Prostitution Perspectives a collection of pragmatic and authoritative essays Collected for this publication by Jean du Plessis October 1996 Published by THE HOUSE, Box 18557, Hillbrow, Johannesburg, 2038 1 Prostitution Perspectives – a collection of pragmatic and authoritative essays This publication was made necessary because of the acute shortage of information about the experiential world of those humans involved in buying and selling erotic gratification in South Africa. Whereas this social deviance, since antiquity described as a necessary evil, seems to be inherent in our society, it is ignored by legislators and denigrated by the academic world as the activities of lascivious capitalistic nymphomaniacs. The humans involved in this trade - the children, the destitute women, the exploiters, the pimps, the unbridled erotic needs of the men who offer money for phallic stimulation, the lonely men and women - are not given due consideration in literature. Most of the papers collected herein were prepared for Conferences and reflects perspectives slightly removed from the usual. All these papers spring from the hearts and minds of academics who work with prostitutes every day - people who spend their time in the back streets, brothels and rehabilitation centres, learning from the women and girls currently involved in the commercial sex trade. What you will find here reflects not any particular philosophy such as Feminism, Humanitarianism or any specific religious perspective but rather a realism borne from the experiences of women and children. Whilst this collection of essays and papers go a long way toward uncovering more of the experiential world of prostitution - only a comprehension of the sum total of this collection comes close to allowing one a glimpse into the existential reality of the men, women and children captive in its world. about the authors Adéle & Jean du Plessis; founded The House in Hillbrow during 1990. They have been involved in retrieving and rehabilitating child prostitutes and old-child prostitutes from this area since then. They have been instrumental in making the phenomenon of child prostitution and intravenous drug addiction an issue for public and governmental discussion in South Africa, and are known activists, both locally and abroad, for the cause of the child prostitute. Both Jean and Adéle hold diplomas in theology and are also completing post-graduate courses in religious studies at Wits University. Bill Domeris; Ph.D. is a senior lecturer at Wits University, Department of Biblical and Religious Studies. He has been involved with The House since 1995, and the Mary Magdalene Chapel, a non-denominational church for teenage prostitutes. 2 Melissa Farley; Ph.D. is a clinical and research psychologist from San Francisco, USA. She collaborated with several South Africans in collecting data which describes the violence experienced by prostitutes in Johannesburg and Cape Town. This information is currently being analysed, and will be available soon. Researchers and activists in Zambia, Thailand, Colombia, and Turkey are collaborating in this ongoing study of violence and post-traumatic stress disorder in prostituted women. Melissa is also a known activist for women's rights. Madonna Masemola; is employed with The House and specialises in therapeutic dealings with clients both on the street and in residential care. She holds post-graduate qualifications in psychology from the University of the North. index Prostitution is a Hate Crime Page 5 By Melissa Farley, considering the phenomenon of prostitution as a patriarchal crime against society. Research which addresses prostitution as a human rights violation Page 7 By Melissa Farley, self explanatory title. This essay highlights some of the results shown in the important study regarding post traumatic stress disorder in prostitutes. Prostitution, violence and post-traumatic stress disorder Page 9 By Melissa Farley and Norma Hotaling - Initially prepared for the: NGO Forum, Fourth World Conference on Women, Beijing The Prostitution Dilemma - International Trends in Facing up to it. Page 17 By Jean du Plessis - Presentation at the Gauteng Conference on Decriminalisation of Prostitution, October 1996. Translation of the Dutch booklet "Beleid Tippelprostitutie - Utrecht" Page 24 Freely Translated by Margaretha de Hilster. A brief survey of 'Frame' Prostitution in the major cities of the Netherlands Page 33 By Jean du Plessis - Not a paper, but a collection of data. Child Prostitution in South Africa Page 38 By Adéle du Plessis - Presentation at the Gauteng Conference on 3 Decriminalisation of Prostitution, October 1996. Discusses the problem of child prostitution as presented in South Africa and the Government's persistent unwillingness to act against