Experiencing Sex ‘Work’

‘EXPERIENCING SEX ‘WORK’

A study of migrant female sex workers in Goa

BARKHA SHARDA

A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements

For the Degree of Master of Philosophy in Development Studies

School of Development Studies

Tata Institute of Social Sciences

Mumbai

2014

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 2

DECLARATION

I, Barkha Sharda, hereby declare that this dissertation entitled ‘Experiencing Sex ‘Work’: A study

of migrant female sex workers in Goa’ is the outcome of my own study undertaken under the

guidance of Dr. Meena Gopal, Associate Professor, Advanced Centre for Women’s Studies, School

of Development Studies, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai. It has not previously formed

the basis for the award of any degree, diploma or certificate of this or any other university. I have

duly acknowledged all the sources used by me in the preparation of this dissertation.

Date: Barkha Sharda

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 3

CERTIFICATE

This to certify that the dissertation entitled ‘Experiencing Sex ‘Work’: A Study of migrant female

sex workers in Goa.’ is the record of original work done by Ms. Barkha Sharda, under my guidance

and supervision. The results of the research presented in this dissertation have not previously

formed the basis for the award of any degree, diploma, or certificate of this institute or any other

institute or university.

Dr. Meena Gopal

Associate Professor

Advanced Centre for Women’s Studies

School of Development Studies

Date: Tata Institute of Social Sciences

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 4

CONTENTS

List of Tables i

List of Maps ii

Acknowledgement iii-iv

Abstract v-vi

Introduction viii-xiii

Chapter 1: Review of Literature 1-20

Chapter 2: Research Methodology 21-25

Chapter 3: The Experience of migration and sex ‘work’ in Goa 27-53

Chapter 4: Negotiating sex ‘work’ 54-75

References 76-84

Annexure 01: Questionnaire 85-90

Turnitin Originality Report 91

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ i

LIST OF TABLES

TABLE 3.1: Pg 28-30

TABLE 3.2: Pg 31-33

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ ii

LIST OF MAPS

MAP 1.1: MAP OF GOA SHOWING ANTHROPOGENIC ACTIVITIES ALONG THE

COASTS: Pg vii

MAP 1.2: A MAP OF INDIA SHOWING THE GEOGRAPHICAL REGIONS FROM

WHERE THE WOMEN HAVE MIGRATED TO GOA: Pg 26

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ iii

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

I am grateful to Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai for allowing me to conduct this

study. I am extremely grateful to my advisor, Dr. Meena Gopal, Associate Professor,

Advanced Centre for Women’s Studies, School of Development Studies, Tata Institute of

Social Sciences for guiding me through these two years. I would also like to thank Dr.

Ritambhara Hebbar, Professor, School of Development Studies, Tata Institute of Social

Sciences for all her support. I am indebted to SDPI (Sustainable Development Policy

Institute), Islamabad and IDRC (International Development Research Centre), Canada for

providing me with a fellowship during the course of this research.

I am grateful to Dr. Lekha Nair, Associate Professor, Department of Physics, Jamia Milia

Islamia and Mr. Tolentino T. Furtado, Statistical Officer at Goa State Aids Control

Society (GSACS) for introducing me to Lifeline Foundation, Sankhali and Positive

People, Madgaon and making the initial meetings possible in Goa. This study would have

been incomplete without the participation and support of the women from both these

NGOs who have given me time in spite of the terrible monsoon and the long distances

they had to travel to meet me sometimes.

I am indebted to the fellow members at FAOW (Forum against Oppression of Women)

for the learning from the rich discussions through these years. I want to thank my mother,

my mother-in-law, my family and my close friends (Reva, Anjali, Saie, Arunima) for

their important inputs and Ketaki and Amit for being so supportive. Finally, I want to

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ iv thank Vishal for being a constant support, both through the fieldwork and the writing and

also agreeing to read my drafts a million times over.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ v

ABSTRACT

Women, within the gendered organization of sex work, are situated as passive subjects

under the construction of a dominant sexuality. The act of selling sexual services relies

upon patriarchal, socially constructed notions of gender/sexuality and heteronormativity

(Rubin 1992) where only the female body can be prostituted to a male one. The purchase

of women’s bodies for the purpose/act of sex by men becomes an exercise of male

dominance supported by patriarchal notions of unlimited access to female bodies.

Women choose to stay on in sex work to survive, especially in developing cities and the

recognition of this choice as a form of labour is essential to securing health and safety

standards for women in an industry that otherwise remains unregulated and unprotected,

not to forget the questionable notions of morality and a gendered double standard of the

sexual labour involved. At the same time, the enumeration of a woman as a non-worker

generally does not mean that she is not contributing to economy. Even if the majority of

women can be described as those engaged in household tasks, the category `household' is

very much an extended one for poor women. There is often a pull felt by migrants

particularly by women whose gendered labour is required in care work, domestic work

and sex work.

Therefore, the need to trace women’s narratives of citizenship as practitioners of an

illegal trade in third world cities, often essentialised and almost routinely forgotten. This

study brings out the experiences of women who have migrated to Goa as a result of

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ vi inadequate work opportunities for survival and are currently doing sex work to provide

for their families.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ vii

MAP 1.1: MAP OF GOA SHOWING ANTHROPOGENIC ACTIVITIES (HUMAN

IMPACT) ALONG THE COASTS AFFECTING THE LAND AND ENVIRONMENT IN

AND AROUND GOA.

Source: Mascarenhas, A., (1999) The Coastal Regulation Zone of Goa: Oceanographic, environmental and societal perspectives, retrieved from

http://www.iisc.ernet.in/currsci/dec251999/articles16.htm on February 12, 2014

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ viii

INTRODUCTION

This research study attempts to explore the experiences of migrant women in Goa as they

negotiate sex work within the informal work economy of the state. Goa, located in the western

part of India in the Konkan belt, used to be a Portuguese colony for over 450 years till it was

finally freed in 1961 and gained the status of an independent state only in 1987 (Desai, 1997). It

is important to trace the history of the state of Goa in order to understand the spatial politics

present in the state (Routledge, 2000). Couto (2005) speaks of the division the Goa of the past

into two parts. The first being Goa Dourada, which is the European image of Goa created as a

result of the Portuguese colonial rule. The other image, of Goa Indica, sees the state as an

influence of the Indian State in its element of anti-colonialism. To this, Desai (1977) has added a

third image of Goa; one that has grown out of the ‘need’ of tourists and the increase in

infrastructure in the state today. This Goa of migrants from neighbouring states like Karnataka

and Maharashtra (Desouza, 2005) is very different from that of the previous two. The trend in

increased migration from neighbouring states is visible in the census data of 2011. Of the total

population of Goa, 1/3rd has migrated from Karnataka and Maharashtra.

Goa had its own red light area based at Baina Beach in Vasco-da-Gama till 2004. In the absence

of an accepted definition of ‘red light area’ in India, the red light area has been understood here

as a demarcated city space inhabited by women and men in a hierarchical set up, doing sex work

in the same place to both solicit and cater to customers. Within India, such a space would involve

narrow lanes lined with several building-like structures which may or may not be marked or

numbered. The women usually wait outside the buildings while middle men fix the ‘rate’ with

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ ix the customers. There are also local thekas (bars selling local and cheap liquor) or bars along the

kothas or brothels. (Kotiswaran 2011) (Shah 2006)

Although, the present study has looked at lodge-based sex workers in Goa, the role and use of

public space is equally important in understanding the experiences of these women. In the

context of street based sex work, the analysis of Mumbai’s naka workers is significant. Research

has looked at the use of the naka by migrant women to solicit customers for generating income

through both construction work and sex work (Shah 2006). Naka has been described as either toll

booth or cross roads within the physical space but most importantly as a temporary labour

market which enhances the visibility of lower-caste migrants.

Vasco, as it is commonly called by the local people in Goa, is located towards South Goa which

is very close to the airport. It is also not too far from the railway station and bus stand at

Madgaon making it accessible to tourists. The area of 0.09 sq. km was home to about 4000

migrant sex workers according to a study conducted in 1997. According to the fact-finding

report1, after the demolition was carried out citing health issues and criminal activities the then

state government, the Baina Residents’ Association and the local Member of Legislative

Assembly (MLA) John Emanuel Vaz cited three specific reasons for the demolition. These

included, first, the need to stop the growing Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection

from spreading from Baina to other parts; the second was the increasing need to clean the area of

anti-social elements and criminals, especially sex workers and the need to recover the beach

from the red light area and making it accessible to other residents of Baina, especially children.

1 Evictions in Goa: Case study of Baina-A fact finding team’s report by Bailancho Saad, Goa, November 1997.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ x Sex work has been a known practice across India in ‘red light areas, like those in Sonagachhi

(Kolkata), G.B. Road (Delhi), the crumbling Kamathipura (Bombay) or those which were

demolished by the government i.e. Baina (Goa). The organization of sex work in Delhi, Mumbai,

Hyderabad and Kolkata is brothel based (Kotiswaran 2011). The women both live in the brothels

and cater to customers.

Studies have shown that women move into sex work for economic reasons. For those who move

to sex work over other economic options, for example, ‘search of better incomes to prevent

poverty of incomes’ is the primary reason (Sahni and Shankar 2011). Further, limited education

and poverty have been important factors in bringing women to the labour market and many have

moved to sex work though other work options have also been explored by most of the women

before deciding to do sex work. Also, sex work has been used by the women to supplement

existing incomes coming from other kinds of work. The study suggests from its findings that

most of the women in sex work have witnessed similar harsh conditions at work along with poor

working conditions and highly labour intensive work.

The findings of World Migration Report of 2013 carried out by the International Organization

for Migration has found that human inspiration is the main reason behind migration. The study

has looked at migration across 150 countries, and states that the search of better opportunities for

future living is the primary reason for migration. The other reasons include to join one’s family,

forced migration due to displacement and natural disasters among others. Although the study

looks at patterns from one country to another, it can also be used to validate the migration

patterns within India.

Further, the UNICEF/UNESCO policy brief states that internal migration within India is

estimated at 307 million of which 70.7% are women (UNICEF/UNESCO 2013). This internally

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ xi migrated population takes up cheap labour which normally goes unrecognized. This labour is

characterized as ‘dirty, dangerous and degrading’ (UNESCO 2013).

It is important to point out from the above mentioned reports that the category of a migrant

woman within India is therefore more susceptible to such work and working conditions. Within

this context, the experience of migrant women within India is extremely important; especially the

experiences of women doing sex work within Goa in the light of an overbearing Tourism

Industry after a decade of demolition of the Baina beach red light area in the state. These

experiences can contribute significantly to existing literature and future research.

The red light area in Mormugao Port in Vasco located at Baina Beach was demolished in June

2004 by the then Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government claiming it was harbouring

“prostitutes” who were spreading the HIV infection and making it difficult for the locals to use

the beach. Bailancho Saad, a women’s group in Goa in November 1997, much before the actual

demolition conducted a study following the constant raids in Baina earlier the same year.

Bailancho Saad was born in 1986-87 when Goa was going through a difficult phase and the issue

of identity had become of utmost importance to the people residing in Goa2. The group

maintained that these women were victims and should be prevented from any further

victimization resulting from the raids or the talks regarding the demolition of the area. The

ideological differences among feminists is highlighted while making distinctions that say women

were victims and should be prevented from any further victimization resulting from the raids or

the talks regarding the demolition of the area or in making distinctions between a sex worker and

a prostitute. The feminists who adopt a ‘sex workers’ rights approach’ respect and emphasize

2 DeSouza, S. (2009) Organising Women for Empowerment: a study of an Experiment in Goa, Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ xii agency and subjectivity of women in sex work and recognize the right of a woman to engage in

sexual labour within the given circumstances. Feminists who embrace an abolitionist perspective

often view the women who sell sex as exploited, abject victims and urge the abolition of

prostitution. (Barry 1984, 1995).

The Baina demolitions were carried out on 14th June 2004 through the order of a judgment of

the Goa Bench of Bombay High Court that ordered deportation (applicable only to foreigners) of

commercial sex workers from Baina beach and directed the state administration to identify and

demolish 250 cubicles. The state neither bothered to identify the 250 cubicles nor did anyone

challenge deportation order of the court. Instead on 14th June 2004 ten bulldozers surrounded

locality in ten different directions and brutally went on demolishing houses3.

The Goa State Aids Control Society (GSACS) has recorded over 3000 sex workers in the state4

in 2013. This data is only an estimated number. The exact numbers are not clear. This is because

sex workers are not a visible population. Since the demolition of Baina, the women now solicit

on the streets or in the lodges. It is difficult for an outsider to meet these women on their own.

Since then there have not been any signs that indicate the development of a new red light area

within Goa. There are currently either street based or lodge based sex workers in Goa. Street

based women frequent the tourist areas like the beaches, churches and casino areas whereas the

lodge based women make contact with the clients on the phone often with the help of lodge

owners who also work as middle men. The customers seek the help of lodge owners to find sex

workers and vice versa. All of this is discussed on the phone. Owing to the questions of morality

around sex work it is mostly the migrants who cater to clients for sexual services. The local

3 Evictions in Goa: Case study of Baina-A fact finding team’s report by Bailancho Saad, Goa, November 1997. 4 Goa State Aids Control Society (GSACS), retrieved from http://www.goasacs.nic.in/TI_FSW.pdf

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ xiii women are afraid that their families might find out if they decide to do sex work in their home

towns. As a result migrants are more inclined towards taking up sex work.

The present study has been conducted with the support of NGOs (Non-governmental

Organizations) running the GSACS projects in Goa. Although, GSACS has been working

towards the welfare of these women and provides free medical aid and care facilities there is still

little known about their personal lives. This study aims to bring out the stories of these women

who have migrated from different parts of the country.

It will document their experiences of migration, their preference of livelihood over other options

and the effect of the Baina demolition on their own options of work and their experiences with

rehabilitation.

The impacts of development are felt in the lives of the migrant women. Low literacy rates,

inaccessibility to schools, unemployment, a skewed sex ratio, poverty, etc. are instrumental

conditions in their migration from their home states. The fact that the economic exchange that

goes on in sex work is hidden, results in the experiences being absent from most research.

The first chapter traces the historical trajectory leading to the Baina demolition. The chapter

further discusses the research methodology; the research questions, geographical location,

method and the limitations of the study.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 1

CHAPTER ONE: REVIEW OF LITERATURE

This chapter traces the influences on the lives of these migrant women in Goa from secondary

data sources. These include the influence of development, forced rehabilitation, tourism, land

grab, popular notions of sex work, morality and the anti-trafficking movement.

Land Grab, Baina Beach and Rehabilitation

In 1995, the notorious Goa Land (Prohibition on Construction) Act was passed. According to the

Act, the local authority may remove any unauthorised temporary buildings work.— (1) The local

authority of the area or such authority as specified by the Government in this behalf, may remove

or cause to be removed any construction done in contravention of section 4. Section 4 reads

Restriction on construction on certain lands. No person shall on and from the date of

commencement of this Act, undertake any work of construction of any structure, building, hut or

other structure or any part thereof on any land belonging to the Government, a local authority

except under the authority of written permission granted by the concerned authority. This act

allowed the government to ‘legally’ carry out the demolition in 2004.

The government has not provided any one specific reason for the demolition, though it has

pointed towards several causes for the sudden act of demolition. When there is some sort of an

encroachment on a government land the government is bound to respect the fundamental rights

of the citizen and its policy must ensure that a) that the citizens, both men and women have an

adequate means of livelihood b) that the ownership and control of the material resources

including land are so distributed as best to subserve the common good and c) that the operation

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 2 of the economic system does not result in the concentration of wealth and means of production of

the common detriment. These are obligations set out in Article 39 of the DPSP (Directive

Principles of State Policy) of the Indian Constitution. However, the eviction notices were sent

under Section 405 read with section 416 and 1847 of the Goa, Daman and Diu Land Revenue

Code, 1968.

5 40. Summary eviction of person unauthorisedly occupying land vesting in Central Government.— (1) If in the

opinion of the Collector any person is unauthorisedly occupying or wrongfully in possession of any land— (a)

vesting in the Central Government; or (b) to the use or occupation of which he is not entitled or has ceased to be

entitled by reason of— (i) any of the provisions of this code, or (ii) the expiry of the period of lease or termination of

the lease for breach of any of the conditions annexed to the tenure, or (iii) it being not transferable without the

previous permission under sub-section (2) of section 24 or by virtue of any condition lawfully annexed to the tenure

under the provision of sections 20, 25 or 32, it shall be lawful for the Collector to summarily evict such person in the

manner provided in sub-section (2). (2) The Collector shall serve a notice on such person requiring him within such

time as may appear reasonable after receipt of the said notice to vacate the land, and if such notice is not obeyed, the

Collector may remove him from such land. (3) A person unauthorisedly occupying or wrongfully in possession of land after he

has ceased to be entitled to continue the use, occupation or possession by virtue of any of the reasons specified in sub-section (1),

shall also be liable at the discretion of the Collector to pay a penalty not exceeding two times the assessment or rent

for the land for the period of such unauthorised use or occupation.

