ILOILO City – Sex sells. But not quite these past few months.
With nightclubs closed to prevent the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), there has been a dearth of customers for commercial sex workers, according to the city government’s Task Force on Morals and Values Formation.
Suffering a heavy economic beating from the pandemic, this city’s prostituted women and men – mostly non-residents of Iloilo – have left, said task force chief Nestor Canong.
“Nakahingagaw sila puli sa Manila, Mindanao, Roxas City, Bacolod City, and Cebu,” he told Panay News.
But it may not be just about the lack of customers paying for sex. Workers in the flesh trade were suddenly faced an awful choice between livelihood and health.
SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, can spread from person to person in close contact through small droplets from the nose or mouth, and it can be fatal to the immunocompromised.
The task force has been discreetly monitoring the movements of commercial sex workers – a sector of the workforce that remains all but invisible to society – since the start of the community quarantine in March.
The closure of beerhouses, nightclubs and even massage parlors drove some commercial sex workers to ply their trade on the streets at night.
“But there are not too many freelance sex workers here, and the curfew is further restricting their kind of job,” said Canong, without giving figures.
People go home early because of the curfew that starts at 10 a.m. and ends at 4 a.m. of the next day, he explained.
“Sa Ledesma (Street) daw may ara dira sang nagligad, tatlo or apat. Nagpalauli man kay daw waay man kustomer nga kuhaon,” said Canong.
The task force chief clarified that prostitution remains illegal. But for a sector that has been historically ostracized, the coronavirus has meant sex workers find themselves in an even more difficult situation.
“Sa aton diri, sort of daw gina-intindi ta na lang,” said Canong.
Every time commercial sex workers were apprehended, said Canong, they would tell the task force, “Tagae bala kami sang disente nga trabaho para may mapakaon kami sa amon kabataan. Bayaan namon ang amo ‘ni nga obra.”
The city government issues “green cards” to commercial sex workers in nightclubs, beerhouses and massage parlors and “pink cards” for freelance sex workers after they are checked at the city’s Social Hygiene Clinic.
These cards guarantee their being free from sexually transmitted infections.
But these are not permits for them to engage in the illegal sex trade. Rather, this scheme compels them to regularly undergo examination.
This way, the city government ensures that they do not become a threat to public health, said Canong.
“At the same time, ining mga indi makapugong nga kalalakin-an nga nagakuha sang ini nga klase sang kababaenhan, maprotektahan man,” added the task force chief.
If not sexually transmitted diseases, sex workers could be spreading COVID-19 without knowing it. Some people become infected with COVID-19 but do not develop any symptoms and do not feel unwell.
COVID-19 is the infectious disease caused by the most recently discovered coronavirus. This new virus and disease were unknown before the outbreak began in Wuhan, China in December 2019.
The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are fever, tiredness, and dry cough.
Some patients may have aches and pains, nasal congestion, runny nose, sore throat or diarrhea. These symptoms are usually mild and begin gradually. Some, however, could be asymptomatic.
People can catch COVID-19 from others who have the virus. The disease can spread from person to person through small droplets from the nose or mouth which are spread when a person with COVID-19 coughs or exhales.
These droplets also land on objects and surfaces around the person. Other people then catch COVID-19 by touching these objects or surfaces, then touching their eyes, nose or mouth./PN
