With the police denying prostitution exists in Pattaya, activists say there's little chance of the sex trade being decriminalised. It started off as nothing more than a small fishing village on the Gulf of Thailand. Its long sweeping bay was dotted with a few boats and shacks where the villagers lived. They rented several houses at the southern end of the beach from a prominent local, Luang Sunthorn, thus opening a Pandora's box for this sleepy fishing village.
Word spread among American soldiers stationed in the region and Pattaya quickly become a hot alternative destination to the concrete sprawl of Bangkok. GIs had put Pattaya on the map as the best beach destination to unwind and indulge.
When large numbers of troops began to arrive at the neighbouring Baan Sattahip air base, now known as U-tapao airport, things really started to pick up in Pattaya. After almost half a century, Pattaya has transformed itself from a getaway destination for international soldiers during the Vietnam War to Thailand's best-known red light district among sex tourists from every corner of the world.
While Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha's administration has furiously vowed to crack down on prostitution and clean up the sleazy image of Pattaya, local NGOs see this as an opportunity for society to accept the truth and solve problems that have been ignored for decades. The authorities have implemented a Happy Zone in the infamous street in order to control all illegal activities.
Photo: Tanaphon Ongarttrakul. Women selling sex for a living is nothing new to Thai society. In during the Ayutthaya period, prostitution was fully legal and there were even state-run brothels. The skin trade was largely confined to the Bangkok area. But as soon as international soldiers started to descend on Pattaya, it became the new destination for sex workers to expand their customer base. Sex workers adapted to the new customers, learning about exchange rates, rock and roll and the various army ranks as well as picking up the slang.