6 41. Forfeiture and removal of property left over after summary eviction.— (1) After summary eviction of any

person under section 40, any building or other construction erected on the land or any crop raised in the land shall, if

not removed by such person after such written notice as the Collector may deem reasonable, be liable to forfeiture or

to summary removal. (2) Forfeitures under this section shall be adjudged by the Collector and any property so

forfeited shall be disposed of as the Collector may direct; and the cost of the removal of any property under this

section shall be recoverable as an arrear of land revenue.

7 184. Collector how to proceed in order to evict any person wrongfully in possession of land.— Whenever it is

provided by this Code or by any other law for the time being in force that the Collector may or shall evict any person

wrongfully in possession of land, such eviction shall be made in the following manner, that is to say:— (a) by

serving a notice on the person or persons in possession requiring them (within such time as may appear reasonable

after receipt of the said notice) to vacate the land, and (b) if such notice is not obeyed, by removing, or deputing a

subordinate to remove, any person who may refuse to vacate the same, and

(c) if the officer removing any such person be resisted or obstructed by any person, the Collector shall hold a

summary inquiry into the facts of the case, and if satisfied that the resistance or obstruction was without any just

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 3 The use of the above mentioned clauses indicated the desperation of the State to get the land

back. The area of 0.09 sq. km. of land overlooking the beach had somehow become the top

priority for the government.

Robert S. Newman in 1984 wrote about the visible changes in Goa at the time.8 He refers to the

focus on expanding Mormugao Port so as to facilitate the export of iron ore to further the

economy. He also discusses the fact that Goa has been a tourist destination for many years, but

only in the 1980s had it begun to suffer from mass tourism. He calls these visitors as people who

want little or nothing to do with Goan life - visitors cocooned in luxury hotels built on former

village land, staffed by former fishermen, toddy-tappers, and farmers, and supplied by the "more

reliable" sources outside the territory (Newman, R., 1984, Transformation of an Indian Region,

Pacific Affairs , Vol. 57, No. 3 , pp. 448).

Immediately, following the demolition of Baina in 2004, the governemnt announced a

rehabilitation scheme for the ‘victims’, the ‘prostituted’ women of Baina.9. The article said that

the then Chief Secretary had announced that the women would receive compensation of Rs. 1

lakh and shelter at Bal Niketan, a home for destitute women at Ribandar where the alternative

accommodation was being provided. The home earlier functioned as a mental asylum. The then

cause, and that such resistance and obstruction still continue, may, without prejudice to any proceedings to which

such person may be liable under any law for the time being in force for the punishment of such resistance or

obstruction, issue a warrant for the arrest of the said person, and on his appearance send him with a warrant, in the

prescribed form for imprisonment in the civil jail of the district for such period not exceeding thirty days as may be

necessary to prevent the continuance of such obstruction or resistance.

8 Newman, R. (1984) Transformation of an Indian Region, Pacific Affairs , Vol. 57, No. 3, pp. 429-449

9 NCW discusses Baina beach oustees' plight, The Hindu, Tuesday, Jun 15, 2004, accessed on November 23, 2013

retrieved from http://www.hindu.com/2004/06/15/stories/2004061501491200.htm

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 4 NCW Chairperson was quoted as saying that, “the atmosphere at Ribandar was hostile and that

the women did not want to go there for obvious reasons.”

De Souza, alleged the government claimed this demolition drive was only against the '250'

cubicles of commercial sex workers residing in 'illegal' structures in the Baina beach area as per

directions of the Bombay High Court Order (Goa bench).10 When the local press and the NGOs

pointed out that the demolition drive was conducted on an area where only a small number were

involved in commercial sex trade, the state administration responded that all these structures

were 'illegal' and in any case the evicted people were 'non-Goans', 'Kannadigas' and 'Andhraites'

It was evident on June 14, 2004, when the demolition took place that the state had no

rehabilitation plan either short term or long term. There were no relief supplies of food, water or

shelter that had been arranged. Some of the evicted people took shelter in a sports complex,

which had only two functional toilets for a thousand people. The government had announced that

there would be a rehabilitation plan by October the same year. The article enquired what people

were expected to do from June to October, the entire duration of the monsoons.

The Herald, one of Goa’s English dailies in June 200911 reported a study conducted by ARZ-

Anyay Rahat Zindagi12, a social work organization fighting against sex trafficking and towards

the rehabilitation of the women directly affected by the demolition, which concluded that sex

work in Baina continues even today due to a strong nexus between bar owners, pimps, brothel

keepers and room owners. It goes on to say that since the government has not been able to

10 Desouza, S. Razing Baina, Goa: In whose Interest? Economic and Political Weekly; Vol. XXXIX, No. 30; 3341-

3343

115 yrs on, prostitution still alive in Baina: Study , The Herald, June 14, 2009, retrieved from

http://oheraldo.in/news/main%20page%20news/5-yrs-on-prostitution-still-alive-in-Baina-Study/23118.html

12 ARZ-Anyay Rahat Zindagi, retrieved from http://www.arzindia.org/

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 5 provide the declared compensation to the women, sex work continues. In the absence of a

soliciting space the women had started frequenting lodges in Vasco and traveling to Panaji and

other parts of Goa also.

The Times of India in a report in June 200913 on the expanding red light area following the

demolition talked about the increased use of massage parlours for sex work. It said that Baina's

dingy rooms had now given way to fancy cubicles in massage parlours and air-conditioned

rooms in starred hotels. Taxi drivers and motorcycle pilots of Baina had now been replaced by

waiters, chai boys and beach hawkers. The modus operandi of the trade too it seems now has

adapted to the needs of the solicitors and the solicited, it said.

In 2011, The Herald carried a report on the current condition of the rehabilitation of the women

affected by the Baina demolition. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which handled the

government that was responsible for the demolition was in the opposition at this time. The

leader, Mr. Parrikar said that within seven months of the demolition his party lost the majority

vote so the rehabilitation was not carried out, and so it was now the responsibility of the present

government to do the same. The piece also contrary to the officially released number of 250

cubicles, presented 1200 cubicles and shacks as destroyed of which only 400 were involved in

sex work. It further mentioned there being ten bulldozers to raze the area clean. “The State

government is yet to provide compensation to the affected people, besides denying rehabilitation

package due to disputes about the actual number of affected people and technical problems in

13 The expanding red light district, The Times of India, June 10, 2009, retrieved from

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2009-06-10/goa/28155710_1_massage-parlours-baina-state-protective-

home

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 6 identifying victims after demolition of the cubicles at Baina,” claimed NGO ARZ chief Arun

Pandey.

Ezilda Sapeco, the Goa State Commission for Women Chairperson in 2011 was quoted as saying

that there had not been any Goan woman involved in sex work till date and these were mostly

women from other states. The same report also says that according to studies each year, at least

1% to 3% of the rescued victims are of Goan origin, either born to Goan parents or domiciles of

Goa," said police sources.14

The Bombay High Court Goa Bench had directed the Goa State government in January 2013 to

start the process of providing compensation to those who suffered in the demolition both sex

workers and residents following a writ petition by Mr. Arun Pandey. There is still no sign of any

rehabilitation or support being released by the State.

The Baina Rehabilitation Board in a report in June 201315 has said that there have been no

applications so far by the sex workers claiming compensation. The Department of Women and

Child Development has disagreed claiming a list of the applicants was sent long ago. ARZ has

been fighting for the releasing of compensation. In fact, the government survey showed a list of

900 women who should be compensated but the Board has not done anything to initiate this

process.

14 No Goan woman involved in flesh trade: Sapeco, The Times of India, April 30, 2011, retrieved from

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-04-30/goa/29490446_1_state-protective-home-combat-human-

trafficking-goan

15 No applications received, says Baina Rehabilitation Board, Goacom, June 20, 2013, retrieved from

http://www.goacom.com/goa-news-highlights/10265-no-applications-received-says-baina-rehabilitation-board

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 7 In early August 2013 the Times of India16 carried news following an interview with Michael

Lobo, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator from Calangute17 where several dance bars

have been illegally operating for years, who said the very concept of "dance bars" should be

identified and barred from licencing. He added that the directorate of panchayats and municipal

administration should be issued notices against giving licences to dance bars. The report also

mentioned that Lobo had in the past defied the BJP government's Tourism Minister Dilip

Parulekar over the issue of licences to a Playboy club in Goa. Contradictorily the legislator's

constituency has been in the news after several raids by the police exposed several dance bars.

Over the last few months in 2013 the newspapers have been filled with instances of trafficked

victims being found in police raids. It has been suggested that the anti-sex work stand of the

MLA results in all instances of sex work being registered as trafficking.

Development and Tourism

The 2012 budget of the Goa State Government by Mr. Manohar Parrikar (the Chief Minister in

2012 as well as at the time of the demolition) allocated an amount to construct ‘Rabindra

Bhavan’ to be used for the promotion of the arts and culture. The building stands overlooking the

beach today waiting to be inaugurated.

Tourism is the biggest industry in Goa today. In fact, for the 2014 Surajkund Mela which is an

annual cultural festival held in Haryana attracts a huge number of national and international

16 I will oppose dance bars: Lobo, The Times of India, August 13, 2013, retrieved from

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-08-13/goa/41372351_1_dance-bars-shacks-operators

17 A popular beach in North Goa

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 8 tourists, has chosen Goa as the theme state. This will bring more tourists to Goa than ever before.

India has also started the visa on arrival18 scheme for about forty countries to attract more

tourists. These include US, UK, Brazil, Italy, France and Germany. Among the airports within

India where this facility will be available Goa is a top priority.

Goa tourism has recently launched a ‘Goa app’19 for smart phones. It has a multi-lingual feature

to cater to non-English speaking tourists, providing information on demography, boarding and

lodging, travel fairs, must-see places, etc. It also provides information in Hindi, Russian and

German. It also helps users acquaint themselves with various Konkani phrases and terms.

Bacchetta20 has illustrated the image of a ‘sensual brown erotic whore’ (1988 pp. 12) to better

the tourism market along with an inexpensive vacation complete with five start hotels and the

tropical beaches. According to the article, the clients of sex-tourism are white, middle- class,

heterosexual men; the prostitutes are women from the poorest local sectors who are increasingly

being forced to take up sex work for survival. She concludes that the entire economy of the sex-

tourism area is becoming oriented towards engaging the women in sex work, the land and its

resources.

Routledge in 200021, criticizing the New Economic Policy of 1991 has talked about the intensive

tourist development that led to the marginalization of the needs of the local population. This

would result in the host communities losing control over their land and sea which would get

18 India to give visa on arrival to 40 countries, (2013) , October 08, 2013, Arabian Business.com,

http://www.arabianbusiness.com/india-give-visa-on-arrival-40-countries-522184.html accessed on October 13, 2013

19http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Now-Goa-app-available-on-your-

smartphone/articleshow/29226058.cms

20 Bachhetta P., (1988) Indian Women Fight Sex-Tourism, Off Our Backs, Vol. 18, No. 1, pp. 12

21 Routledge, P. (2000), Consuming Goa, Economic and Political Weekly, Volume XXXV (No. 30)

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 9 increasingly exploited for tourist consumption. Also, their share in the profits derived from

tourist trade would be minimal. He points out that tourism often brings increased levels of crime,

prostitution and drug use into local communities and manipulates their cultural traditions. In

short, the construction of tourist sites such as Goa is predicated upon a development ideology

that defines local people's space as dispensable to the needs of both national and transnational

capital. This has affected both the human and coastal ecology of Goa. It is a form of

development that is deaf to the voices of local people, unless it is confronted by direct and

organised resistance.

Further Routledge discusses the phenomenon of a ‘gendered Goa.’ “In a majority of tourist

literatures, Goa has been characterized as female, and is sold to an imaginary male consumer”

(2000, pp. 2650). The article points out that the Tourism Department and hotel chains promote

sex tourism by presenting bikini clad Indian women in their advertisements. He goes to the

extent of suggesting that the hotel chains organize prostitutes for the male customer and explains

the concept of ‘beach boys’ unique to Goa. Beach boys are young men who independently enter

into sexual relations with female/male tourists in exchange for money.

The other important aspect of Goa’s economy is the mining industry although it has been banned

since 2012.22 The mining belt is believed to cover almost 700 sq. km spread over both the North

and South Districts covering four talukas in all. The state of Goa has been a major iron ore

exporter and over 60% of the country's iron ore export came from Goa. According to Ministry of

Environment and Forests, Government of India, the foreign exchange earnings amounted to

22 The Justice M.B. Shah Commission of Enquiry into Illegal mining in Goa (No.435/2012) led to the Supreme

Court passing its famous order of 5th October 2012 disallowing the re-start of any mining activities in Goa and

injuncting anyone in the State trading or transporting mineral ores.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 10 nearly Rs.1000 crore per annum. It has been the first time since the Portuguese leased out the

land in Goa, that the mining has been discontinued. The report mentions the ecological

degradation owing to the waste accumulated by the use of opencast mining. This method has

resulted in deforestation, land degradation and groundwater pollution among others. Also, the

report has found trends of illegal mining within the state. The report found a Rs. 35,000 crore

illegal mining scam. Both the state and the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF)

have been accused of being involved. The illegalities include mining without licenses, mining

outside lease area and transporting minerals illegally. The FIR has named over 50 people

including bureaucrats, politicians and government employees.

Goa boasts of a Rs. 150 crore Casino sub-industry. According to media reports23 the local

population is not happy with the industry and wants to close down the casinos. They believe it is

ruining the cultural fabric of Goa. The government agrees with the people that it brings with it

drugs, prostitution and liquor but is not willing to close it down.

The literature on the demolition suggests that the women of Baina spreading HIV (also

speculative in the reports on the HIV status of women) had anything to do with the demolition. It

suggests the staging of the threat for a much desired land grab.

According to a study reported by the Navhind Times in 1997,24 25% of the sex workers in Baina

were HIV positive. However, according to Bailancho Saad, these statistics are questionable since

at that time only sex workers were singled out and forced to give blood samples for testing. The

actual number may not be known. Another point made in the study was made by the Mormugao

Port Trust Officers. Baina is located in the Mormugao Port. The officers said that red light areas

23http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Casinos-in-Goa-The-disaster-factor/articleshow/24956050.cms

24 Evictions in Goa: Case study of Baina-A fact finding team’s report by Bailancho Saad, Goa, November 1997.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 11 are an inevitable part of every port in the world whether it was Amsterdam, Antwerp or

Hamburg. The only difference was that, in Europe, prostitution was legalized and so there was

greater medical regulation whereas in India, the health of the women was not looked after by the

Government.

In a study25 by Shahmanesh, Wayal and others it has been concluded, sociopolitical events that

destabilize the context and force sex workers into unorganized, fragmented, and clandestine

working conditions create barriers to effective HIV prevention and community mobilization.

The Deccan Herald in a news report26 on the Goa government’s eviction of sex workers quoting

the then chairperson of the National Commission for Women, Mrs Mohini Giri, saying the Goa

government was forcibly evicting sex workers and other residents from the Baina red-light

locality and that amounted to a violation of human rights and would accordingly be challenged in

the Supreme Court by the commission. The report charged that under the guise of controlling

AIDS, cleaning up the area of criminals and particularly prostitutes and making the beach

accessible to the people of Baina, the government was actually removing the 'encroachers' so as

to facilitate the development and expansion of Mormugao port. The port trust has already

appointed international consultants, M/s Frederic and Harris, to work out a master plan to meet

the needs of growing traffic.

