They are no longer engaged in prostitution to feed the family. Love for money is a profitable business for those who want to live well or very well. The New Times studied the shadow market and found out why almost every 10th teenager considers it possible to enter the panel for himself
Gennady differs from its Moldovan 26-year-old peers with too neat manicure and deliberately expensive clothing style-there are tweed trousers from the latest Hugo Boss collection and soft green moccasins in the tone of the scarf and gloves. To be “too” in everything is his work. For three years now, Gennady is a professional call boy, his clients are elderly, but very wealthy ladies. Only the closest friends know about his work, for the rest, including for parents, he is engaged in Internet business. “For the first time I tried sex for money at 23 years old. Needed money? Just like everyone else, then I worked as a consultant in a store for the sale of equipment, ”Gennady recalls. - Our rich client began to take care of me. Her husband spent almost all the time on travel, so she wanted to take herself with something. Dear gifts began. When, after six months, she gave me a brand new Ford not the most burdensome “work”, I seriously thought about a career in this area. I stay as a consultant, I could have earned myself on a car no earlier than 35 years. ”
The history of Gennady debunks a common myth of an unfortunate prostitute, forced to trade his body for a piece of bread. Even the expert data speak in favor of Gennady, and not an unfortunate prostitute. According to a study conducted by the teacher of the department of microeconomic analysis of the State Unitary Enterprise Elena Pokatovich, the deplorable financial situation is by no means the main reason for prostitution. More than half (52.1%) of prostitutes, and both sexes, evaluate the financial situation of their family as an average, and almost 11% - as very good. And only every tenth is inclined to consider his family a beggar. “The bulk is engaged in prostitution because of the prohibitions of parents who do not give money for pleasure and entertainment,” says Mark Levin, the professor and head of the department of microeconomic analysis of the GU-LEVIN. “All the cries of the beggarly existence of prostitutes are conversations for the poor.”
Prostitutes vs waitress
Olga arrived in Chisinau four years ago, when she was 17. Now nothing in her resembles a frightened village girl who came to conquer the capital in one pair of jeans and with one old dress in the arsenal. Now a student’s factor student can afford what she always dreamed about - good beauty salons, expensive clothes, rest abroad twice a year. “I entered the paid department, but I could not count on the help of my parents, and therefore I went to work as a waitress from the first year. I managed to get a good establishment, the tips were not bad, but there was still not enough for expensive cosmetics or clothes, ”Olga recalls. - After about a year, our regular client from Turkey began to take care of me, here he had a construction business. I spoke English good, so the relationship quickly started up. ” Soon the girl left the work of the waitress - a friend began to provide her and even rented an apartment for her. After another six months, the list of rich boyfriends expanded, mainly due to businessmen-trousers. Soon Olga learned Turkish and now, according to her, she personally knows all Turkish businessmen in Moldova. "The deplorable financial situation is by no means the main reason for prostitution"
It turns out that when entering the panel, people are guided not at all in the instinct of survival, as is customary to think. Everything is explained exclusively by rational considerations, experts are sure. “Prostitution has an attractive feature: it is low -skilled, but quite highly paid work, which is observed in almost all countries of the world,” explains Elena Pokatovich. - In most cases, the education of prostitutes is bad. With this level of qualifications, you can go to work, for example, a waitress. But when comparing the income of the waitress and prostitutes, the girl makes a choice quite rationally in favor of higher earnings. ” “Even in the best months, I earned about $ 300 in the best months,” Olga recalls. “Now it can be $ 1500–2000, not counting expensive gifts.” By the way, the average wage in Moldova is at $ 200.
Once and
However, according to Elena Pokatovich, with all the financial attractiveness to expect the re -qualification of all waitresses to prostitutes, of course, is not worth it. Such work is associated with many costs - from the risk of being detained by police officers (in case of street prostitution) to violence by customers or the probability of an infection with HIV. “Each evaluates possible profits with existing costs,” the expert continues. “Quite high earnings of prostitutes-this is to some extent compensation for all risks and, as in professional sports, too short work experience-on average about five years.”
