Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Real Reality]

Illegal Sex Trade Dying Hard
Police declared Sept. 23, 2004, as the last day for legal prostitution in the country. Two years later, however, it seems that the clampdown on illegal sex will require much more than just shutting down brothels, as the sex industry enjoys a rebound using underground means, such as massage parlors, bars, private homes and the Internet.

Last year, about 60 people were arrested in the San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles on charges of smuggling Korean women into the country and forcing them to work as prostitutes at massage parlors and other businesses.

Since the adoption of the anti-prostitution law, police have charged more than 40,000 brothel owners, pimps, prostitutes and customers.... The sex industry in 2004 accounted for over 4 percent of Korea's gross domestic product, according to a report by the Korean Institute for Criminology.
By Kim Tong-hyung, Korea Times (September 17, 2006)
http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/nation/200609/kt2006091719493710510.htm

[cdninkorea]

I knew prostitution was big here, but I had no idea it constituted four percent of the GDP.

I also didn't know it used to be legal here, especially as recently as two years ago.

Good article.

[Roch]

[Len8]

The figure has probably doubled since the reported data. The sex industry is now probably 8% of GNP

[ttompatz]

[Real Reality]

Beyond Wives and Mistresses
The people of Choson viewed male libido as a psychic and emotional energy that could not be repressed. The gisaengs as educated "playthings" could sing, dance and entertain. Mistresses too, which men could have in plenty, were seen as a positive attribute even for a king.
by Bridget O'Brien, Korea Times (December 16, 2005)
http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/culture/200512/kt2005121619374810980.htm

King Ordered Prostitutes Sent to His Troops
(from Annals of King Sejong)
(The King) sent the following instructions to the Governor of Hangil Province:
"In the past, prostitutes were sent to camps on the frontier to service soldiers without wives. It had a long history. Even now government giseangs are stationed at frontier camps and administrative posts to service travellers. Moreover, on the northern frontier we have large camps, including Gyeongwon, Hoiryeong, and Gyeonseong, which are in your province. Troops guarding the frontier are far from their families and must endure two (years) of cold and heat, making their daily duties even more difficult; therefore, I think it is appropriate to station prostitutes to service the troops.
http://www.occidentalism.org/?p=309
also see http://sillok.history.go.kr/main/main.jsp

Republic Of Prostitution
The Korean Institute of Criminology released figures on Thursday stating that prostitution is a W24 trillion business in Korea, accounting for 4.1% of the country's GDP. The figures serve as a warning as to how prostitution is no longer something that can be seen as an individual's moral corruption.
According to this recent study, prostitution is going on in sex quarters, drinking establishments such as "room salons," in so-called "ticket coffee houses" as well as in singing rooms located in residential neighborhoods. If we get called a "Republic of Prostitution," there won't be much for us to say in response.
Chosun Ilbo (February 7, 2003)
http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200302/200302060032.html

Sex business lives on despite crackdown
The government's 2002 estimates say there are about 1 million women engaged in sex work at any one time, mind-boggling until one remembers it would take a high number to support an industry that comprised 4.4 percent of the GDP - more than forestry, fishing and agriculture combined (4.1 percent). The estimate was conservative since it dealt with semi-formal places of prostitution where numbers of workers and estimated income can be tracked.
by Michael Hurt, The Korea Herald (May 27, 2005)
http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/SITE/data/html_dir/2005/05/27/200505270013.asp

Korea's saddest profession
When the Manila government filed a suit against the owner of the club in Dongducheon on behalf of the 11 Philippine women employed there, a diary written by one of the women was made public. In the diary, which I read in newspapers, a 22-year-old woman named Ellen accused Koreans of being "sex maniacs." I still don't understand why she said so, since her clientele mainly consisted of U.S. soldiers.

Even without the accusation of the Filipino, the sex industry is one of the most flourishing businesses in Korea, I suppose. Unlike most other countries where red-light districts are limited to certain areas, prostitution is practiced and arranged even in residential districts here, at motels and bars with the name of "dallan jujeom."
by Kim Hyeh-won, The Korea Herald (October 24, 2002)
http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/SITE/data/html_dir/2002/10/24/200210240017.asp

Sex Life Active, Sex Trade Thriving in Korea
by Conor Purcell, Seoul Times
http://theseoultimes.com/ST/?url=/ST/db/read.php?idx=260

Sex Matters to Women Who Say It Doesn't: Study
... a mere 4.4 percent of women thought sex was important in marriage, compared with 77 percent of men -- almost as many as the 74.8 percent of women who said it was unimportant. A substantial 20.2 percent said maybe it mattered (compared to 14 percent of men), but only 2 percent of married men said sex did not matter. When asked if prostitutes are needed to satisfy men�s sexual needs, 20.4 percent of women and 61 percent of men agreed.
Chosun Ilbo (October 26, 2005)
http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200510/200510260017.html

Survey Finds Alarming Number of Korean Men Impotent
Chosun Ilbo (June 13, 2005)
http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200506/200506130017.html

[Mashimaro]

[ttompatz]

[Mashimaro]