25 A Study Comparing Sexually Transmitted Infections and HIV Among Ex-Red-Light District and Non-Red-Light

District Sex Workers After the Demolition of Baina Red-Light District. Journal of acquired immune deficiency

syndromes (1999) (11 June 2009), doi:10.1097/qai.0b013e3181ab6d75

by Maryam Shahmanesh, Sonali Wayal, Andrew Copas, Vikram Patel, David Mabey, Frances Cowan

26 Goa government's eviction of sex workers to be challenged in SC, Deccan Herald on November 25, 1997,

retrieved from http://www.walnet.org/csis/news/world_97/dhnews-971125.html

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 12 Migration, Sex Trafficking, Protectionism and Palermo Protocol

Agustin has pointed out a relevant though disappointing truth about migrants, sex work and

morality in her article on the category of disappearing migrants.27 She observes that migrants

‘selling sex’ (Agustin 2007) often mention that they also do domestic labour, either as a second

job or as part of the first. Research on domestic workers seldom asks them about whether they

engage in sex work to supplement their monthly income, only covering the abuses they

experience. Nevertheless, some researchers do acknowledge that sexual labour often forms part

of the expected work, though always not explicitly. “Taboos are very strong here; though far

from ‘protecting’ women from stigmatisation, they act to maintain the oppressive dichotomy of

‘still virtuous’ versus ‘bad’ or ‘fallen’ women”(Agustin 2007).

In the same article, she has suggested that migrant women who are sex workers are made to

disappear from the discussions and the numbers in migration studies and diaspora studies.

According to the analysis in the book this is so because of the use of the term ‘prostitution’

(which is often considered to be a stigmatized term) in discussing migrant women who engage in

sex work which is problematic in itself. She problematizes the area of groups who work to ‘help’

and ‘save’ these women and place them ‘in need’. One of the main ideas emerging from her

writings points towards the importance of the voice of these women.

Jeffreys28 however criticizes those who wish to ‘normalise’ this exploitation of women. She is

fearful of the global sex trade and the harmful cultural practices being initiated by it.

27 Agustin, L(2006): The Disappearing of a Migration Category: Migrants Who Sell Sex, Journal of Ethnic and

Migration Studies, 32:1, 29-47

28 Jeffreys, S. (2008) The Industrial Vagina: The Political Economy of the Global Sex Trade-The Political Economy

of the Golbal Sex Trade, Taylor and Francis

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 13 In the larger debates around trafficking, sex work is invariably used as a synonym for all human

trafficking. Denying the migrant sex workers both agency and the ability to make one’s own

decisions results in ‘the treatment of all movement of women as coerced and reinforcing

assumptions of third world women as victims, as infantile and as incapable of decision-

making’.29 This ‘genders’ the concepts of victimisation and consent – women are victims, men

inherently consent to the women being victimized. Bindman30 has described trafficking as

migration assisted by a third party whereas Hague31 describes it as an ‘anti-social and morally

degrading, heinous event’ that differs from migration based on the victims’ increased exposure to

harm. Bindman understands trafficking purely in terms of postcolonial power dynamics and

xenophobia that institutes immigration barriers, forcing one to use trafficking as a means to

migrate.

Kempadoo sees the trafficking paradigm in a slightly different light when she points out that the

state looks at women as victims who must be protected from trafficking, and such protection

often becomes a tool for the violation of women’s rights by restricting their right to move.

Moreover the focus on prostitution as the main site of trafficking has diverted the debate from

one of rights and vulnerabilities to issues of morality (Kempadoo 2005). Further she explains the

importance and rationale of using the term ‘sex work.’ She says it indicates an income-

29 Agnes, F. (2008): The Bar Dancer and the Trafficked Migrant: Globalisation and Subaltern Existence. In:

G.Letherby, et. al. (eds) Sex as Crime. Devon, UK; Portland, USA: Willan Publishing, pp. 99- 117.

30 Bindman, J. (1997) Redefining Prostitution as Sex Work on the International Agenda

http://www.walnet.org/csis/papers/redefining.html

31 Hague, M. S. (2006) Ambiguities and Confusions in Migration-Trafficking Nexus. In: K. Beeks

and D. Amir (eds) Trafficking and the global sex industry. Oxford: Lexington Books, pp. 3-20.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 14 generating activity/form of labour for women and men, as opposed to prostitution which is often

looked at as a social/psychological characteristic of women, often indicated by the term ‘whore.’

Transnational migration has been described as the main reason for an increase in sex trafficking.

Sassen32 has written about how the globalised economy is creating a strong pull on migrants

from poorer countries to fill up jobs which are in the lower rungs of the Western economies. This

pull is felt most by those women whose ‘gendered labour’ is needed in care work, sex work and

domestic work. Moreover, this pull will only increase as the population of the West grows older.

In case of migration within the same country which is a common feature in India at any given

time, the same analogy is used. The victimisation remains consistent in spite of the absence of

illegality in the present context.

There is no denying that human trafficking is a big concern today. At the same time we are still

struggling to recognise the existence of sex ‘work’. Goa in particular is struggling with a large

number of migrants such that the state government has claimed that if the same trends continue,

by 2021 the migrant population will outnumber that of the local population.33 Child trafficking,

sex trafficking, forced migration have to all be seen as distinctly different from women opting to

engage in sex work from among a range of work options available to them.

The Coalition against Trafficking in Women (CATW) - Asia Pacific is of the opinion that

‘Prostitution has to be recognized not only as part but as a basis of the larger system of

32 Sassen, S. Global Cities: New York, London, Tokyo (1991) Princeton University Press

33Unbridled migration may reduce ethnic Goans to minority: Govt., The Hindu Business Line, June 13, 2013,

retrieved from http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/states/unbridled-migration-may-reduce-ethnic-goans-to-

minority-govt/article4810735.ece

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 15 patriarchal subordination of women. There is a need to urgently restructure gender relations so

that sexuality ceases to be used as a commodity to be bought or sold’.34

In 2000, the United Nations (UN) has reached an agreement over a definition that identifies the

three critical components to human trafficking: these are the act, the means and the purpose. An

act would include “recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons”. The

means would include the use of “threat or use of force, coercion, abduction, abuse of power or

vulnerability, or giving payments or fraud, deception, or benefits”. The purpose is usually one

involving some sort of exploitation including “prostitution of others, sexual exploitation, forced

labour, slavery or similar practices, removal of organs or other types of exploitation”.

The United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime was signed in Palermo,

Italy. The Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women

and Children and the Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air

convention supplemented the protocol. The first of these protocols is often referred to as the

Trafficking Protocol and more commonly as the Palermo Protocol.35

Doezema in an article on the Palermo Protocol36, discusses how varied experiences of migrant

sex workers do not fit into the stereotypical portrayal of a young and naïve innocent lured or

deceived by evil traffickers into a life of sordid horror from which escape is nearly impossible.

Further, the representation of this woman both in policy making and media continues to be that

34http://action.web.ca/home/catw/readingroom.shtml?x=16287&AA_EX_Session=7e190573d59b6bd4005647e8d2a50f48 35 The Palermo Protocol retrieved from http://www.palermoprotocol.com/

36 Jo Doezema (2005) ‘Now You See Her, Now You Don't: Sex Workers at the UN Trafficking Protocol

Negotiation’ Social & Legal Studies Vol. 14 no. 1 61-89

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 16 of a sorry woman. ‘In the myth of trafficking in women, structured around the figure of the

passive and unknowing innocent, the active, aware ‘sex worker’ disappears’. (2005, pp. 22)

Ilse van Liempt37, in her research on irregular migration talks about two aspects integral to this

research. She differentiates between the concepts of ‘human smuggling’ and of ‘human

trafficking’, framing them around the concepts of agency as well as exploitation. The definition

of trafficking according to her emphasizes upon the fact that people are transferred forcefully and

against their will and end up in exploitative situations; while the definition of smuggling stresses

upon the idea of an ‘illegal’ entry, to which the migrant agrees. However, the differences

between forced and assisted migration are still not clear. There may be all sorts of different

degrees of force and exploitation in migration processes where there has been ‘assistance’. She

has criticized the usage of terms like smuggling and trafficking calling them a reflection of other

people’s opinions on the topic than grounded in migrants’ real-life experiences. There is then

also the question of whether trafficking is always a non-consensual mode of recruitment into sex

work or whether it was a form of migration taken under extreme conditions with constrained

consent. She goes on to explain how gendered perceptions of assisted migration often result in

the fear that trafficked women would be exploited. The generalization that women are more

often trafficked than men has led to an assumption that all migrant women are at risk which is

responsible for the protective policy measures in the form of the ‘rescue industry’38 and ‘anti-

trafficking drives’ that often restrict women in the decisions they take.

37Liempt, I (2009) Illegal Migration and Gender in a Global and Historical Perspective, Chicago University Press

38 A term used by Laura Maria Agustin in her book ‘Sex at the Margins: Migration, Labour Markets and the Rescue

Industry,’ in 2007

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 17 Sex ‘Work’, Morality and Rehabilitation Weizner in ‘The Sociology of Sex work39’ discusses the terminology designed in a way so as to

make the women feel victimized. ‘Prostituted’ implies an action, something that may be done to

a person unlike a condition the person may opt for. The author elaborates on the various kinds of

prostitution that are taken up by the women including as street walkers, at massage parlours,

escorts and call girls. He discusses further three paradigms in prostitution. These are the

oppression paradigm which holds that sex work is a quintessential expression of patriarchal

gender relations; the empowerment paradigm, which focuses on the ways in which sexual

commerce qualifies as work, involves human agency, and may be potentially empowering for

workers; and third, the polymorphous paradigm which holds that there is a constellation of

occupational arrangements, power relations, and worker experiences. Both the oppression and

empowerment paradigms are one-dimensional which is why the author focuses on the need for

the third paradigm.

In ‘Choices Women Make,’ Showden40 takes the stand that dividing sex work into legal

(pornography) and illegal (prostitution), as is the case in United States of America, does not help

women. She elaborates by emphasizing on women’s limited ‘choices’ considering several

constraints in gaining a good salary through satisfying work plus the normative construction of

women’s sexuality help explain women’s decision to engage in sex work. She insists on the need

to de-victimise the woman and make it less exploitative in order to decrease harm to the women

and increase their life ‘choices’.

39 Weizner, R. (2009) Annual Review of Sociology

40 Showden C., Choices Women Make: Agency in Domestic Violence, Assisted Reproduction, and Sex Work.

University of Minnesota Press, 2011 Project MUSE Web 11 Feb. 2014.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 18 Sahni 41 brings forth that within economic consciousness, sexual labour is a relatively less

explored area and remains marginalised within the gamut of informal livelihoods often

understood as an economic alternative for many women. The study suggests that it is a problem

of contested identities. Using the example of a woman selling socks or handkerchiefs in a local

train or working as a vegetable vendor, it has been illustrated how the identity of this woman

then as a worker participating in the informal economy is not disputed despite the fact that she

may be ‘working’ for an insignificant income. She is still considered to be performing some sort

of ‘legitimate’ labour and therefore is part of the informal economy. Alternately when she

decides to practice sex work, all the other identities cease to exist and she also loses the

recognition of ‘work’ that goes with it.

Karandikar and Gezinski 42 show in their study on the clients of sex workers that the perceptions

of sex work as a profession were strikingly similar among the respondents, all of whom were

male clients. Most of them viewed sex workers’ entrance into the profession as a result of

poverty. They differentiated the position of those women doing sex work from the general

population of women, claiming that sex workers were ‘soiled’ women who would be unable to

transcend the stigma associated with the profession. They attributed sex purchase to biological

needs and claimed that ‘good’ women would be raped if sex workers were not available. Many

respondents discussed women’s entry into sex work, displaying their knowledge of the many

catalytic factors that coerced them into sex work, including brute force. Poverty and deprived

41 Sex Work and its Linkages with Informal Labour Markets in India: Findings from the First Pan-India Survey of

Female Sex Workers, Rohini Sahni and V. Kalyan Shankar, February 2013,IDS Working Paper, Volume 2013,

no.416

42 Karandikar S. and Gezinski L.,(2012) 'Without Us, Sex Workers will Die Like Weeds': Sex Work and Client

Violence in Kamathipura.’ Indian Journal of Gender Studies Vol. 19 no. 3 351-371

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 19 familial background were cited as push factors. Interestingly, they supported the need to legalize

sex work despite the earlier discussions on ‘good’ and ‘bad’ women.

Shukla43 talks about how the term sex work was being used extensively by organizations of

women in prostitution provoking an outrage from the conservative to the progressive and

feminists alike. He suggests that sex work/prostitution can be considered to be an interesting

intersection of sex, marriage, sexuality, patriarchy interplaying and having a mentionable impact

on notions of morality, women's autonomy and feminism. From being looked upon as an

outcome of capitalism by Marxists or as an ultimate degradation of women by radical and

socialist feminists to being asserted as a right to work is a long journey.

Moni Nag44 in ‘Sex Workers in Sonagachhi: Pioneers of a Revolution’ written from his

experience in Sonagachhi, the red light district in Calcutta in early 2000 suggests that any

attempts to rehabilitate sex workers by government and non-government agencies during the past

decades have failed miserably mainly because of the widespread social stigma against them and

lack of adequate resources necessary to carry out a successful rehabilitation plan. It is therefore

more effective to empower these women so that they can lead their own lives and prevent forced

second generation prostitution.

In 2012, a report by the Global Commission on HIV and the Law was delivered to the United

Nations45, recommending the decriminalisation of sex work, homosexual adult activity, and

45 Shukla, R., (2007) Women with Multiple Sex Partners in Commercial Context, Economic and Political Weekly ,

Vol. 42, No. 1, pp. 18-21

44 Nag, M. Sex Workers in Sonagachhi, Economic and Political Weekly, Vol - XL No. 49, December 03, 2005

45 UNAIDS (Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS), July 2012, retrieved from

http://www.unaids.org/en/resources/presscentre/featurestories/2012/july/20120711lawcommission/

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 20 individual drug use. The report suggested that it was the criminalisation of homosexual activity,

voluntary sex work, and injecting drug use that was keeping affected people away from

accessing treatment services and thus exacerbating the disease's spread. Even in cases where the

threat of punitive action was less direct, legal environments overseas was capable of creating

barriers which prevented the most vulnerable groups from receiving the services needed to put a

dent in overall infection numbers.

Phil Hubbard in ‘Cleansing the Metropolis46’ explores the debates concerning low tolerance

levels towards sex workers. He discusses how sex workers stand at the intersection of a host of

public fears about criminality, exploitation and disorder, and hence make convenient targets for

policy-makers wishing to demonstrate their dedication to matters of law and order. He also

explains the critics stand on it. He suggests that this will amount to a policy of victim bashing

that does not do much to tackle the underlying causes of urban crime and poverty.

46 Hubbard, P., (2004) Cleansing the Metropolis: Sex Work and the Politics of Zero Tolerance, Urban Study August

vol. 41 no. 9 1687-1702

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 21

CHAPTER TWO: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Following from the review of literature, the focus of the study revolves around the following

research question and four specific objectives.

Research Question

The study will document the experiences of migrant women in sex work in Goa after the

demolition of the Baina beach red light area in 2004. This will bring out an understanding of sex

work and sexual labour within sex work in the informal sector in Goa. This research question is

broken down into the following objectives.

Objectives

The main research question explored in the research is the experience of migrant women who are

currently doing sex work in Goa. This can be further broken down into four objectives. These are

as follows-

1. What led these women to migrate to Goa?

2. How did these women decide to take up sex work? What was their experience of sex

work?

3. How has the Baina demolition impacted the livelihood options of the women?

4. How do the women negotiate for more control over their livelihood options?

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 22 Rationale for Geographical Location

Goa’s geographical area is of 3,702 sq. km. The Arabian Sea on the West has helped the state

develop into one of the most prominent beach tourist destinations today. It attracts local, national

and international tourists. It is also the venue of the IFFI (International Film Festival of India),

held end of each year. In 2014, Goa also witnessed the Lusofonia Games, held every four years

among the Portuguese speaking nations only. These include Portugal, Brazil, Mozambique,

Angola and Sri Lanka47. In all there are eleven Portuguese speaking nations across the world

today.

Goa boasts of hosting the Sunburn Dance and Music Festival which recorded 1.5 lakh visitors in

2012.48 The event is spread over three days with a lineup of artists from all over the world.

A recent newspaper report in The Times of India says that the tourist population to Goa in 2013

crossed the three million mark. It indicates a 12% rise in tourist population since the previous

year. A total of 31.21 lakh tourists have visited Goa in 2013.49

This study has been conducted in Goa, partly in Madgaon city and partly in the rural part

Sankhali. According to the Census data of 201150, more than 60% of Goans live in Urban Goa.