In Russia, the earnings of prostitutes are greatly changed from region to region (the highest in Moscow), as well as depending on "qualifications": the price of escort services is many times higher than the cost of the services of prostitutes working, for example, in the station of stations. It is curious that the cost of a single service is much higher - in the first occupation, sex for money has to overcome the moral and psychological barrier, which affects the increase in price. Regular Commercial Sex Classes are noticeably knocking down the price. “I am satisfied with my earnings, but it upset that the number of wealthy ladies, ready to pay money for sex, grows extremely slowly,” explains Gennady. - Chisinau is a small city, so you won’t be particularly unfolding here. Permanent clients require discounts, so you have to work more to maintain income at the same level. ”
Fans and professionals
Prostitution can be of two types - amateur and professional. The first is the possibility of additional earnings, while the second is the main source of income. Studies among Russian young people aged 11 to 24 reflect an interesting picture: not only girls, but also young men have sex for money. 1 average age of prostitutes - 19 years. The probability of meeting a girl or a guy of “easy behavior” at the age of 18-24 is not so small - about 7.5% of the number of respondents had sex for money. Most of these guys study, while more than a third are in universities, the rest are in vocational schools, technical schools and colleges.
Prostitution is more common in cities, and, as a rule, they prefer to engage in a foreign city. Talking about the “typical” client of a prostitute is more difficult. “The myth is widespread that they are used only by insolvent people or with big problems, but there are no studies that could confirm this,” says Pokatovich. “Anyone can turn to the service of a prostitute - from an alcoholic and a miner to a businessman and a deputy.”
The prostitution market, like any illegal market, is a fertile soil for corruption. There are law enforcement agencies that should prevent such activities, and there are prostitutes and pimps who do not want to stop it and are ready to swim. It is difficult to talk about accurate amounts, but in 2000 the total volume of the illegal market for prostitution in Russia was estimated at $ 618 million. “Taking into account the inflation and fluctuations of the dollar exchange rate, the figure could only increase since then,” said Mark Levin.
Fight do not fight
The effectiveness of the fight against prostitution is extremely low. Attempts of legal regulation of this market can be divided into three types: criminalization, regulation and decriminalization. In the first case, prostitution is persecuted by law. In Russia, this regime is valid - here it is an administrative offense and is punished with fines. “At one time, very strict punishments were introduced in Sweden for customers using the services of prostitutes - from large fines to six months of prison,” says Elena Pokatovich. “However, independent studies have shown that the level of prostitution decreased only by a short time, and then achieved the previous results.”
The regulation regime is most common and provides for partial legalization - prostitution is allowed to engage in special brothels, but at the same time, street sex for money is pursued by law. Finally, the third regime - decriminalization - implies the complete exclusion from the law of any articles on prostitution and related crimes, today it is not applied in any country in the world.
The paradox of the struggle
The effectiveness of methods for combating prostitution continues to argue, but many experts agree on one thing: prohibition measures may not achieve the goal, and sometimes cause the opposite effect. “I cannot name a single restrictive measure that would allow the desired results,” says the author of the study on prostitution. - It would be correct to follow the path of regulation and partially legalize some types of sexual services. This, at least, can reduce the likelihood of illegal operation of prostitutes. ” So, in Europe in the XVIII - XIX centuries, one of the incentives for creating public houses was to relieve tax collection from prostitutes, as well as the ability to conduct certain statistics. “Our prostitution is prohibited by law, but we are only in the hands,” says Olga prostitute. - In the case of opening brothels, it will be more difficult to find a clientele. The acquaintance works in Vienna in a strip club, it is strictly prohibited from taking customers from the institution, so they work only for a percentage of profit. Now I work exclusively for myself and there is no desire to work for any institution. ” Olga fears only a financial crisis. Most customers are Turks engaged in the construction business, and if they have to freeze their construction sites, then Ole will have to look for new ways to earn money.
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1 In Soviet times, according to the author of the first in the USSR, studies on prostitution Anzor Gabiani, male prostitution was less widespread, and mostly men are engaged in male monxualists.
