirteen sex workers who were charged with "soliciting for an immoral purpose". They felt helpless with the charges. Eight of them thought that it was already lucky for them just to pay fines or to have probation. Two of them even considered the jurisdiction lenient and the judge merciful, and there was no need for a review or re-investigation.
Six of the interviewed "Jiejie"(sisters) come from mainland China with travel documents. Besides "soliciting for an immoral purpose", they were also charged for "contravening a condition of stay" in Hong Kong. The law forbids entrants to Hong Kong with traveling documents to work with pay. One of the "Jiejie"(sisters) thought that there are contradictions in the law. 'What can we do? We are poor! Mainland Chinese! That is what it is. Call it bad luck. You are finished the moment you are arrested. It is reality.' Although they feel that the law is unfair, they also think that it is their fate.
All interviewees coming from mainland China heard that it was illegal to be a streetwalker in Hong Kong. However, only one know that they were charged were two totally different offenses, while the rest of the "Jiejie"(sisters) did not understand what kind of crime they had committed, nor did they know anything about the Hong Kong juridical system and the proceedings with evidence.
All
the local interviewees had ever been charged for "soliciting for an immoral
purpose". They thought that what they did were illegal. One of them even said
that a fine is the price of being a sex worker. She said that most of the local
"Jiejie"(sisters) were recognized and arrested in turns by the police who did
that just to please their boss. Although they were more familiar with the law
than those coming from mainland China, they would still plead guilty every now
and then in order to escape any trouble. Angered at what she thinks was a set
up, one of them tried to fight back by not pleading guilty, she ended up being
convicted and fined as the same. They have no illusion about getting rid of
the charges. Three "Jiejie"(sisters) employed a lawyer, but they thought
that the possibility of winning the case was low, and the function of
a lawyer was
just to ask for mitigation.
Conclusion:
Basically all the interviewees know the consequence of being arrested in the course of their work, but they do not really understand the offense they were charged with. They even misunderstand that sex work is illegal. Those coming from mainland China know nothing at all about the penalty, nor the working environment and conditions before hand. They are more timid in court compared with the local sex workers. They also do not know that they have the right to seek legal aid.
Zi Teng has contacted a lot of "Jiejie"(sisters) who suffer from violence. In this issue, the protagonist of "My Story", Ling Chai, is one of them.
I am a girl working in the red light district, I will now tell the truth of how I suffer from violence incessantly. First of all, I beg all of you cast your bias off for the moment and look at the truth from different angles. Everyone struggles to earn a living, but I clearly know that we are discriminated. This is unbearable but still I have to bear it. But violence I can bear no more. From 1995 to 1998, I was incessantly treated with violence...
In mid 1995, when I was standing at the entrance of a building, a man scolded me for blocking his way. He suddenly beat me up with a rod and my head was broken and bleeding.
In May 1996, I went into a room of an hourly hotel. I was pushed rudely to the ground. A man kicked me and punched me cruelly and I was bleeding. Then the assailant ran away.
In mid 1997, somebody beat me up in a shop, and my wrist was dislocated.
In
September 1997, mid-night, I was so battered by two men on Lockhart
Road
that my head got swollen, some of the blood vessels in brain were
blocked. I was
in pain for more than ten hours a day. The serious injury took
more than three months to recover.
In October 1997, I was beaten up on the street and the bones of my hands burst. In mid 1998, I was assaulted by two men in a stone house on the roof of a building. They ransacked the house and smashed everything, including the door, the lock, the lamp, the water-pipe of the toilet, the TV set, the air-conditioner and all the electric appliances in the house; even the wallpaper and the floor were almost pried.
The most serious attack was the one in August 1998. A man followed me to a certain street and attacked me without any warning. I was defenseless. He gave me a blow on the bridge of my nose. It was broken immediately and blood was bursting out like a spring. He beat me openly under public gaze and left as if nothing had happened. I went to a hospital by myself. My nose was sewn up with eight stitches. Still the wound was very sensitive, I could not help but cry after the stitching.
Women usually care for their faces. When I looked at my face that was marred by a scar; when I thought of the scar being permanent, I did not know how to deal with it. The sewn wound on my nose was infected and swollen by my tears and my eyes were swollen too which led to bad headache and temporary deafness. The assailants were cold-blooded and inhuman. They did that just to deny me a living.
I am the one who suffers from these unfortunates, and I do retain a distant hope that the government and the society will give me spiritual help and support and have sympathy with me. Every time when I was treated with violence, I followed the official procedures, I call the police, I made complaints,I called people up and I file a case. However, every time the police gave me the same reply, 'We cannot do anything! In Hong Kong you can bully a witness and make him disappear even if you have killed somebody. You are not famous and why did they beat you up?' When I went to other government departments to complain, they told me they only dealt with corruption or management affairs, but not for others. My God! A single woman with no criminal record was frequently beaten up by somebody without a cause and the government and the police did absolutely nothing! Not even arrest or charge any one of the assailants who deliberately assault her. I am angry but my anger is not heeded.