47 Lusofonia Games 2014, Government of Goa, Press Release retrieved from

http://lusofoniagames2014.gov.in/sites/all/themes/universiade/files/Press%20release%20launch%20of%20web%20p

ortal%2004-10-13.pdf

48 Sunburn Goa Music Festival, The Times of India, January 01, 2013, retrieved from

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-01-01/music-events/36093861_1_sunburn-goa-music-festival-

edm/2

49 Tourist arrivals crossed 3 million mark in 2013, The Times of India, January 23, 2014, retrieved from

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2014-01-23/goa/46513392_1_goa-tourism-gtdc-chairman-nilesh-cabral-

tourism-minister-dilip-parulekar

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 23 Also, the literacy rate has seen upward trend since 2001. The rate was 88.70% as per 2011

population census. Of that, male literacy stands at 92.65%while female literacy is at 82.16%. The

report says that urbanization has been rapid in Goa especially because of tourism. The high level

of literacy and the prosperity of the Goan state have resulted in an almost invisible labour class.

Both mining and tourism industries, as well as the smaller ones like ship building bring in labour

from other states. There is a high percentage of non-Goans in Goa currently. According to a

statement given by the Chief Minister, Manohar Parrikar, less than 51% of the population is

Konkani speaking.

The majority of women were either from Maharashtra or Karnataka. Of the ten women

interviewed five were from Karnataka while two were from Maharashtra. One woman had

migrated from West Bengal, while another was a Rajput and another had been trafficked as a

child from Bangladesh.

Method

The study is qualitative in nature attempting to capture narratives from the lives of migrant sex

workers. The study uses interviews and Focus Group discussion (FGD). Two NGOs, Lifeline

Foundation and Positive People helped identify sex workers and set up meetings in their offices

to interact with them. Five women each from both the NGOs agreed to be a part of the study.

The women have provided narratives from their lives as migrants practicing sex in Goa helping

me to understand their lives both before the demolition of Baina and the current situation in Goa.

50 Census India, Government of India, Ministry of Home Affairs, retrieved from

http://www.census2011.co.in/census/state/goa.html on January 19, 2014

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 24 The method of data collection was individual in-depth interview with the help of a questionnaire

with both survey type and open ended questions of 16 sections and an FGD around the same

themes with the interviewed women.

There were two interview sittings held at the office with each of the women. Three women from

Sankhali allowed the researcher to visit them at their homes apart from the office meetings. The

FGD was held at the Sankhali with the five women who had been interviewed along with another

peer educator who was at the office on the given date. The FGD has helped in exploring the

relationship that the sex workers have with other co-sex workers, absence and relevance of a red

light area, migration, rehabilitation, physical danger and role of the police. The discussions

revolved around the topics that also came up during the individual interviews.

Taking from Reinharz (Reinharz 1992)51, it can be said that feminist research will help fulfill the

following required goals of research-

1. To be able to document the lives and activities of women-a feminist orientation allows

the viewing of women as equal members of their political, social and economic worlds;

2. To be able to view the experience of women from their place(standpoint)-corrects the

bias of non-feminist participation that sees the activities of women from the point of view

of the male researcher, and

3. To be able to understand women’s behavior as an expression of their own social contexts-

an interpretation of the women’s behavior as based on her social context rather than in

isolation rooted in anonymity.

51 Reinharz S., Davidman, L. (1992), Feminist Methods in Social Research, New York: Oxford U P.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 25 Limitations

The distances from the homes of the women to the NGO office was over 10 km for nine out of

the ten women making the travel to the office both difficult and a long journey. The nature of the

work of the women did not allow for many meetings with each of the women both individually

and in a group, limiting the opportunity to gradually allow the women to express themselves in

the interviews. The biggest challenge was the fact that the migrant women had different mother

tongues. While some would speak Kannada, some spoke Marathi. All the women spoke only

broken Hindi as a common language amongst them and the researcher making the process of

interviewing slow.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 26

MAP 1.2: A MAP OF INDIA SHOWING THE GEOGRAPHICAL REGIONS FROM

WHERE THE WOMEN HAVE MIGRATED TO GOA

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 27 CHAPTER THREE: THE EXPERIENCE OF MIGRATION AND SEX ‘WORK’ IN GOA

This chapter tries to bring out the findings of the first two research objectives based on the

interviews and interactions with the women. It explains how and why the women moved to Goa

and how they decided to do sex work. It also brings out the women’s experience of doing sex

work.

The themes that have emerged in the study include employment opportunities and marriage as an

important factor for migration to Goa. It also includes the conscious decisions around livelihood

options including the entry into sex work and continuing with it as well as the multi-layered

exploitation of women in a patriarchal society.

The following two tables explain the social background and the work history and migration

pattern of the women.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 28

Participant Age State of

birth

Religion &

Caste

Marital

status

Living with/

if with

family no. of

members

Dependents in

Goa/elsewhere

No. of

earning

members

(including

self)

Education Languages

known

ID proof

Pooja 32 Karnataka Islam,

belonging

to Sayyed

caste

Married Family,

husband, four

children and

brother-in-

law, his wife

and two

children

Children and

parents

3 no

education

Konkani,

Kannada,

Hindi, Little

knowledge of

English

Voter I-

card,

Aadhar

Card,

Ration Card

Pallavi 25 Karnataka Islam,

belonging

to

Makkandar

caste

Married Family,

husband, and

two children

Children and

husband(has

erratic pay)

2 Upto Class

4

Hindi,

Kannada,

Urdu, a little

Konkani

Adhar card,

Voter I-card

Jaya 37 West Bengal Schedule

Caste

Widowed Daughter and

grand

daughter

Daughter and

grand daughter

1 Upto Class

5

Bengali, Hindi Voter I-

card,

Aadhar

Card, Pan

Card,

Ration Card

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 29

Lalita 34 Karnataka Hindu Widowed Living with

three

children

None 4 no

education

Hindi,

Kannada,

Telugu, a little

Konkani

Adhar card

Hema 23 Maharashtra Islam,

belonging

to Sheikh

caste

Widowed living with

boyfriend

Boyfriend 1,

boyfriend

has erratic

pay

Upto class

7

Konkani,

Hindi, Marathi

None

Farzana 19 Karnataka Islam single Alone None 1 no

education

Kannada,

Hindi, Urdu

None

Nimmi 35 Uttarakhand Hindu,

belonging

to Rajput

caste

Married husband and

five children,

the sixth

daughter is

married

Children and

husband

2 no

education

Konkani very

little, Hindi,

Bihari

Voter I-

card, Pan

card, Adhar

card

Rati 18 Karnataka Hindu,

belonging

to Naik

caste

single Alone None 1 no

education

Konkani,

Hindi,

Kannada

None

Rani 24 Maharashtra Hindu Widowed with partner two children 2 no

education

Marathi,

Hindi,

Konkani

Ration card

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 30

Seema 37 Trafficked

from

Bangladesh

as a child

Islam Married Family,

husband and

four children

four children 2 no

education

Telugu,

Kannnada,

Konkani,

Hindi, Bengali

None

TABLE 3.1: SOCIAL BACKGROUND OF THE WOMEN

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 31

Participant Town/city/state lived in Period Nature of work Geographical

area(s) frequented

to meet clients in

Goa

Reasons for

leaving

Duration of

having been

sex work

Pooja Panaji from Karnataka From the

age of seven

with parents

looking for

work

Selling bags in fish market,

when father suffered an

accident earning Rs.12 to Rs.

15 each day. Then moved to

construction. Continued for a

year after marriage. Fourteen

years ago marriage. Started

doing sex work as husband was

not earning enough money

Mapusa, Ponda and

Madgaon

Pregnancy Over a year

Pallavi Taleigao from Karnataka

From the

age of 8 or 9

with parents

as there

were

relatives

there

Selling plastic bottles marriage

last three

years

sex work and subsequently

domestic work to help going

out of the house

Banasthali, Ponda last three years

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 32

Jaya Came to Mumbai from

West Bengal

stayed for

10 years till

the ban on

the dance

bars

bar dancer ban on the dance

bars

Moved to Karwar for two

years

pharmaceutical factory over the

week and traveling with clients

for sex work over weekends

low pay from the

factory

Moved to Goa over five

years

sex work Marcel, Mapusa,

Bicholi

over five years

Lalita Moved to Goa at 13 with

husband

for eight

years since

husband

was not

earning well

domestic work and a vegetable

shop with family; sex work

Marcel, Old Goa,

Banasthali

for over six

years

Hema

Moved to Delhi when 12-

13 after parents' death

stayed for

eight

months

domestic work low pay

Moved to Bombay stayed for a

few days

looked for sex work at

Kamathipura

did not like the

environment

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 33

Moved to Goa For last

eight years

initially domestic work then

full time sex work

Ponda been in sex

work since

five years now

Farzana Moved to Goa for a year sex work Colva, near the

railway station at

Madgaon

been in sex

work for over

a year now

Nimmi Moved to Goa 7 years

ago

for about

three years

laundry work pain in ovaries

for over

three years

sex work Colva, Madgaon,

Ponda

for over three

years

Rati Moved to Bombay when

she was 11, 7 years ago

for about 5

years

domestic work less money and

beaten by

employers

for the last

three years

sex work Colva, near the

railway station at

Madgaon

for over three

years

Rani Moved to Goa as a child

but started working four-

five years ago after death

of husband

for about

eight-nine

months

selling fish in the market less money and

being thrown out

of her husband's

home by in-laws

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 34

for over

three years

sex work Colva, near the

railway station at

Madgaon

for over three

years

Seema Moved to Baina for five

years before demolition

(2004) after thrown out

by husband's family in

Sholapur

for over five

years

sex work After demolition

moved with

husband in Goa

and stopped

working

for over five

years

Started working in Goa

again

sex work Colva, near railway

station at Madgaon

been two

months

TABLE 3.2: THE MIGRATION PATTERN AND WORK HISTORY OF THE WOMEN

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 35

1. Social Background of the Women

All the women were below forty years of age ranging between eighteen and thirty seven years.

Of the ten women, four women were married while four were widowed and the other two were

single. Among the women who were married or widowed, all eight had children while two of the

women also had grandchildren. Six of the women lived with their families while two lived with

their male live-in partners and the other two lived alone. Seven of the ten women had dependents

including children or grandchildren, husband, partner, parents and in-laws. Of the ten women, six

were not the sole earning members in their families. They were supported by their children,

husband, partner and parents. Of these women, five were Muslims while the other five were

Hindus. Although all the women found it difficult to speak in fluent Hindi, the Muslim women

found it easier to converse in Hindi due to their familiarity with Urdu. Of the ten women, seven

had never been to school. The other three had atleast attended school up to class four.

2. Male Authority within families of the Women

Goa produces its own local liquor called feni which is made either from cashew or coconut. It is

categorized as country liquor and the alcohol content is as high as 45%. Feni is easily available

and very cheap. Studies52 have shown the high levels of dependency of men living in Goa on

alcohol. Goa is lined with thekas (local bars) and almost every restaurant sells alcohol. The

1 D’costa and others (2007), Harmful Alcohol use in Goa, India, and its associations with violence: A Study in

Primary Care by Alcohol and Alcoholism, Oxford Journals, 131-137, shows that the prevalence of harmful alcohol

drinking in men attending private primary care clinics is high and that these men are more likely to be perpetrators

of violence on December 15, 2013

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 36 cheap and free flow of alcohol combined with lack of employment opportunities has resulted in

most of these migrant families being run on the money earned by the women.

Despite the men being dependent on the women financially, they are still the decision makers,

whether it is family matters or financial matters, As a result it is most important for them to keep

the men in their families happy. In case that does not happen, the men are likely to forcefully

push the women out of the house. Worse, they might even remarry or desert the women. Fearing

any of these consequences, being sex workers seems like the best livelihood option to the

women. One of the women says she manages the anonymity of the work by confiding in a fellow

sex worker while she travels to meet with the customers. When the husband is at home she tells

him that she is going out with her friend whenever she has to go to meet a customer.

3. The Migration History of the Women

3.1 Push factors contributing to the Migration of the Women from their home states

Among the women, migration had been associated with their situation following marriage or due

to some troubling situations looking for a better future, or for the search of better economic

opportunities which was mostly due to lack of work in their states of origin.

Of the ten women, five were from Karnataka while two were from Maharashtra. Jaya53 had

migrated from West Bengal. She first migrated to Mumbai where she used to be a bar dancer.

She worked as a bar dancer for about ten years till the High Court order to shut the dance bars

53 Names of all women now and henceforth are pseudonyms for the protecting the identity of the women.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 37 came into effect in 2005.54 As a bar dancer, her work demanded that she look attractive.

Therefore apart from supporting her family she would spend a considerable amount of money on

clothes and make up. After the ban she was forced to look for other means of earning money.

She then moved to Karwar in Karnataka in search of a new job. She joined work as a daily wage

earner in a pharmaceutical factory there in Karwar. While in Karwar, she would travel with

customers as a sex worker. This was during the weekends when she was not required to go to the

factory. She was able to meet customers as a result of having befriended other sex workers while

in Karwar.

After two years of struggling with a low income, she moved to Goa in search of better paid work.

Meanwhile, her fourteen year old daughter had left home and married a man who was a few

years older than her. The marriage did not last long and the daughter came back to Jaya the

following year as her husband would beat her up regularly. Her daughter also delivered a child

the same year. She was barely eighteen now and supporting a four year old daughter. Jaya is

currently fighting for the divorce of her daughter. After the divorce, she wants to remarry her

daughter because she thinks her grand-child has to have a father in her life. As she grows older,

the income from her work was bound to come down; therefore she had to make some plans for

her daughter and grandchild.

Nimmi was from Uttarakhand while Seema had been kidnapped by an unknown man when she

was a small child from Dhaka, Bangladesh. She believes that the people she was given to paid

money to the kidnapper. After living in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka she spent some years in

Baina before she ran away with a customer. She was constantly beaten by a lover who also

54 Dance bars outlawed in Mumbai, Scotland on Sunday, April 13, 2005, retrieved from http://www.scotsman.com/news/world/dance-bars-outlawed-in-mumbai-1-707710 on January 23, 2013

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 38 played the role as her pimp while she was at the Baina beach red light area. She then went to live

in Solapur with a man whom she married but who already had a wife and children from a

previous wife and his family for some years. After being thrown out from there in her husband’s

absence she spent five more years at Baina till before the demolition. At this point, she was

reunited with her husband. Till 2013, she was staying with her husband in Goa. Due to old age,

he has been unable to work to support the family which forced Seema to go back to sex work.

Pooja, Pallavi and Rati had moved to Goa from Karnataka as children along with their families,

as their parents were unable to find adequate work opportunities in their village. Their parents

were agricultural labourers who worked on the land owner’s fields. They did not have any

savings. As a result during unfavourable agricultural seasons the families did not get enough

food to eat. Owing to the close proximity of Goa, the families moved here in hope of a better life.

Rani also moved as a child as her parents were unable to find enough work opportunities where

they lived in Sawantwadi, Maharashtra. After an accident, her father was unable to work and

was confined to the bed. The family including the children, then shifted to Goa. They had distant

relatives in Goa who worked in the fish market and suggested the family look for work there.

They started out by working in a local fish market in Goa which provided each member with a

daily earning of Rs.12-Rs.15.

Hema moved to Delhi from her home in Sangli after her parents passed away, when she was

about thirteen years old. She worked there as a domestic worker for eight months. She earned

very little money in spite of working for the whole day. She then went to Kamathipura (the red

light area) in Mumbai where she worked for a week. She said she did not feel comfortable in the

space and decided to move to Goa. She felt she could not make her own decisions in

Kamathipura when she was there and did not want to be pressured by anyone at work or in her

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 39 personal life. She took up sex work as a conscious option of work. Since she had lived in Sangli

which had a prominent community of sex workers, sex work did not seem unacceptable to her.

She started out as a street based sex worker till she was able to create a network of customers for

herself.

Seema and Nimmi had both moved to several other places with their husbands before coming to

Goa. While Seema had worked in Baina, then stayed with her husband in Solapur and then again

came back to Goa, Nimmi had migrated to a small village called Antakali Rajam in Andhra

Pradesh after the first few years of her marriage. Her husband’s earnings as an agricultural

labourer were not enough to support the family and so they migrated to Dehradun (Uttarakhand)

for a few years where her husband worked as a night guard. When that failed to support the

family they moved to Punjab looking for better work opportunities. Her husband did not allow

her to work despite their deteriorating economic condition. They then moved to Sansaram in

Bihar where they opened a grocery shop. They stayed there till 2010. After that her husband was

offered a job as a night guard in a factory in Goa providing a slightly higher salary. The family

moved to Goa with their family the same year.

Nimmi talked about the struggle after her husband failed to get a stable job to support the family.

