Prostitution in Singapore
Encyclopedia
Prostitution in Singapore is legal, but various prostitution-related activities are not. This includes public solicitation, living on the earnings of a prostitute and maintaining a brothel. In practice, police unofficially tolerate and monitor a limited number of brothels. Prostitutes in such establishments are required to undergo periodic health checks and must carry a health card. Apart from these regulated brothels, commercial sex workers can be found in many "massage" or "spa" establishments. Some massage parlours, including tui na
outlets, employ scantily clad women from mainland China and offer massages as a pretext for sexual services. These activities are illegal, and the operators of such massage establishments risk jail if exposed by anti-vice police raids. Yet, virtually everyone who visits such establishments is fully aware of the sexual services provided within, and are there precisely because of it. The main red-light district
in Singapore
is in Geylang
. Orchard Towers
, nicknamed the "Four Floors Of Whores", is a shopping centre frequented by prostitutes. Some bars in Duxton Hill
also offer sexual services.
It is a crime for a person to:
A person who is guilty of the offence may be punished with imprisonment of up to ten years, or a fine, or both.
The penalty is imprisonment not exceeding five years and a fine not exceeding $10,000. A male person who is convicted of a second or subsequent offence under the first six offences listed above is liable to be caned
in addition to being imprisoned.
/massage parlor. The "internet advertised" girls are hosted in anonymous hotels, and the profile of each girl is available from the internet advertisement. Interested clients contact the "girl's agent" through SMS, who arranges the timing and gives the client hotel address. Girls operating from such illegal pimps come primarily from Thailand
, China
and Philippines
to Singapore for a short tourist visit, and therefore are not screened for health check-ups.
The massage parlor girls, are primarily meant to provide massage only, but 10–20 minutes down the massage service some offer "extra service" for an additional "tip". These girls generally have good protection from any possible police raid, as there is an early-warning system. Clients in the middle of sex service can be warned about a raid when the police is at the doorstep, giving enough time for both to wrap up in clothes and pretend it was only a massage service.
"Street girls" operate from the streets of popular commercial districts and designated red-light districts such as Chinatown
and Geylang
and within many bars and nightclubs, such as those found in Orchard Towers
, colloquially referred to as "The Four Floors of Whores". Such girls await and solicit to passing-by men, and often remain wary of Police raids, as they are more prone to be caught compared to girls from internet advertisement and massage parlors.
Tui na
Tui na , is a form of Chinese manipulative therapy often used in conjunction with acupuncture, moxibustion, fire cupping, Chinese herbalism, t'ai chi, and qigong....
outlets, employ scantily clad women from mainland China and offer massages as a pretext for sexual services. These activities are illegal, and the operators of such massage establishments risk jail if exposed by anti-vice police raids. Yet, virtually everyone who visits such establishments is fully aware of the sexual services provided within, and are there precisely because of it. The main red-light district
Red-light district
A red-light district is a part of an urban area where there is a concentration of prostitution and sex-oriented businesses, such as sex shops, strip clubs, adult theaters, etc...
in Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
is in Geylang
Geylang
Geylang is a neighbourhood in the city-state of Singapore east of the Central Area, Singapore's central business district. It is located to the east of the Singapore River, an area that locals have associated, from the days of Sir Stamford Raffles, as a Malay kampong opposite facing two islands...
. Orchard Towers
Orchard Towers
Orchard Towers is a 18-story office building in Singapore located on the corner of Claymore Road and Orchard Road. Construction was completed in 1975. The first five floors are a combination of bars and retail outlets with the remainder leased as offices...
, nicknamed the "Four Floors Of Whores", is a shopping centre frequented by prostitutes. Some bars in Duxton Hill
Duxton Hill
Duxton Hill is a small hill, as well as the name of a road, located in Tanjong Pagar within the Outram Planning Area of Singapore....
also offer sexual services.
Commercial sex with underaged persons
Any person who obtains for consideration the sexual services of a person under 18 years of age (in other words, has commercial sex with such a person) commits an offence and may be punished with imprisonment of up to seven years or a fine or both. The term sexual services is defined to mean sexual services involving sexual penetration of the vagina or anus of a person by a part of another person's body other than the penis or by anything else, or penetration of the vagina, anus or mouth of a person by a man's penis. It is also an offence for a person to communicate with another person for the purpose of having commercial sex with a person under 18. These offences apply to acts that take place in as well as outside Singapore.It is a crime for a person to:
- make or organize any travel arrangements for or on behalf of any other person with the intention of facilitating the commission by that other person of an offence under section 376C (that is, offences relating to commercial sex with a minor under 18 outside Singapore), whether or not such an offence is actually committed by that other person;
- transport any other person to a place outside Singapore with the intention of facilitating the commission by that other person of an offence under section 376C, whether or not such an offence is actually committed by that other person; or
- print, publish or distribute any information that is intended to promote conduct that would constitute an offence under section 376C, or to assist any other person to engage in such conduct.