it. Recovering Prostitututes - Therapeutic Needs Page 45 By Madonna Masemola - Discusses the multi disciplinary needs in assisting these women to heal from the experience of prostitution. A survey of juvenile prostitution in Johannesburg: the perspective of The House Page 50 By Jean du Plessis - Originally prepared in 1995 for publication by the HSRC. Discusses the phenomenon and problems experienced in dealing with it, from the perspective of The House. Prostitution in the context of Christianity Page 80 By Dr William Domeris - Discusses, from an historical perspective, how Christian society constructed itself to allow males control over female sexuality. Prostitution: Sexuality or Dysfunction? Page 88 By Jean du Plessis - A short essay prompting enquiry into the sexuality of prostitutes. THE HOUSE - A PLACE OF HOPE FOR GIRLS - Page 96 Case Study, prepared, May 1996 by Jean du Plessis, for NGO Group for the Convention on the Rights of the Child - Prevention / Psycho-social Rehabilitation of child victims of commercial sexual exploitation. For publication and presentation at the Stockholm Congress Against Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children, September 1996. Collection of material used in awareness campaigns Page 120ff 4 Prostitution is a Hate Crime (by Melissa Farley) Some people believe that women freely choose to enter prostitution from a potpourri of nice job options. Others think that women experience sexual pleasure from prostitution. Another myth is that women become wealthy or "empowered" in prostitution. In spite of the evidence regarding coercion, battering, degradation, and terror in the lives of prostitutes, the myth that prostitution is glamorous or sexy persists. These myths couldn't be farther from the truth. Norma Hotaling, my co-researcher, and I conducted interviews of 130 San Francisco prostitutes last year and in early 1995. 80% of the prostitutes we interviewed had been physically assaulted since entering prostitution - 54% of those assaults were by customers - 67% of our interviewees had been raped since entering prostitution - 45% of these were rapes by customers. Other research has shown that from 55% to 90% of prostitutes are sexually abused as children, often by more than one perpetrator. We know that members of the commercial sex industry recruit children into prostitution when they are, on the average, thirteen years old. Poverty and homelessness are major contributing factors to entering prostitution. 84% of the prostitutes we interviewed had been homeless at some point in their lives. Myth also has it that prostitutes who work on the streets are very different from other prostitutes. This is an assumption which has not been adequately studied. For example, research has shown that 75% of women who are escort prostitutes have attempted suicide. In my clinical experience, all prostitutes suffer psychological damage from the harm which is intrinsic to prostitution. Statistics can't provide a picture of the devastating psychological effects of being prostituted. In order to work as a prostitute, it is necessary to shut down emotionally. The person who is for sale, then, is actually a pretend-self. This provides psychological protection, in much the same way a political prisoner protects himself during torture. The problem is, however, that over time it becomes difficult for someone to switch back on emotionally. The emotionally distanced self takes over more and more of the private self. Prostitution is not a pleasant sexual experience for prostitutes. In addition to shutting down emotionally, prostitutes must shut off sexually. When they choose to be sexually involved with someone they care about, it is usually impossible to get turned on. Relationship problems are common. Most prostitutes are unable to have orgasms with their chosen partners. Some have told me that it feels like their partners are tricks. Prostitutes experience a systematic destruction of the sexual self. The hatred and contempt aimed at prostitutes can't be adequately described in words. Prostitutes are treated literally as if they were filth. As one woman told us: "I'm nothing, no one they [the johns] can feel connected to. I'm only the genitals that they use, like a blow-up doll. I'm just a piece of shit." It's not surprising that the level of hatred aimed at prostitutes causes them to hate themselves, to become depressed, and to frequently use drugs in order to avoid these feelings. It doesn't seem to be possible to work as a prostitute and not be emotionally numb or high on drugs. Like combat veterans, prostitutes suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder. Symptoms of this disorder are: acute anxiety, depression, insomnia, irritability, flashbacks, emotional numbing as well as being emotionally