She said, “Kuch time hum log kirane ki dukan chalaye, phir baad mein woh security guard ka

naukri kiya taki aur paisa aaye ghar mein. Koi bhi batata tha achha naukri, to hum log us jagah

chale jate the. Par kabhi bohot acha naukri nai hota tha uska jisme ghar chal sake.” (We rented

a shop floor to start a general store (selling household items in the neighbourhood); later my

husband took up the job of a security guard to supplement that income. Whenever someone

would tell us about a better job opportunity we would move there. But he never managed to get a

good job with an adequate income to run the house.) (Nimmi, 35, migrated from Uttarakhand)

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 40 3.2 Pull Factors for Migrating to Goa

Goa’s economy is tourism driven55 which would mean that most of the jobs for migrant

women coming to Goa (domestic workers, construction workers, employed as daily wage

labourers in hotels or factories) make them a visible m i g r a n t group. The 2011 Census

data shows that 1/3rd population of Goa today comprise migrants from Karnataka and

Maharashtra. 56 This statistic is visible in Goa where the female working population in

unorganized settings is quite visible. For the migrant populations who are struggling to

survive, the tourism industry looks attractive and promising. The tourism industry offers

numerous opportunities in the informal sector such as domestic workers, construction workers,

employed as daily wage labourers in hotels or factories. Sex work in the present context is part

of the informal economy within the tourism industry catering to all kinds of tourists-

local, national and international. The opportunity to earn money without having any specific

“skills” or qualifications or work experience within the informal econom y in a relatively small

span of time, either per day or in a week’s time, brings several families and individuals to

Goa57. Being tourism driven, the non-tourist season on the other hand, from April to

November brings little traffic and very little income for several months to come.

There are several shacks which are temporary lodging spaces available for tourists both in North

and South Goa. Shacks are temporary beach settlements re-built each year. They are dismantled

55 Reclaiming Goa, Editorial, Economic and Political Weekly, Vol-XLVIII No. 47, November 23, 2013 56 Census India, Government of India, Ministry of Home Affairs, retrieved from

http://www.census2011.co.in/census/state/goa.html on January 19, 2014

57 The migrants are usually from backward areas in West Bengal, Assam, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh etc. or states closer home like Maharashtra and Karnataka

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 41 due to lack of tourists in the off season. Also, the shacks are licensed by the Department of

Tourism for each calendar year and there is no guarantee that the same shacks will be given the

license the following year, to provide their services again. The shacks comprise of mud or thatch

rooms with both attached and separate washrooms. They also include a restaurant and a beach

view. They are found by the beach in many other beaches of the country such as in Gokarna in

Karnataka and in Daman. The accommodation costs much less than a medium range hotel room

and offer easy access to the sea. This attracts most people to stay in the shacks rather than hotels

or guest houses. Also, the shacks hire people every year on a temporary basis to work on the

shacks although there are very few opportunities for women here. The cooking and the cleaning

in the shacks as well as the errands that require running around are all taken care of by men most

of whom are migrants. As a result, the women who migrate with their families do not get much

employment within the existing jobs available.

Mining sites used to be a big employer for the migrant as well as the local community. However,

after the ban in 2012, it ceased to be a pull factor as far as employment is concerned. There are

huge construction sites that hi re the male migrant population. Again, there are few women

who are being hired owing to the nature of work. The women hired at construction sites are

those whose families are working at the same site. For women who travel on their own to Goa

looking for work or whose husbands have moved to other places for work or abandoned the

women altogether, it is not very easy to find work. Hence, most of these women at some

point have used sex work as an option to earn income especially during emergencies. Goa’s

connectivity via bus and train is also an important pull factor.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 42

4. Limited Employment Opportunities and Exploitative Practices within the Informal

Market in Goa

The relative anonymity of a new place, limited options of employment and the need to survive

makes sex work one of the many livelihood options for migrant women in Goa. Any of the jobs

such as household work, domestic work etc. are remunerated on an hourly basis or they get paid

daily wages and that too very irregularly, which makes it difficult for the women to build their

savings. There are no basic standards for the wages and benefits that domestic workers are

entitled to i.e. equal pay for equal work or a break in between or even regulated working hours

etc. The unorganized sector does not provide any job guarantees; neither does it pay enough for

sustaining a family of three or four people.

The lack of information, in terms of the kinds of work opportunities available and pay scales

provided in a new place makes women vulnerable to being under-paid and exploited. This results

in women looking for supplementary economic support often leading them to sex work. The

Pan India Survey of sex workers has found that 70% of the respondents had tried other jobs

such as agricultural labour, domestic work, and cleaning, sweeping and petty jobs for daily wage

earning before getting into sex work58. Also, the rationale of getting into sex work was from

their own experiences of low-paid jobs and the competitive labour market.

Low wages emerges as the most important factor among the reasons for moving between

different kinds of work to finally doing sex work. The fact that most jobs in the labour market

58 Sahni, R. and Shankar V., Sex Work and its Linkages with Informal Labour Markets in India: Findings from the

First Pan-India Survey of Female Sex Workers, February 2013,IDS Working Paper, Volume 2013, no.416

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 43 are poorly waged and often erratic, women decide to opt for sex work from among the available

options. The other reasons include difficulty after a long break from work as a result of child

birth, or marriage which requires the woman to relocate and start looking for work all over again,

and unpleasant working conditions at the present place of work. Since the jobs taken up by the

women are mostly daily wage work of an inconsistent nature, deciding to bear a child can result

in the loss of livelihood for the entire family if the woman is the only earning member.

5. Doing Sex ‘Work’

The existing options of construction work, domestic work, daily wage labour of a seasonal nature

like working in shacks or etc. are less well-paid than sex work in terms of income. In a single

day, by providing sexual services the women can earn up to five times more of what they might

be able to earn in a fortnight in the other options. As a result women move over to more

financially supportive options like sex work. Among all the options available for work, sex work

has over time proved most reliable in the experience of the women, in terms of the earnings they

are able to get. The women agree that sex work does not require any specialized training or fixed

eight hours of work or more per day. It allows the women to gradually stabilize their economic

conditions and that of their families. The women insist that in order to bring up their children

they have to be self-sufficient. Sex work is a day to day job where each day is different. If one

day the customers are few and the money is less, the next day could always be a better one.

Sex work is thus a calculated option of work for the women. Jaya said, “Hum log ko har

customer ka 1000 rupaya milata hai, ek din mein kabhi 3-4 bhi ho jate hain. Aur koi kaam

karenge to maheene mein 4000 se zyada nahi milega”. (We earn Rs. 1000 for every customer;

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 44 sometimes we are able to find upto 3-4 customers. In any other kind of work, we would not have

earned more than Rs. 4000.) (Jaya, 37, migrated from West Bengal)

These women had tried several odd jobs (cleaning utensils in hotels, household work, daily wage

work like construction) etc. to sustain their families but nothing else has provided an adequate

income for survival of the women and their families. Hence, the women gradually moved

towards sex work.

Pallavi said she had been living with her husband and children in Goa for over ten years. She

talked about her initiation into sex work on a regular basis. She said that she had been sexually

assaulted by a cousin when he was trying to push her to have sex with him. After repeated

attempts to escape from her cousin, she finally managed to move away from him after she was

married and moved to her husband’s house. She bore two children soon after but her husband

was unable to support the family. He was a labourer at a construction site but he was a heavy

drinker. She then decided to take up sex work to support her family. Other women said they were

introduced to sex work by someone who had already tried it before. For example, Jaya said she

was a sex worker over the weekends to customers while still working a full time shift at the

factory over the week. Over the weeks she realized sex work was a better option since she

needed the money to support her family.

Nimmi said that her entry into sex work was through a policeman. She had six children aged

between 6 to 14 years at the time. She moved with her husband and children to Goa to a house

very close to the police station. She would often notice the policemen staring at her from a

distance. Her husband was then struggling to earn enough to make ends meet. On the pretext of

checking on the papers of migrants living in the area the policemen starting frequenting her

house, often harassing her for not having appropriate verification. They also noticed the family

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 45 struggling to feed the children and on an occasion or two, gave her enough money to feed her

children for the day. On some Sundays, they would buy chicken and ask her to cook it for them.

They would pay her for the cooking. Over time, they became familiar with the family and the

husband in particular. They would often visit when he was out. They would also take the family

for picnics, mostly without the husband. On one such outing, the policemen proposed that the

woman provide them sexual services in return for some money. The woman agreed for the first

time out of fear. After the incident, this became a regular affair. Soon the woman had developed

a network of several policemen customers. She said, “Humare ghar mein do jawan betiyan hai,

kum se kum unki taraf buri nazar se to nai dekhte. Hum to ye kaam kar sakte hai par unko kabhi

nahi karne denge” (I have two young girls at home and I am glad they do not look at my

daughters inappropriately, the way they look at me. I can do this to earn but I will never let them

(daughters) do this; referring to sex work.) (Nimmi, 35, migrated from Uttarakhand)

Hema and Rani, both from Maharashtra were between eighteen and twenty three years of age

and had only been in sex work for about two years or so. Both were booked under ITPA

(Immoral Traffic Prevention Act) for their alleged involvement in the trafficking of a minor girl

into sex work. One of the two women is from Sangli, Maharashtra known to have a visible sex

workers’ community. Both the women had decided to drop out of sex work by bringing in a

third, minor girl to earn for them. They were carrying around Rs. 2 lakh with them, and were

accompanied by another man and woman for procuring the girl. They were arrested at Sangli

after some local women alerted the police. Hema, who had been the main accused, said she was

beaten by the police for about a week and had to pay a large sum of money for bail. She said she

had lost all her earnings in the case and as a result, continued to do sex work for survival.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 46 While in Goa, she met someone and fell in love. Soon after they were married, her husband died

in an accident. She however, continued being a sex worker. It was during this time that she was

arrested for the case. After the case, she came back to Goa but changed her location of work. She

moved to a more discreet location and started keeping a low profile.

Several of the women in this network of migrant sex workers in Goa enter into sex work

beginning as street based sex workers. They frequent the bus stops and railway stations in search

of customers. The peer educators at the NGOs have been assigned areas which they visit

regularly and put the condoms in the public toilets and the condom vending machines for street

based sex workers. They also identify these women and bring them to the NGO office for HIV

testing and sexual health counseling. As a result the street based sex workers meet other sex

workers who have been around for a longer time most of whom are now lodge based sex

workers. This interaction helps the women identify potential customers through an already

existing network of lodge based sex workers.

The women have found a means to keep away their engagement as sex workers from their

families or their anonymity would be lost. They take up domestic work which requires them to

follow a work routine in order to conceal the erratic hours of sex work. The women said that if

they were seen going out alone, often the neighbours would become suspicious which in turn

would make their own husbands suspicious as well.

The women are of the opinion that there is a difference between being a sex worker to

supplement inadequate income to support one’s family vis-à-vis purely for a luxurious life. Sex

work is perceived by the Indian society especially the people who are aware of the women

engaging in sex work, as an activity to raise one’s economic status. Rani described her

experience after her family found out that she had chosen to become a sex worker as a means of

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 47 livelihood. She said, “Humko usi din nikal diye aur bole bachho se nai milne ko denge. Humare

kaam se inke ghar ka naam kharab hoga.”(I was thrown out of my in-laws house the same day.

They said they would not let me meet my own children. They also said the nature of my work

would damage their family’s reputation.) (Rani, 24, migrated from Maharashtra). She was

thrown out of her late husband’s house that very day and not allowed to come back or visit her

children. The women say that although this is work based on exchange of service for money,

coming out in the open will bring a bad name to their families. Their children will not be allowed

in school and their daughters will be harassed by their own customers and other men in the

community. Also, their husbands might disown them and no landlord will be willing to rent out a

room to them. They said that most migrant women in Goa are sex workers and it is an open

secret. There is speculation about everyone up to the moment when one is ‘caught’ soliciting or

found with a customer.

There is currently no organized red light area in Goa. Identifying customers and sex workers can

be difficult as the sex workers conceal their identity and are not known or visible to those who

are either sex workers or clients. As a result, while looking for sex workers, the customer

inadvertently views the migrant women in the tourism industry as sex workers too. To those who

are not aware of the networks, women in casual and daily labour are often perceived as sex

workers. Farzana expressed unhappiness over her family’s disregard for her livelihood options.

Her financial independence allowed her to make her own decisions helping her to free herself

from the financial dependence on the family. However, the family felt she would soon realize the

instability of her decisions and go back to the family that continued to struggle to make ends

meet. They believed sex work was an unstable way of survival. Her family used to deseed

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 48 cashew apples to facilitate the making of cashew feni which was a physically taxing and

economically insufficient way of survival.

Women like Rani and Hema took up sex work on their own. They believe that it is important for

them to take control of their lives and be economically independent. Similar to what Seshu and

Pai59 have to say, these women also believe ‘sex work is an adult, monogamous or polygamous

sexual relationship within a commercial context.’ They do not attach any moral values to sex

work. The other women looked at sex work in a very different way. They did not equate the

sexual labour involved in sex work within paid labour. At the same time, they take it up

accepting sexual labour as a supplement to inadequate wages or a more effective means of

becoming economically independent.

The women are happy to be on their own feet but at the same time, they are not able to talk about

it owing to the nature of their work. Nimmi, who is of Rajput caste, said how belonging to a

regal community disallowed the women to be self-sufficient even when the husbands cannot

sustain the family. For a very long time her husband was not aware that she had been working.

He does not know she is a sex worker and she wishes to keep it that way.

The women go through a transition period, which allows them to think over how they would like

to go ahead with their lives. They realize the monetary advantages of being a sex worker vis-à-

vis that of a daily wage labourer or an unskilled worker. They have juggled with different kinds

of work and decided to become sex workers overriding other options. Being able to work without

time restrictions and having an increase in the network of clients can be a big help for the

women. For example, if the women were visiting lodges on a weekly basis and were available

59 Seshu, M. S. and Pai, A. (2014), Sex Work Undresses Patriarchy with Every Trick! IDS Bulletin, 45: 46–52. doi:

10.1111/1759-5436.12067 on February 13, 2014

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 49 for service throughout the week, it ensures more monetary returns. Working every day helps in

making small savings for a bad day. It also allows the women to take time off during their

menstrual cycles. They are very clear that there will be no services provided during that one

week every month. This sometimes can result in a food crisis situation for the families. Since

there are no savings, not getting a customer can mean no money to buy rations. Also, there are

times when the women are unwell or worse, their children may be suffering from fever or

diarrhea. At such times the woman is able to take a break only if she is earning enough to feed

the family for the rest of the months.

Being the only earning member with a young grand-daughter, one of the women talks about the

problems of managing the household. Jaya said when her grandchild is unwell, she holds her

back and does not let her go to work, making it very difficult to provide for the family. Since her

daughter conceived when she was fifteen, she is not able to take care of her child on her own.

The grand-mother plays the role of both mother and grand-mother. She provides for her daughter

and grand-daughter who has just started going to school.

Rani, who was also arrested for her alleged involvement in the Immoral Traffic Prevention Act

1956 (ITPA) case, lost her husband after 7-8 years of marriage. She has two children from her

marriage to him. Her husband’s family discovered her means of livelihood and asked her to leave

the house. She now lives with a partner who also works as a middle man bringing in clients when

he is out of work. She says they live like husband and wife but she does not want to get married

again. Her children from her first marriage however, are staying with her in-laws. She pays for

their fees and provides other financial support which is acceptable to the family. What is not

acceptable to the family is the association of the children with the mother because of the

decisions she has made to support herself. Her only means of livelihood is sex work and she said

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 50 she had come to terms with doing this. She provides for herself and her children. The women

have chosen partners who are aware of what the women do and are fine with it. The men do not

do much but live off the earnings of the women while some also work as middle men in securing

clients for the women. The women have not remarried but give the men in their lives the same

rights as their previous husbands.

Jaya had moved out of her husband’s house in Leningarh, West Bengal with her daughter and

worked for several years without anyone knowing anything about her work profile. Pallavi had

moved when her parents came from a village near Belgaum in Karnataka looking for work in

Goa while she was still young. After working with them in the local market where the family

sold plastic bottles for a few years she was married off to a local construction worker. After

marriage she decided to be a sex worker but talks of a constant fear of getting recognized by

someone familiar while she was soliciting or was with a customer.

Across the women interviewed, their experience suggests similarity with respect to their work

and their bodies. Irrespective of caste and class, the fact that they were women sex workers

brought them similar treatment if their livelihood options were revealed. The nature of work

brings all these migrant women onto a common platform. They do not feel the need for a visible

red light area. They only ask to be either compensated financially in any other work as they

would in sex work, or to be left to do sex work in peace. They do not believe anyone can really

help them in any other way. Lalita said, “Paise kum milte the kar ke ye kaam bhi karte hai.” (We

would earn insufficient money so we decided to also get into this kind of work) (Lalita, 37,

Karnataka) They do not feel they need help or need to be ‘rescued’ from their current situation.