A person who is guilty of the offence may be punished with imprisonment of up to ten years, or a fine, or both.
Pimping
It is a criminal offence to:- sell, let for hire or otherwise dispose of or buy or hire or otherwise obtain possession of any woman or girl with intent that she shall be employed or used for the purpose of prostitution either within or without Singapore, or knowing or having reason to believe that she will be so employed or used;
- procure any woman or girl to have either within or without Singapore carnal connection except by way of marriage with any male person or for the purpose of prostitution either within or without Singapore;
- by threats or intimidation procure any woman or girl to have carnal connection except by way of marriage with any male person either within or without Singapore;
- bring into Singapore, receive or harbour any woman or girl knowing or having reason to believe that she has been procured for the purpose of having carnal connection except by way of marriage with any male person or for the purpose of prostitution either within or without Singapore and with intent to aid such purpose;
- knowing or having reason to believe that any woman or girl has been procured by threats or intimidation for the purpose of having carnal connection except by way of marriage with any male person, either within or without Singapore, to receive or harbour her with intent to aid such purpose;
- knowing or having reason to believe that any woman or girl has been brought into Singapore in breach of section 142 of the Women's Charter or has been sold or purchased in breach of section 140(1)(a), to receive or harbour her with intent that she may be employed or used for the purpose of prostitution either within or without Singapore;
- detain any woman or girl against her will on any premises with the intention that she shall have carnal connection except by way of marriage with any male person, or detain any woman or girl against her will in a brothel;
- detain any woman or girl in any place against her will with intent that she may be employed or used for the purpose of prostitution or for any unlawful or immoral purpose; or
- attempt to do any of the above acts.
The penalty is imprisonment not exceeding five years and a fine not exceeding $10,000. A male person who is convicted of a second or subsequent offence under the first six offences listed above is liable to be caned
Caning in Singapore
Caning is a widely used form of legal corporal punishment in Singapore. It can be divided into several contexts: judicial, military, school, reformatory/prison, and domestic/private....
in addition to being imprisoned.
Prostitution in practice
In Singapore, police unofficially tolerate and monitor a limited number of brothels, where the prostitutes are regularly screened for health check-up; however prostitution outside these brothels also exists. Prostitution outside the informally designated red-light areas operates from 3 main places 1) internet advertisement, 2) street solicitation, 3) KTVKaraoke
is a form of interactive entertainment or video game in which amateur singers sing along with recorded music using a microphone and public address system. The music is typically a well-known pop song minus the lead vocal. Lyrics are usually displayed on a video screen, along with a moving symbol,...
/massage parlor. The "internet advertised" girls are hosted in anonymous hotels, and the profile of each girl is available from the internet advertisement. Interested clients contact the "girl's agent" through SMS, who arranges the timing and gives the client hotel address. Girls operating from such illegal pimps come primarily from Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
and Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
to Singapore for a short tourist visit, and therefore are not screened for health check-ups.
The massage parlor girls, are primarily meant to provide massage only, but 10–20 minutes down the massage service some offer "extra service" for an additional "tip". These girls generally have good protection from any possible police raid, as there is an early-warning system. Clients in the middle of sex service can be warned about a raid when the police is at the doorstep, giving enough time for both to wrap up in clothes and pretend it was only a massage service.
"Street girls" operate from the streets of popular commercial districts and designated red-light districts such as Chinatown
Chinatown, Singapore
Singapore's Chinatown is an ethnic neighbourhood featuring distinctly Chinese cultural elements and a historically concentrated ethnic Chinese population. Chinatown is located within the larger district of Outram....
and Geylang
Geylang
Geylang is a neighbourhood in the city-state of Singapore east of the Central Area, Singapore's central business district. It is located to the east of the Singapore River, an area that locals have associated, from the days of Sir Stamford Raffles, as a Malay kampong opposite facing two islands...
and within many bars and nightclubs, such as those found in Orchard Towers
Orchard Towers
Orchard Towers is a 18-story office building in Singapore located on the corner of Claymore Road and Orchard Road. Construction was completed in 1975. The first five floors are a combination of bars and retail outlets with the remainder leased as offices...
, colloquially referred to as "The Four Floors of Whores". Such girls await and solicit to passing-by men, and often remain wary of Police raids, as they are more prone to be caught compared to girls from internet advertisement and massage parlors.
External links
- Singaporeans fight sex trade with street lamps
- Prostitution wave hits 'squeaky clean' Singapore
- Singapore may raise minimum prostitution age to 18
- Country Narrative - Singapore
- Prostitution is not illegal in Singapore
- History major interviews prostitutes in Singapore as part of senior thesis project