Staff Correspondent
Prostitution goes unabated in different parts of the country specially capital Dhaka as young and minor girls are being forced to this immoral profession in the name of giving job.
A section of unscrupulous inhabitants in the capital are engaged in collecting young and minor girls from their villages in the name of giving them jobs and later either these girls are trafficked abroad or forced to prostitution.
Prostitution is now going on at various flats, residential houses, boardings and hotels in Dhaka and other cities across the country due to demolition of brothels by the Awami League government during 1996-2001.
About alternative to brothels, Afroza Parvin, Executive Director of Nari Unnayan Shakti, said “These girls reside at various flats and residential houses and they come to street at mid night to catch customers. Either these girls are taken to other places or they bring customers to their own flats.”
She said the prostitution becomes alarming in our country as prostitutes and their customers both are being affected by HIV infections and AIDS for not adopting preventive measures.
According to a government report– 1,495 persons were affected by STD infection, 476 infected with AIDS and 165 died in 2008. But this number is low as per private statistics stating that 15 to 25 thousand people suffer from HIV infections.
Around one lakh girls are engaged in prostitution and they come to this immoral profession due to economic difficulties. Most of these girls are adults but 5 per cent of sex workers are minors.
A Sub Inspector of Mirpur Police Station said “In most cases these girls are forced to sex with customers and then they become habituated with this profession. But some of these girls become prostitute by choice due to poor economic condition because a girl cannot be forced to do sex everyday if she is reluctant. If a girl is raped once, she can complain to police station. But such complaint is not seen. It proves that some of these girls become habituated.”
However a NGO high up says that these girls cannot come out of this profession and complain to PS due to threat by organised criminals and human traffickers as these criminals are very dangerous and armed.
Courtesy of www.thebangladeshtoday.com