I wish that other "prostitutes" will never suffer from violence as I did; never lose a hair that they do not have to hand in money to other people; that they can work in their own places and do not have to worry about losing their jobs. I wish them good luck.
What is 'soliciting for an immoral purpose' actually meant? We will explain it in the following.
In Chapter 200 of the Criminal Offense Ordinance, number 147, "soliciting for an immoral purpose" (CAP 200, No.147) is the offense most frequently committed by self-employed sex workers. But there are certain gray areas not explicitly stated in this part of the ordinance.
No.147 states no clear definition of "an immoral purpose". This gives the judge much discretion in interpretation. No.147 states that "an immoral purpose" include: (a)a man having anal sex with another man; and (b) a man committing an act of gross indecency with another man. Derek Roebuck in The Criminal Law of Hong Kong, pointed to the case of Crook V. Edmoson in England in 1966 in which "an immoral purpose" was interrupted as "sexual conduct that is considered wrong by the majority of contemporary people". Since sexual behaviors on money terms are generally regarded as behaviors with "an immoral purpose", thus sex workers looking for business on the street naturally commit the offense of "soliciting for an immoral purpose".
Yet No.147 does not explain clearly how body language constitutes an offense. According to one of my observations in court, the prosecution lawyer argued in details how the accused(sex worker)'s clothing, behavior, expressions and body gestures can all constitute the offense of "soliciting for an immoral purpose". Even if the accused just loiter in public places and is thus considered as having an immoral purpose, she can be charged with the offense too.
Moreover, according to my experiences, the word "soliciting" actually means one side taking the initiative to speak; or propose a price or the kind of service to be offered. If the accused say hello first or say anything about the price of service, they will be charged in most cases. But if the situation is not clear, the verdict will depend on the lawyer's argument and the judge's decision.
I have attended more than twenty such court cases. According to my observation, if the accused plead not guilty, the judge usually considers things like the conversation between the accused and the witness; and the money transaction as the main evidence. Seldom are things like the accused's clothing, behavior, expression, body language or mere loitering taken as evidence. Since the judge seldom gives interpretation of how clothing, behavior, expression, body language constituted the offense, these areas are left undefined. Since No. 147 is very vague, and sex workers are not familiar with it, thus the police can easily arrest them. Most of them plead guilty because they are afraid and want to have lenient sentence. Since these cases are easy to handle, the police will not repeat the whole proceeding and arrest them again with the same charge. And if they plead guilty every time that leads to a vicious cycle. Not only will the court have no opportunity to establish new case and initiate new investigation, we also cannot grasp the legal point of view behind each case.
Another condition is that the offense be committed "in public", which refers to public places like streets or staircase. If negotiations of price or any such conservation really takes place in private places, it is not illegal.
Sex and Scarcity: Rebuild Confidence and Create Tomorrow Volunteer
Training Course
Sponsor: Nethersole Fund
Organizer: Zi Teng(Concerned group for Sex Workers)
Contents:
- "Jiejie"(sisters), who are you?
- "Jiejie"(sisters), do you know career health?
- Front-line research and contact sex workers
- Districts visits and teaching skills in answering hot-line
Dates: 9/4, 16/4, 23/4, 30/4/1999(every Fridays)
Time: 7:30-9:30p.m.
Venue: Wanchai Application: 2332 7182 (for inquires)
Applicants should abide the following:
1. Attend the interview(Date: 24/3/99, Wednesday)
2. Attend all classes.
3. Visit a district at least once after the course (interview at least three sex workers) and be on duty for the hot-line consultation.
Applicants should attend the interview, and pay a deposit of $200(if the attendance is above 80%, all deposit will be returned.)
Legal Consultation Services
The Legal Consultation Services Scheme started in January 1999. The first part of the scheme is volunteer training course and there were twenty applicants. The course was conducted in two stages, each lasted for four weeks. This include "districts visit", which is to understand and publicize legal consultation services to sex workers. After finishing the first stage training, legal consultation hot-line will start. Pamphlets for sex workers are ready.
Investigation of Court Cases
The court proceedings have nearly come to the end, and analyzes have just started. Part of the report is given in the above in Chen Yan Yan's article.
Publication
Together with "Step Forward Multimedia Company Limited", publication on sex workers is at hand. The project will be finished in mid 1999.
Health Consultation Services
In preparation of the volunteer training course and publicizing health consultation services, including exhibitions, posters and pamphlets about health.
Others
*Chiang Hung, a volunteer, will introduce Zi Teng to Christian Labor Church.
*A social work M.Phil student from University of Hong Kong started doing practicals at Zi Teng from January.
*Participated in Human Rights Day. Introduce the situations of sex workers by means of drama and exhibitions.
*In preparation of a research on sex workers from Hong Kong, mainland China and Macau.