They exercise their right to sell sex in order to earn enough money to support their families.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 51 The women’s experiences seem to suggest that the construction of notions of immorality on the

part of people in Goa is significantly gendered and forced on women. Sex workers are looked

upon by society to be of poor morals; often harassed by the police or other men if and when they

are found soliciting, and harassed while at work. The lack of employment for an increasing

number of unskilled female workers has resulted in women taking up any available means of

livelihood. There are several angles here. First, there are not enough employment opportunities

or options for women making it extremely difficult for them to become self-sufficient. They are

categorically denied entry into the paid work force at all levels, both material and ideological.60

At the same time, by ‘rescuing’ the women and putting them in homes or sending them back to

their home states, the women are forcefully made to feel ‘victimised’. They are denied a right

over their own lives and forced to be dictated by the terms of the state and the society. This is a

means of holding back these women’s right to or autonomy over the final decision making,

which at present is restricted to the men folk.

5.1 A Day in the Lives of the Migrant Women

Sex workers who are lodge-based or hotel-based need to network both with customers and lodge

owners in order to create an effective network. It also requires them to be available on the mobile

phone at all times for the customers’ calls.

60 Housewives treated like prostitutes in Census says Supreme Court, NDTV, July 23, 2010, retrieved from

http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/housewives-treated-like-prostitutes-in-census-says-supreme-court-39271 (Here

the women who work within the households are considered as non-workers by the Census. Also, sex works are

categorized under non-workers making them dependents thus not recognizing their labour.) on January 13, 2014

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 52 The women usually have two subscriber identity module (SIM) cards on their cell phones. One

of them is for the customers while the other one is for the family members. The women use the

card meant for customers in the mornings and switch back the one for their family at night, when

their husbands are back at home. Mobile phone calls are still very expensive and usually the

husband does not call on the cellphone if he is out. He waits to get home to discuss anything that

has to be discussed with the wife. Some women also have two cellphones. They do not save

numbers of all the clients. They all have some regular clients. These regular clients frequently

visit them at the lodges. They have become familiar with each other and the women trust them.

They also visit customers who are referred to by clients familiar to them. They thus work

towards building a network for regular contact and exchange with their clientele. Further, the

women have many ways of protecting their identities. Since these women operate on the phone

through a network of known customers, they generally know all their clients. They ask for

identification from the men and how and when they had met previously and do not visit new

clients unless known to a previous client or co-worker. Also, if they are not convinced by what

the man has to say, she would not meet him. If he convinces her, she calls him to a particular

location and watches from a distance. After a few minutes if she is convinced of his identity, she

would approach him.

The women realize that age is an important criterion in sex work. The more contacts they can

make and the sooner they can make them, the better. Owing to the unpredictable nature of

demand, being involved in any other part-time job was not a good idea. The unpredictability

arises from not having a fixed schedule with the clients. Based on the calls either from clients or

the lodge owners, each day is different. Due to the covert nature of their work, women do not

work after sunset. Several customers while returning from their work would prefer to spend time

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 53 with a sex worker which the women are most often unable to cater to. Refusing a client due to

lack to time in the beginning can lead to a terrible financial loss sometimes. A new face in this

business almost always attracts more clients despite the age. Over a few years, as the body ages

from physical labour and new faces emerge, the clientele goes down.

5.2 Hazards in Sex Work

Although comparatively advantageous in terms of the income that women are able to negotiate

and obtain within the labour market for sex work, the work within this informal sector is not

without its occupational hazards and dangers and difficulties. In their daily work life, several

instances of illnesses, discomfort, harassment that women undergo during sex work are to be

noted, including health hazards and the hazards of sexual violence. Nimmi mentioned the

occurrence of urinary tract infections (UTI) and pain in her vagina. She said, “Toilet jaate time

to bohot jalan hota hai par doctor ke paas nai jate. Phir apne aap hi ek do din mein theek ho jata

hai.” (Often, when I go to the toilet to urinate, I feel a burning sensation in my vagina but I do

not go the doctor. Within a day or two the itching subsides.) (Nimmi, 35, migrated from

Uttarakhand).

She also talked about physical discomfort while intercourse which was not of consequence to the

customer. Irrespective of whether the woman’s body was able to take the weight of the

intercourse she could not stop a client. Even if she was visibly in pain during intercourse, the

client would not acknowledge it as it was a paid service.

The women who have been able to tell their families and their significant others often invite

dangers of rape from intending customers, when they are deprived of payment following their

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 54 offer of sexual labour. They complain of being harassed and being labeled ‘easy’ women by both

men and women who are aware of their work. The women say that if it is common knowledge

that they provide sexual services, in times of sexual harassment or rape, the police refuses to

register their case. They are taken advantage of by some men who are aware of their activities

yet do not have money to pay for their services. These men force themselves on the women and

do not at all acknowledge the right of the women to decline.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 55

CHAPTER FOUR: NEGOTIATING SEX ‘WORK’

The ability to negotiate plays a significant role in the lives of the women. These negotiations are

made with the customers, the police, law and the State, the NGOs and the consequences of the

choices they have made. The role of support systems whether in terms of family, co-workers or

customers and the uniqueness of such work and other characteristics of the everyday experiences

in the lives of the women have been elaborated further in this chapter. This chapter also provides

a background of the demolition of the Baina red light area and its impact on the women.

1. The Baina Demolition and the Rehabilitation Efforts by the State and the NGOs

1.1 The Baina Demolition

A discussion on the existence and the demolition of Baina will provide a background to the

manner in which sex work is organized at present in Goa. The red light area in Mormugao Port

in Vasco Da Gama, Goa was located at Baina Beach. Most of the sex work that took place in

Goa was organized in and around Baina. It was demolished in June 2004 by the then Bharatiya

Janata Party (BJP) government claiming it was harbouring “prostitutes” who were spreading the

HIV infection and making it difficult for the locals to use the beach.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 56 The Baina beach area was subject to raids as early as 1997, much before the actual demolition in

2004. Bailancho Saad61, a women’s group in Goa conducted a study in November 1997

following the constant raids in Baina earlier the same year. Both before and after the raids,

Bailancho Saad maintained that these women were victims and should be prevented from any

further victimization resulting from the raids or the discussions regarding the demolition of the

area.

The red light area of 0.09 sq. km was home to about 4000 migrant sex workers according to the

1997 study of Bailancho Saad. According to the fact-finding report, the constant demolitions and

raids were being carried out following a health panic (that women were carriers of HIV) and the

presence of criminal activities62, wherein the state government at that time, the Baina Residents’

Association and the local Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) John Emanuel Vaz cited

three specific reasons for the demolition of the red light area. These included, first, the need to

stop the increasing incidence of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection spreading from

Baina to other parts; the second was the increasing need to rid the area of anti-social elements

and criminals, especially sex workers who are considered criminals and the need to recover the

beach from the red light area and make it accessible to other residents of Baina, especially

children.

61 Bailancho Saad was born in 1986-87 when Goa was going through a difficult phase and the issue of identity had

become of utmost importance to the people residing in Goa, cited in DeSouza, S. (2009) Organising Women for

Empowerment: a study of an Experiment in Goa, Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Tata Institute of Social

Sciences, Mumbai

62 Evictions in Goa: Case study of Baina-A fact finding team’s report by Bailancho Saad, Goa, November 1997.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 57 The Baina demolitions were finally carried out on 14th June 2004 through the order of the Goa

Bench of Bombay High Court that ordered for deportation (applicable only to foreigners) of

commercial sex workers from Baina beach and directed the state administration to identify and

demolish 250 cubicles. The state neither bothered to identify the 250 cubicles nor did anyone

challenge the deportation order of the court. Instead, on 14th June 2004, ten bulldozers

surrounded the locality in ten different directions and brutally went on demolishing houses.63

1.2 The NGOs: Positive People and Lifeline Foundation

Two NGOs, Lifeline Foundation and Positive People had helped in identifying sex workers and

setting up meetings in their offices to interact with them. Five women each from both the NGOs

agreed to be a part of the study. Six of these women were peer educators. According to the

NACP (National AIDS Control Programme) III Guidelines a peer educator (PE) is a person from

the HRG (High risk group) who works with her/his colleagues to influence attitude and

behaviour change. PEs are responsible for providing information on HIV/STIs and harm

reduction, and promoting condom use among colleagues/peers, which ultimately results in

building peer pressure for behaviour change. They can also distribute condoms, lubricants,

needles and syringes. They also provide basic data for monitoring the project. A PE is paid an

honorarium as per NGO/CBO (Community based Organisation) costing guidelines for her/his

contribution to the TI (Targeted Intervention) project. A peer educator (PE) is a person from the

HRG who works with her/his colleagues to influence attitude and behaviour change. PEs are

responsible for providing information on HIV/STIs and harm reduction, and promoting condom

63 Demolition at Baina beach leaves hundreds homeless in Goa, Infochange, accessed on Februrary 13, 2014 at http://infochangeindia.org/human-rights/news/demolition-at-baina-beach-leaves-hundreds-homeless-in-goa.html

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 58 use among colleagues/peers, which ultimately results in building peer pressure for behaviour

change. They can also distribute condoms, lubricants, needles and syringes. They also provide

basic data for monitoring the project. A PE is paid an honorarium as per NGO/CBO costing

guidelines for her/his contribution to the TI project. In both the NGOs the peer educators were

paid Rs 1500 every month and another Rs. 200 fixed travel expense for every month.

Prior to the Baina demolition, there were five NGOs funded through Goa State AIDS Control

Society (GSACS) to provide HIV prevention interventions to sex workers in Goa. Major focus of

this programme, called Targeted Intervention (TI) is BCC (Behaviour Change Communication)

along with strengthening peer network, counselling, distribution of condoms, STI (sexually

transmitted infection) services, legal intervention etc. Both ‘Positive People’ and ‘Lifeline

Foundation’ were part of these NGOs.

‘Positive People’ was founded by Dominic D’Souza, the first HIV positive activist from Goa in

the year 1992. He was quarantined when he was discovered to be positive. This was owing to a

provision in the Goa Public Health Act 1986 mandating isolation for People living with HIV

(PLHIV)s. The organization has been working in and around Madgaon area.

‘Lifeline Foundation’ has two offices and works with both street based and lodge based workers.

There are individual projects for the two groups. While street based sex work is based in the

capital city of Panaji, the lodge workers are based in Sankhali, about 40 km from the capital city

of Panaji.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 59

2. The Women’s’ Response to the Demolition and its Aftermath

The interviewed women agreed that the government’s response towards the women affected by

the Baina demolition had been unfair and that they should have been compensated adequately.

They should have been given both housing and work opportunities along with payment for the

damages to their personal property. These migrant women said that the government had made

empty claims of better rehabilitation to the women who had suffered from the demolition. They

also said if they were ever to avail of any rehabilitation schemes the government would identify

them and would further both harass and stigmatize them for having been sex workers in the past.

They all agreed on carrying out their work activities and their lives irrespective of the

government and all that it ‘claimed’ to offer them. The women are unaware of the laws to do

with prostitution but are able to get out of any situation by seeking the help of the NGOs and if

necessary by paying bribes to the police. Though the police do not bother them on a regular basis

they do get stopped at some public places though the harassment is not that severe. They seldom

go to the police station except in extreme cases.

All the women agreed that the NGOs can be of great help when the women are in difficult

circumstances. If and when the women have been harassed by the police (when the police

suspect them to be soliciting in public), their identity cards as peer educators at the NGO has

helped them. At the same time, the salary from the NGO is extremely less as compared to the

work the women are required to do. In the individual interviews several women confirmed this

although in the FGDs the women denied the dissatisfaction with the salary. The peer educators

agreed that a lot of time they had not been able to meet the required targets for condom

distribution and HIV testing. In such cases, they would look for excuses to skip the testing

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 60 sessions. Also, the meetings and activities at the NGO would often get in the way of their

meeting the clients as these would take the entire day, not allowing the women to pursue their

livelihood.

3. The Organisation of Sex Work in Goa after the Baina Demolition

In the absence of an accepted definition of ‘red light area’ in India, red light areas in this study

has been understood as a demarcated city space inhabited by both women and men in a

hierarchical setup comprising sex workers, middle men and customers. There is a madam,

gharwali or a pimp who is given a huge share from what the customer pays. If there is a auto

rickshaw driver or a paanwala who brings the customer to the sex worker he or she is also given

a small percentage of the earnings. Ideally, the madam is also the owner of the room which is

rented out to the sex worker and is also used by her to provide her services. It would involve

women soliciting customers and doing sex work within the same space. Within India, such a

space would involve narrow lanes lined with several building-like structures which may or may

not be marked or numbered. The women usually wait outside the buildings while middle men fix

the ‘rate’ with the customers. There are also local thekas (bars selling local and cheap liquor)

along the kothas (brothels). In Goa, ‘the area consisted of a single stretch of land along the

coast, surrounded by migrant settlements which were criss-crossed by tiny alleys and closely

clustered houses. Sex work took place in cubicles closer to the seashore.’64

64 (Liamputtong, P., (2008) Doing Cross-Cultural Research: Ethical and Methodological Perspectives, Volume 34, Social Indicators Research Series, 261)

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 61 Although, the present study has looked at lodge-based sex workers in Goa, the role and use of

public space is equally important in understanding the experiences of these women. In the

context of street based sex work, the analysis of Mumbai’s naka workers is significant. Research

has looked at the use of the naka by migrant women to seek work at constructions sites, as well

as to solicit customers for sex work (Shah, 2006).

A prominent difference that exists within the organization of sex work in established red light

areas as in Delhi and Mumbai in comparison to a place like Goa is that the former is in a

hierarchical setup where there is a gharwali above the sex workers who earns from every

customer that the woman is with. As a result, the number of customers a sex worker works with

each day, influences the earnings of the gharwali. Therefore in order to enhance the earnings,

force or violence can be used as a tool for exploitation and victimization of these women. The

absence of a visible red light area sometimes works in the favour of the women as it ensures

anonymity. “Aise kisi ko malum nai chalta hai aur ghar mein paisa bhi aa jata hai.” (In this

way, implying the absence of a red light area, we are able to remain anonymous and earn and

bring some money home for our families.) (Lalita, 37, migrated from Karnataka). In the absence

of such a setup, one retains one’s right to provide sexual services and also in what manner they

would want to do it.

The women are of the opinion that since there is not a fixed space the chances of being identified

are not high. The women are their own arbiters and can decide whether or not they would like to

be with a customer, thus putting to rest fears of coercion or forced prostitution. While discussing

the Baina demolition, Seema, who had also spent some years at Baina said that it did bring good

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 62 business. The flipside however were the several cuts from the pay to the gharwali, middlemen,

auto rickshaw drivers, madams etc.

After being a sex worker for some time, the women are able to make better informed decisions

vis-à-vis their financial transactions. They said they had learnt the art of negotiation with the

customers and were now earning enough money to be self-sufficient. The women play several

roles simultaneously. Shifting from the role of being the stay-at-home mother to being an

independent woman negotiating ‘benefits’ (monetary and otherwise) from the customer each day

comprises conflicting ideas.

4. The Role of the Lodges and the Lodge Owners

After the Baina demolition, sex workers who continue to work in Goa are mostly lodge based.

The lodges are located within and around Sankhali, in Bicholi, Marcel, Old Goa, Ponda or

Banasthali. In Madgaon, they are usually located near the Railway Station or near Colva beach.

Some lodges which are on the main road are locked from the outside and have a back door entry

from where these women and their customers enter. They appear shut but are mostly open only

to the customers, from early in the morning till late afternoon. The women have an

understanding with the lodge owners and are not asked for identity proofs (despite government

regulations issued for every visitor to lodges, guest houses or hotels) since regular visits with

different men make the pattern of returning to the same lodge with different customers visible

in the eyes of the police. The customer is charged for the rooms which are booked on an hourly

basis. The women bring customers and business to the lodges, while in return the lodges let the

sex workers run their business there. The women make regular negotiations regarding the nature

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 63 of sex work, the payment and the services involved with customers, lodge owners and the police

within the labour market. There are also networks of financial sustenance in the form of credit or

monetary support from other sex workers and customers for the women doing sex work. The

needs of all the parties are therefore met with the help of these networks. Also, the women cater

to various types of clients thus strengthening their existing network of customers.

