The Other Woman!

  This is an official entry for Stayfree held by Indiblogger

Days  when  I return back late from my office I peep outside my bus to have a breath of fresh air. As my  bus slowly passes through the main gate of a famous  IT company, the sight of beautiful young gals leaves me mesmerised. They are one like me,you and any other gal reading this article.They are prettier than me and hundreds of other simple looking gals. They would have had a rosier life than me ,you or anyone else. One look at them and you find nothing amiss. A second , closer look at them would be  anything but pretty. Their faces painted with heavy make  up, garish gaudy clothes with a plunging neckline with their ample cleavage on display waiting on the main roads for prospective clients. As my bus moves on I am always haunted with hundreds of questions running through my mind.

I  have always wondered what their lives would be like. How uncertain the next morning would be for them. Whether they would be alive or end up being battered and bruised by their clients. Whether they would be abused and treated as a machine working for the money that their clients spent on the pimps.

What surprises me is the hypocrisy of the men in our country; they want the ladies of their houses to be fully dressed, wearing mini skirt is still a taboo at many places but they wouldn’t mind displaying their masculinity to a fragile sex worker for a night of enjoyment ; rather to satisfy their lust. The men in our country get away with excuses that it is the improper dressing is the reason they  are provoked to rape but little do they admit to the fact it is the thought that is more wretched than the act.

One of the worst professions that woman have been into so far. Age no bar , sex no bar is something this profession follows studiously. Minor gals are forced into this profession , sold by their own families .Every single day hundreds of gals are pushed into this profession and no one knows what happens to them. They are lost in the crowd somewhere.No one is bothered about them nor the client ,nor the trafficker, no one!!

Read this on a site –Source Internet and couldn’t agree more to this.

"If it wasn't for men you wouldn't have prostitution," said Myers. "They think it's a joke, she's having a ball. No she isn't! They think they didn't do anything wrong – 'My wife is pregnant and I deserve to have my needs taken care of.' Well fuck your needs! And fuck the things you do to us, things that would have you arrested if you tried to do them to a date. Women need to be taught that their body isn’t an offering or a sacrifice."

Whats more depressing is the appalling work conditions ,the way they are subjected to torture and harassment.They are forced to satisfy 15-30 customers in a single day. Apart from being a symbol of lust for the customers,they also have to bear the brunt of the customers. They are forced to drink,smoke ,beaten black and blue ,forced to have banned drugs which have deadly side effects.No one speaks for them. No one raises a voice for them even when India is one of the biggest markets  of flesh trade.The risk of transmission of sexually transmitted diseases is also very high in  this profession.Sex trade is a viscous circle.Having read books, articles on them ,I can easily conclude their life is no less than hell.

What I think has to change is the current working conditions, they must have a voice to speak for their own rights, make this profession legalized, give them equal respect just like any other normal working woman. Because it is because of them that the number of rape cases is still under control .its because someone somewhere   sacrifices their body just for few bucks. Awareness should be created on a large scale to prevent sexually transmitted diseases. Usage of condoms and educating about the use of the same, and  reasons why must they force their customers to have protected sex must be spread .Their children must get a chance to have a different life. The govt must do something about their education and well fare. They must introduce some kind of grants for these kids so that they lead a better life. Strict action and stringent laws must be enforced against people involved in the human trafficking racket. Medical checkups and vaccination programmes must be conducted on a large scale in the red light areas. Police harassment should be dealt by the government. They should have the right to choose the clients that they wish to have rather than being forced to sleep with any jerk. No one  knows whether they would return the next day safely after an entire night stint. Their safety should be taken care of.  Rehabilitation of minors who have been forced into this profession must be increased. They must be encouraged to start a new life on their own by involving them in the small scale industries.Last but not the least they must not be treated as an outcast.

Reading Hashi’s story made me write this article.( http://news.yahoo.com/bangladeshs-teenage-brothels-hold-dark-steroid-secret-024639562.html) There will be thousands of Hashi who have been pushed into this profession, and hundreds who would be prospective Hashi. The thought that gals are a burden to the society has to be changed. The thought that woman are a mere sex symbol has to be changed. The thought be changed,the act  be changed...Castrate the ones who force themselves on minors who are yet to know what all this mean.Make changes in the law such that no trafficker is ever let out free .Set an example in such a way that people tremble out of fear everytime they think to sell off their daughters for few pennies.

   And for normal citizens - BE ALERT! if you find any such case in your area of human trafficking or forced prostitution raise your voice against it.Be the Change to see the change.