5. Networking and Networks of Support

The women say that Goa being a well-known tourist destination especially during the New Year,

attracts large groups of bachelors or groups of men who come on their own (often looking for

female company). Young boys, right out of college, drive down from Maharashtra and

Karnataka (or even from faraway places like Delhi) to come to Goa to celebrate the coming of

the New Year. The women mentioned that there is an increase in the tourist population coming

to Goa in this period and this helps sex workers. The sex workers know each other and help

each other when there are more customers seeking for women. During this period the sex

workers meet young men in groups of three or four. They contact some other sex workers also

looking for customers. Sometimes, these groups of tourists give the women more customers by

informing other friends or acquaintances who would be visiting Goa in the future. The tourist

season is full of uncertainty that there is no way to tell whether every season will bring

enough tourists so that the women can earn enough money.

The mining industry comprises a large number of employees though the official number is not

available. Most of these people were migrants who had moved to Goa for working in the mining

industry. The mining industry is known to provide better emoluments than most industries. The

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 64 women spoke about the customers they made from those men who had been employed in the

mining industry. As they lived away from home, they had tied up with the women for their

sexual services over the weekends. Although, the women had tie ups with some lodges and lodge

owners, there were also some lodge owners who did not allow the women to do their business in

their lodges. In fact, when such lodges would not allow for the women to solicit without a valid

identity proof, the customers would pay Rs.2000-3000 above the room rent so as to convince the

lodge owner to allow the sex worker to stay. With the regular customers this does not happen

very often. They may or may not have so much money as the people who work in the mining

industry. Jaya also mentioned that when she was short of money she would call a customer who

worked in the mining industry to avail of her services. If he was busy he would often lend her the

money for equivalent services at a later time. The mining industry’s ban affected the monetary

situation of the women. The women had thus created a network of support and a clientele market

to sustain their livelihood options.

6. Negotiating with People and Circumstances

6.1 Negotiating with the Law

For the younger migrant women, sex work in Goa is harder. Without an age proof (of being over

eighteen years of age and having the identity proof of an adult), being found with a customer

makes work difficult and complicated. The police send them off to short stay homes till the

‘apparent’ trafficking can be proved otherwise. Without an age proof, the women are believed to

be ‘victims of trafficking’. The fact that the women are migrants from another state makes it all

the more difficult for the women who are ‘rescued’.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 65 Women’s perceptions of how the law should treat sex workers are still in a formative stage. They

do not yet have an opinion on decriminalization or legalization of sex work and stay away from

these positions. However, in their own understanding of decriminalization they insist they should

not be in a position to be fearful of the police. One of the women narrated an incident with the

police. While she was with a customer for the whole day, she was hurt and was bleeding

profusely. When she went to the government hospital for treatment the doctors insisted on

calling the police because the injury looked very serious. She told them then that it was due to

continuous intercourse with a man who had forced himself upon her. After the treatment she was

sent to a short stay home for destitute women for about three months as she did not have a valid

age proof and did not seem to be above sixteen years, as the police believed she had been

trafficked. Since the police could not make a case without the girl’s statement there was only

speculation on the part of the police. As a result, she was not sent to a remand home. As a

migrant, if she acknowledged the money and sexual services exchange with the customer, she

could have also been arrested for soliciting in public places. She said the man paid the police

some money to stay out of jail.

6.2 Negotiating with the Family and Support Within

None of the women are very comfortable talking about their relationship with their families

especially those who have informed their families of the nature of their work. Since several of

the women’s families are not aware of their work, the women could only imagine how their

families’ reactions would be. At the same time, they all agree that the families would definitely

oppose the idea of sex work by the women. The women face resistance from their families for

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 66 doing sex work. Their struggles with their families and in maintaining anonymity have been

illustrated in the previous chapter. They feel that questions of morality (regarding the nature of

sex work) fall within the personal space and cannot be negotiated with the State. They negotiate

with themselves over their livelihood options. The notions of morality associated with the

sanctity of body contradict their livelihood options. With monogamy being of utmost importance

to the women, multiple sexual partners as a result of sex work often makes women doubt the

ideas of morality they grew up with. They talk about it in hushed tones when there are other

people around. While we were all at the office, the women would not talk about sex work in the

presence of the office staff. They would wait to be alone and would sometimes include me in

their discussions. Often when alone with Jaya, who was widowed and nearing forty, she would

talk about how her age had increased the sexual discomfort from sex. Another woman spoke

about how having intercourse with customers and her husband took a toll on both her body and

mind. She said, “Idhar lagayega, phir baad mein ghar ko jake bhi mera aadmi lagayega to dard

to hoga na.” (I will have intercourse with a customer at the lodge and then when I go home my

husband will also want sex. As a result it will hurt, won’t it?) (Pallavi, Karnataka, 25)

Only when they are all together do the apparently tabooed conversations start. Discussions on

problems with customers and over the nature of what the customers often ask for are openly

analysed by the women. They said some women do agree to have sex without using any sort of

protective mechanism and they were probably also excessively using drugs and alcohol. The

women do not trust anyone; not even their own people. They are not comfortable with the nature

of their work. They do not explain why though. Sometimes it seems the duality in their lives

makes them doubt their own selves while they play the role of the deviant ‘whore.’ The duality

of being both deviant and the pure (wife or mother or daughter) leads the women to often doubt

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 67 themselves. Some of these women are widows while some others are married and live with their

husband, which makes the idea of any sexual activity with anyone apart from the husband or a

socially sanctioned relationship on the part of the woman promiscuous and immoral as seen by

society.

6.3 Negotiating with both Unpredictability and Determination

Lalita talked about her feeling of vulnerability in the last ten years ever since she decided to do

sex work. She lost her husband when her children were very young. Although she was earning, it

was not enough. Eventually all the three children dropped out of school. There are several sex

workers in her neighbourhood. She said it was easy to tell from the erratic working hours so she

has to be extra careful to keep her identity hidden.

She lived in a ‘pukka’ house without a bathroom. It was one room where she had covered a part

to use it like a bathing space. She has been living on rent in the same house for a few years. If

her landlord ever discovers the nature of her work she will lose the room. She speculated that

just as she knows about fellow sex workers in the neighbourhood, maybe they also know about

her. She is afraid someone might find out and alert the landlord. Since she is a widow, she

says she cannot be seen with another man, so she always meets her clients away from her

house. She takes the bus to a common meeting point. Sometimes, the men have a vehicle in

which case she meets them midway. If they are traveling by public transport she meets them

at the deserted spot decided beforehand. She often goes into the nearby jungles with the

customer. There have not been any incidents of violence by the customer on her so far, but

the thought does cross her mind. When she gets a call and decides to meet customer near the

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 68 rail tracks or in a secluded place, she is never sure whether there is only one customer waiting.

Unpredictability makes her vulnerable. She confides in me and tells me a secret. She agrees to

going to the train tracks in extreme cases when she has absolutely no money. She puts all her

confidence and takes the chance of going to meet a customer in such places. She has never been

attacked while she goes to the train tracks or the jungles or other deserted spaces. She believes

her confidence and body language helps her. She says if she looks scared then it allows the other

person to petrify her or force her into situations she may not want to be in. She also says she will

never give in to fear. If she believes she can take care of herself then no one can hurt her. Her

faith in herself is what keep her strong and focused. At the same time, she is determined to be

strong and pursue the life she has opted for in her current circumstances.

6.4 Negotiating with insecurity and NGO Support

Farzana referred to the insecurity on account of being new comers in sex work. She has been in

Goa for only a year. She earns well compared to her older co-workers who are over thirty years

of age. She is nineteen but looks younger. She lives with a partner who is aware of her work and

has decided to continue his romantic relationship with her.

She goes out for work about 4-5 days in the week. Often when she is out with a customer she is

stopped for questioning by the police. Since the police do not have any proof of her soliciting in

public, she feels safe. Getting noticed by the police on a regular basis can mean trouble for her.

She wants to be made a peer educator at the NGO. The identity card will solve a lot of her

problems she says. The women in the NGO who work as peer educators have an identity card.

This helps them out in times of trouble with the police. Peer educators are members of the

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 69 community who work with the NGO to spread sexual health awareness. They distribute

condoms, help the women with pregnancy, Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs), UTI and

convince the women to avail of the free HIV testing regularly. Although the women are paid Rs.

1700 every month, the position means having an official identity card. The women can then

easily move around seeking customers. There are raids at lodges from time to time. Having a

card in hand at such times saves the women from having to bribe the police. The women say, in

case of arrests, the NGO people always come forth and support.

6.5 Negotiating with fear and Coping Mechanisms adopted by the Women

Hema accepted that she had been arrested by the Sangli police for attempting to bring a girl to

work for her so she could live off the earnings of the girl. She said the decision to bring in a third

minor girl rather than they themselves continuing as sex workers, was a calculated decision.

While she was a sex worker in Madgaon, she frequented some specific bars with other women.

The modus operandi involved dressing up and sitting outside the bars. The women used the

waiting area to entice and solicit customers. They would regularly visit the bars looking for

work. Over time, the local people and the bar owners had identified them. The police would

come on routine checks to the bars at night. The police also questioned the women. The police

suspected the women were sex workers but did not arrest them each time. The women were

always careful. She says she once told a policeman what she did for a living but he did not arrest

her. She told him if he arrested her she would still go back to being a sex worker. She told him

she was all alone and this was the only way of earning money. Although, the women were never

arrested while they were soliciting at the bar, there was a lingering fear. The woman along with

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 70 three friends decided to bring in a girl so she could rest for some days and still have a means of

survival. She said her experience of being in custody for the next few days was painful. She had

been stripped to her last bit of underclothes and beaten black and blue by the police at the police

station. She then spent four days after that in the hospital. When the judge asked her if she had

been beaten at the police station she denied it. She said the women police officers who beat her

up had asked her to never mention it in court. She was granted bail. She is not clear on how long

the case will go on or what is the situation right now. Every few months she is required to report

at Sangli, as and when the matter appears. She has paid a lawyer all the money she had made

over the years to represent her in the court at Sangli as she is unable to travel for every court

hearing. She is not a peer educator like many of the other women. She moved to Sankhali from

Madgaon recently and is no more a peer educator like she was in the Madgaon office. She

aborted a child after the death of her first husband last year and was expecting another child from

her boyfriend but she complains of tiredness and physical weakness. She says her poor physical

health does not allow her to travel much which is a prerequisite for the peer educators to build a

network of sex workers outside the NGOs. Despite these odds, women like her continue to

struggle to survive doing sex work.

6.6 Negotiating with the spaces of Sex Work

The women unanimously agree that there is no need for a red light area. Visibility of their

livelihood option invariably poses to be an impediment in their lives. The women agree that

traveling alone in search of customers is safer than operating out of a red light area. This way

although the police might suspect them their chances of being identified and arrested is low.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 71 Also, the families have no way of finding out what the women do for a living. Since the

customers are pre-decided the women do not feel the need to dress up provocatively or put a lot

of makeup. This saves them from attracting unnecessary attention.

Sex work is physically and emotionally toiling. It provides sustenance to the families of all these

women. While in Baina or any other hierarchical set up, the sex workers have to pay all those

above them since without the organizational setup, they are able to negotiate with the customers

more effectively. Currently in Goa, the women do not pay bribes either to the police or any sort

of middle men on a regular basis. Only in situations where they are arrested they are required to

pay the police if they want a simpler way out. The women say that in this new situation they can

negotiate between their demands and those of the customer, till they reach a consensus. They feel

they have agency, more options, voice and power. They have the power to negotiate over time,

money and working conditions with clients.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 72

CONCLUSION

The shift from "prostitution" to "sex work" represents an explicit attempt to bring prostitution

into the sphere of labor, to define people selling sexual services as workers who are entitled to

workers' rights within an existing industry. (Shah 2003)

This quote signifies the shifts that have taken place in the discourse around sexual labour of

women, hitherto understood within the gamut of prostitution. This study also reflects on the

location of sex work and sexual labour within the paradigm of work, particularly within the

informal economy. There are several themes that have emerged out of this research.

Options within the informal economy - In the women’s narratives migration has been discussed

as a strong influence on the lives of these women and in their choices of livelihood. Their

experiences of migrating to Goa both on their own to find work or moving with their families

have been traced. Further the experience of being financially independent and self- sufficient

have also emerged from the narratives including the experience of trying different work

options like construction, domestic work and working in hotels before deciding to do sex work.

There are several push factors involved in moving out from home or from a familiar space

and migrating to a new place and ultimately taking up the chosen livelihood options. Among

them poverty and unemployment (resulting from limited opportunities of work back home)

play an important role. The pull factors include the proximity and connectivity to Goa from the

women’s native places or previous place of stay. Thus what emerges is that women migrate and

seek out options within the informal economy, thereby locating sex work as one among several

options within the informal economy of Goa.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 73

Conscious nature of the decisions - However, the narratives also bring out the instability and

unreliability of sex work, yet they also bring out the unending effort of the women to survive

by doing sex work. The fact that the families will get to know about the women doing sex

work, the physical and health issues and the illegality of sex work worry the women. Further in

terms of options outside of sex work, women agree on the fact that rehabilitation without an

equal compensation such as that in sex work is not a solution. In their given circumstances, sex

work seems to be the most viable option. All women’s narratives depict the conscious choices

that they make within their existing circumstances.

The narratives bring out the importance of the tourism and mining industries in Goa in the lives

of the women. They also bring out the effect of the demolition of the Baina beach red light

area, which now ensures them anonymity to a great extent, yet often makes the process of

finding customers long and tedious. There are certain periods when being able to find a

customer is extremely difficult. These include the days of menstruation, the t o u r i s t off

season and d a ys o f strict police vigilance. Despite this inconsistency, the relative anonymity

and the support from the income due to sex work is able to provide the women with some

independence and self-sufficiency in their lives.

The women accept that there is stigma and discrimination in doing sex work. As a result they

refrain from informing and involving families in this decision. They maintain more than one role

in their lives which include that of a domestic worker, peer educator, factory worker etc. along

with being sex workers. The women do not equate sexual labour as central to their economic life.

They choose to take it up as a supplement to inadequate income or a more effective means of

becoming economically independent.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 74 The narratives b r i n g out a distinct understanding of sex work in the context of Goa. The

absence of an acknowledged space for both solicitation and meeting customers is desirable for

these women. At the same time, it requires the women to put in several months of hard work

before they can establish a customer network that allows them economic stability. The women

have not experienced any physical violence and believe that Goa is ‘safe’. Also, since the women

only venture out in the day and avoid meeting customers they do not recognize, the chances of

being attacked, forced or threatened are extremely low.

The NGOs that the women are attached to, help in case the women are caught by the police

soliciting a customer. Ultimately, the women have taken it upon themselves to do sex work to

survive and support their families and are willing to brave the obstacles that come in the way.

Thus despite being not being formally organized, the network of support built around the NGO

stands them in good stead.

The women do not wish to organize themselves in any other formal way. The current

organization of sex work supports them in their choices. There definitely has been more

vigilance since the demolition of Baina but the State has not accepted the presence of sex work

as a voluntary activity within the circumstances faced by the women. The migrant women who

are found by the police soliciting customers are sent back to their home states. As a result, these

women choose to be discreet about their activities. Especially as mothers, the women feel

responsible for their families and are willing to take the required risks. They internalize their

fears to a large extent and learn to devise ways of surviving in the real world. At the same time,

they are aware of the conditions that may come with the way they decide to go forward with their

lives. The women do not feel coerced or taken advantage of. The networks that they have built

around their peers who help them get clients, the network of clients themselves who offer some

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 75 support in dire circumstances, the network of the organization of sex work with the lodges, and

finally the network around the NGO and it’s staff offer the women, a space to seek livelihood

options within the informal sector in Goa, while constantly negotiating these options.

Finally, it is important to recognize these migrant women as sex workers. This in turn will help

in recognizing sex work as paid labour. It will establish the primacy of sex work as the main

economic activity for the women and not just their identity.

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 76

REFERENCES

Agnes, F. (2008), The Bar Dancer and the Trafficked Migrant: Globalisation and Subaltern

Existence. In: G.Letherby, et. al. (eds) Sex as Crime. Devon, UK; Portland, USA: Willan

Publishing, pp. 99- 117.

Agustin, L. M. (2007). Sex at the Margins: Migration, Labour Markets and the Rescue Industry.

Zed Books

Agustin, L. M. (2006), The Disappearing of a Migration Category: Migrants Who Sell Sex,

Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 29-47

Bachhetta P., (1988) Indian Women Fight Sex-Tourism, Off Our Backs, Vol. 18, No. 1, pp. 12

Banerjee Arpita, Raju S. (2009). Gendered Mobility: Women Migrants and Work in Urban India.

Economic and Political Weekly, 115-128.

Barry, K. (1995). The Prostitution of Sexuality: The Global Exploitation of Women. New York

University Press

Behera, N. (2006) Gender Conflict and Migration, Volume 3, Women and Migration in Asia,

Sage

Bindman, J. (1997) Redefining Prostitution as Sex Work on the International Agenda

http://www.walnet.org/csis/papers/redefining.html

Carisa, R. Showden, (2011), Choices Women Make: Agency in Domestic Violence, Assisted

Reproduction, and Sex Work. University of Minnesota Press, Project MUSE, Web, 11

Feb. 2014

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 77 Census India, Government of India, Ministry of Home Affairs, retrieved from

http://www.census2011.co.in/census/state/goa.html on January 19, 2014

Dance bars outlawed in Mumbai, Scotland on Sunday, April 13, 2005, retrieved from

http://www.scotsman.com/news/world/dance-bars-outlawed-in-mumbai-1-707710 on

January 23, 2014

D’costa and others (2007), Harmful Alcohol use in Goa, India, and its associations with

violence: A Study in Primary Care by Alcohol and Alcoholism, Oxford Journals, 131-

137 on December 15, 2013

Demolition at Baina beach leaves hundreds homeless in Goa, Infochange, on Februrary 13, 2014

http://infochangeindia.org/human-rights/news/demolition-at-baina-beach-leaves-

hundreds-homeless-in-goa.html

Desai, S.P. (1997) Census of India 1991-A Portrait of Population of Goa (Panaji: Goa

Government Publication)

DeSouza, S. (2009) Organising Women for Empowerment: a study of an Experiment in Goa,

Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai

Desouza, S. Razing Baina, Goa: In whose Interest? Economic and Political Weekly; Vol.

XXXIX, No. 30; 3341-3343

Evictions in Goa: Case Study of Baina A fact-finding team’s report (1997), Bailancho Saad

5 yrs on, prostitution still alive in Baina: Study, The Herald, June 14, 2009, retrieved from

http://oheraldo.in/news/main%20page%20news/5-yrs-on-prostitution-still-alive-in-Baina-

Study/23118.html

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 78 ARZ-Anyay Rahat Zindagi, retrieved from http://www.arzindia.org/

George A., Vindhya U., Ray S., (2010) ‘Sex Trafficking and Sex Work: Definitions, Debates and

Dynamics-A Review of Literature’ Review of Women’s Studies, Economic and Political

Weekly, Vol. XLV No. 17.

Goa govt's eviction of sex workers to be challenged in SC, Deccan Herald on November 25,

1997 accessed on October 13, 2013 retrieved from

http://www.walnet.org/csis/news/world_97/dhnews-971125.html

Hague, M. S. (2006) Ambiguities and Confusions in Migration-Trafficking Nexus. In: K. Beeks

and D. Amir (eds.) Trafficking and the Global Sex Industry. Oxford: Lexington Books,

pp. 3-20

Hart, K. (1973) Informal Income Opportunities and Urban Employment in Ghana, Journal of

Modern African Studies, 61–89

Housewives treated like prostitutes in Census says Supreme Court, NDTV, July 23, 2010,

retrieved from http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/housewives-treated-like-prostitutes-in-

census-says-supreme-court-39271 (Here the women who work within the households are

considered as non-workers by the Census. Also, sex works are categorized under non-

workers making them dependents thus not recognizing their labour.) on January 13, 2014

HRLN (Human Rights Law Network) (2006) Trafficking and the Law, HRLN.

Hubbard P., (1999) Sex and the City-Geographies and Prostitution in the Urban West, Ashgate

Hubbard, P., (2004) Cleansing the Metropolis: Sex Work and the Politics of Zero Tolerance,

Urban Study August vol. 41 no. 9 1687-1702

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 79 Humm, M (1992) Feminisms: A Reader, Harvester Wheatsheaf

India to give visa on arrival to 40 countries, (2013) , October 08, 2013, Arabian Business.com,

http://www.arabianbusiness.com/india-give-visa-on-arrival-40-countries-522184.html

accessed on October 13, 2013

I will oppose dance bars: Lobo, The Times of India, August 13, 2013, retrieved from

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-08-13/goa/41372351_1_dance-bars-

shacks-operators

Jana S, B. N. (2002), A Tale of Two Cities: Shifting the Paradigm of Anti-trafficking

Programmes, Gender and Development. Gender and Development, 1-11.

Jain, D. (2007), To Be or Not to Be: Problems in Locating Women in Public Policy. Economic

and Political Weekly Vol. XLII No.VIII, 691-696

Jo Doezema (2005), ‘Now You See Her, Now You Don't: Sex Workers at the UN Trafficking

Protocol Negotiation’ Social & Legal Studies

Jeffreys, S. (2008), The Industrial Vagina: The Political Economy of the Global Sex Trade,

Taylor and Francis

Kempadoo K.,, Doezema J., Global Sex Workers: Rights, Resistance, and Redefinition,

Routledge, 1998 -294

Kotiswaran, P., (2012), Sex Slavery or Labour Exploitation? India's need to rethink Human

Trafficking. India in Transition

Kotiswaran, P., (2011), Dangerous Sex, Invisible Labor: Sex Work and the Law in India,

Princeton University Press

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 80 Kundu, A. (2009), Urbanisation and Migration: An Analysis of Trend, Pattern and Policies in

Asia, Human Development Research Paper 2009/16, United Nations Development

Programme, New York.

Liamputtong, P., (2008) Doing Cross-Cultural Research: Ethical and Methodological

Perspectives, Volume 34, Social Indicators Research Series

Lee, M, (2011), Trafficking and Global Crime Control, Sage

Liempt, I (2009), Illegal Migration and Gender in a Global and Historical Perspective, Chicago

University Press

Lim, Lin Lean. (1998), The Sex Sector: The Economic And Social Bases Of Prostitution In

Southeast Asia , Geneva, International Labour Office

Lusofonia Games 2014, Government of Goa, Press Release retrieved from

http://lusofoniagames2014.gov.in/sites/all/themes/universiade/files/Press%20release%20l

aunch%20of%20web%20portal%2004-10-13.pdf

Maria, M. (1999), Patriarchy and Accumulation On A World Scale: Women in the International

Division of Labour, Zed Books

Maryam S, Wayal S and others (1999) A Study Comparing Sexually Transmitted Infections and

HIV Among Ex-Red-Light District and Non-Red-Light District Sex Workers After the

Demolition of Baina Red-Light District, Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency

Syndromes

Migration, Trafficking, and Sites of Work Rights and Vulnerabilities in Kamala Kempadoo et. al.

(eds) Trafficking and Prostitution Reconsidered: New Perspectives on Migration, Sex

Work and Human Rights. Boulder, USA: Paradigm Publishers, 159-173

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 81 Miriam, K. (2005), Stopping the Traffic in Women: Power, Agency and Abolition in Feminist

Debates over Sex-Trafficking, Journal of Social Philosophy

NACP III, National Aids Control Programme, Phase III, 2006-2011, Strategy and

Implementation Plan, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India,

November 30, 2006

Nag, M. Economic and Political Weekly, Vol - XL No. 49, December 03, 2005

Nagle, J. (1997), Whores and Other Feminists. Routledge

Nair, P. M. (2007), Trafficking in Women and Children in India. (ISS-UNIFEM-NHRC, Ed.)

Orient Longman

NCW discusses Baina beach oustees' plight, The Hindu, Tuesday, Jun 15, 2004, accessed on

November 23, 2013 retrieved from

http://www.hindu.com/2004/06/15/stories/2004061501491200.htm

Newman, R. Transformation of an Indian Region, Pacific Affairs, Vol. 57, No. 3 (Autumn, 1984)

, pp. 429-449

No applications received, says Baina Rehabilitation Board, Goacom, June 20, 2013, retrieved

from http://www.goacom.com/goa-news-highlights/10265-no-applications-received-says-

baina-rehabilitation-board

No Goan woman involved in flesh trade: Sapeco, The Times of India, April 30, 2011, retrieved

from http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-04-30/goa/29490446_1_state-

protective-home-combat-human-trafficking-goan

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 82 Palriwala , R., & Uberoi, P. (n.d.), Marriage, Migration and Gender. In Women and Migration in

Asia Volume 05

Reclaiming Goa, (2013) Editorial, Economic and Political Weekly, Vol-XLVIII (No. 47)

November 23, 2013

Reinharz, S. and Davidman, L. (1992) Feminist Methods in Social Research, New York:

Oxford U P

Report of the Committee on Unorganised Sector Statistics, National Statistical Commission,

GOI, and February 2012.

Report of the Committee on Unorganised Sector Statistics, (2012), National Statistical

Commission, GOI

Routledge, Paul (2000), Consuming Goa, Economic and Political Weekly, Vol-XXXV (No. 30)

Rubin, G. S. (1992), Thinking Sex: Notes for a Radical Theory of the Politics of Sexuality in

Vance C.S., Pleasure and Danger: Exploring Female Sexuality, Routledge

Sahni, R. and Shankar V., Sex Work and its Linkages with Informal Labour Markets in India:

Findings from the First Pan-India Survey of Female Sex Workers, February 2013,IDS

Working Paper, Volume 2013, no.416

Sassen, Saskia (1991) Global Cities: New York, London, Tokyo, Princeton University Press

Sassen, S. (2002). ‘Women’s Burden: Counter Geographies of Globalisation and the

Feminisation of Survival’ . Journal of International Affairs, 503-524.

Seshu, M. S. and Pai, A. (2014), Sex Work Undresses Patriarchy with Every Trick! IDS Bulletin,

45: 46–52. doi: 10.1111/1759-5436.12067 on February 13, 2014

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 83 Sen, Sarkar and P M Nair, (2004), A Report on Trafficking in Women and Children in India

2002-03, Volume 1, Institute of Social Sciences, New Delhi, National Human Rights

Commission, UNIFEM, New Delhi.

Shah, Svati P. (2003), Sex Work in the Global Economy, New Labor Forum, Vol. 12, No. 1

(Spring,2003), pp. 74-81

Shah, Svati P. (2011), Solicitation, Migration and Day Wage Labour: Gender, Sexuality and

Negotiating Work in the City in Poverty, Gender and Migration, Women and Migration

in India, Volume 2, edt. Arya S. and Roy A.

Sharvari K and Gezinski L, 'Without Us, Sex Workers will Die Like Weeds': Sex Work and

Client Violence in Kamathipura.’ Indian Journal of Gender Studies October 2012 vol. 19

no. 3 351-371

Shukla, R., (2007) Women with Multiple Sex Partners in Commercial Context, Economic and

Political Weekly, Vol. 42, No. 1, pp. 18-21

The expanding red light district, The Times of India, June 10, 2009, retrieved from

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2009-06-10/goa/28155710_1_massage-

parlours-baina-state-protective-home US AID. (2012). Counter Trafficking in Persons

Policy

Tourist arrivals crossed 3 million mark in 2013, The Times of India, January 23, 2014, retrieved

from http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2014-01-23/goa/46513392_1_goa-

tourism-gtdc-chairman-nilesh-cabral-tourism-minister-dilip-parulekar

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 84 Unbridled migration may reduce ethnic Goans to minority: Govt., The Hindu Business Line, June

13, 2013, retrieved from http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/states/unbridled-

migration-may-reduce-ethnic-goans-to-minority-govt/article4810735.ece

UNESCO 2013, Ten Key Areas for Better Inclusion of Migrants in India

UNESCO/UNICEF Policy Briefs for a Better Inclusion of Internal Migrants in India, New Delhi

US Department of State (2011) Trafficking in Persons Report.

Weizner, R. (2009), Sociology of Sex Work, Annual Review of Sociology

World Migration Report 2013 Migrant Wellbeing and Development (2013), International

Organization for Migration (IFM), France

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 85 ANNEXURE 01

QUESTIONNAIRE

1. Personal:

a. Name:

b. Age:

c. Caste:

d. Religion:

e. State you were born in:

f. Daughters (with age):

g. Sons (with age):

h. Marital status: single/married/divorced/separated/ widow/other

i. Living with: Alone/Friends/Family

j. If with family, who:

k. Earning members in family (no.) :

l. Who: Three children and me

m. Dependent family members in Goa:

n. Elsewhere:

o. Where and who:

p. Locality where you stay:

q. Areas where you travel to for work:

r. Education:

s. Any skill training:

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 86

t. Languages known:

u. Do you speak /know English: Yes/No/Little

v. ID Proof (Ration card, Adhar card, Voter I-card etc.):

2. Migration history:

Town/city/state lived in Period Reason(s) to leave/move

3. Work history:

Job No.

Age Nature of Work

Where Period Monthly average earnings

Reason(s) to leave/change

4. Working conditions (general):

a. Is work environment safe: Yes/No

b. What improvements possible:

c. Illness due to nature of work:

d. Have you witnessed sexual assault/abuse of any women at work: Yes/No

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 87

e. If yes, by whom: Police/customer/owner/co-worker/outside

f. Describe:

5. Work/Work conditions related: a. Were you practicing sex work before you moved to Goa?

b. If yes, why did you then move to Goa specifically? If no, what were you

doing earlier for sustaining yourself and your family?

c. How did you decide to take up this work? What other work have you done

before you moved to sex work? Were you doing other work simultaneously

or did you move and stick only to sex work in the start? Has it changed since?

d. Does it provide for you and those you are supporting or do you do

other simultaneous jobs?

e. Is the work opportunity during the tourist season (November-March) better?

Do you get more customers?

f. Do you feel burdened financially? If so, how?

g. Do you find it difficult to interact and find customers in the absence of a

known common area/red light area?

h. Do you think the situation for sex work is desirable in Goa currently? Would

you like to see a change? How?

i. How long have you practiced sex work in Goa? Has it changed over the years? 6. Goa related:

a. Why did you move to Goa?

b. Is it difficult to find work because you are not from Goa?

c. Has being a non-goan been a problem for you? How?

d. Do you follow Konkani? If not, is the fact that you do not follow the

language a problem?

e. If given a choice to change location and practice the same kind of work

would you shift to your hometown or somewhere outside of Goa?

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 88

7. Baina:

a. Do you know about the Baina demolition? Have you been here since before

the Baina demolition?

b. Have you ever been there before or after? What was it like? c. Do you think it was fair on the people who lived there?

d. Has the demolition the nature of your work in any way? If so, how?

8. Relationship with State/Government:

a. The Goa government is willing to provide rehabilitation to women practicing

sex work in Goa. Have you heard about that?

b. Would you like to avail of such a scheme?

c. What expectations do you have from the government with regard to your work?

Do you think the government can in any way make the conditions better? 9. State/Law/Police:

a. Do the police bother you in your work? Are they supportive?

b. Is meeting the clients in a public place problematic because of random

police checks?

c. Do you think that sex work should be legalized?

d. Do you think sex work should be decriminalized, at least?

e. Do you know about the laws to do with sex work?

f. Have you faced any sort of discrimination owing to the nature of your work?

If so, how?

g. Have you ever been in trouble with the police for practicing sex work?

h. Do you think you have the right to decide whether or not you want to

continue practicing sex work?

i. Would you let someone else make that decision for you?

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 89 10. Relationship/Support from NGOs:

a. Do you get adequate support from the non-governmental organizations here?

Is there something more you would like from them?

b. What is your engagement with the NGO?

c. Is it a paid role? How much is the pay? d. Does your role in the NGO help you connect with more sex workers? If so, how?

11. Role of other stakeholders(customers):

a. What is your relationship with your clients like?

b. Do you need to reach out or is there a regular clientele?

c. Where do you meet your customers (lodge/guest house/ their house/your

house/others)? 12. Stigma/Discrimination:

a. Does your family know about your practicing sex work? If not, why have you

not told them?

b. Are you worried they will not understand your work and make moral judgments? 13. Relationship with other sex workers:

a. Are you connected with other people practicing sex work?

b. How many other sex workers do you know in Goa? Do you think the network

of the women you know helps all of you together?

c. Do you feel that if there was a sort of organization or support system for

women practicing sex work it would help you? What kind of an organization do

you think there should be?

d. Do you feel threatened by other sex workers? Is there a lot of competition? 14. Future:

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 90

a. What work would you do if you were unable to practice sex work:

b. Where?

c. What kind of training would you want:

Experiencing Sex ‘Work’ 91

TURNITIN CERTIFICATE