CHAPTER
ONE:
INTRODUCTION
1.1
Background of the Study
Commercial sex
is basically sex for money. It is not restricted to any culture, its global and
it transcends all age barriers as some cases girls as young as eight years are
involved. Commercial sex has evolved over the last two decades, (National
Behaviour Survey 2004). According to the National Behaviour Survey (2004),
commercial sex work has indeed become complex in different ways as there are
male sex workers in Nigeria who have sex with men for commercial reasons and
there is an organization0 that support them which based in Ibadan, Oyo state. Commercial sex has particularly taken a
worrisome and indeed despicable turn on the continent through traffic human
right and these have become major issues in West Africa (Human Right
Action, 1997).
In recent time, commercial sex has become a lucrative business in Nigeria especially among the youths (Ikpe,
2008).
Research has it that, 31% of sex workers are
students particularly in Nigeria institutions (Onah, 2000). Onah (2000), is of
the view that, there are different forms of sex workers, those that stay in the brothels, those that stand on the road side, those
that operate from home etc.
Furthermore, sex
work has now become an occupation especially for the girls in countries like
Netherland, Brazil, Norway etc, sex work serves as one of the sources of
revenue for government, hence, taxes are paid to the government (Aday, 1990).
Aday further says that, sex workers face systematic discrimination throughout
the world and are therefore, at risk of variety of abuses, these include police
extortion, arbitrary detention and other. Violations of their human and labour
rights which in some cases even amount to slavery.
In Nigeria, sex
work is an illegal business because, the law prohibits its, but no active
action has really been taken against it by the government (Onah, 2000). In
AkwaIbom State particularly, Uyo local government, commercial sex workers can
be found in hotels, bars, brothels and on the street, (Onah, 2000). Despite the
efforts made by the government and other private organization to eradicate sex
work in Uyo, it has rather grown to become one of the outstanding social
problems that have really apprehended the people of Uyo (Onah, 2000). It is on
this background that, this research work attempts to find a possible way of
coping with this problem.
The people
involved in commercial sex experience negative effect even though they still
make out from it. Lex (1992), argued that, sex work has been identified as the
core group for transmission of HIV/AIDS and STD;
Thus, they face
discrimination throughout the world. Due to the diseases that befall these
people on daily basis, sex work has been considered a menace in the society and
also violence against humanity, (Lex, 1992). These negative effects includes
untimely death, frustration, unwanted pregnancy etc. one of the major
challenges is that, some of these sex workers are illiterates, they neither
attain seminars nor listen to news on television where they could be
enlightened on the risk of their work. These work has then, become their life
style, therefore, making it difficult for the government to cope with.
In country like
Nigeria, prostitution is termed as deviance and unhealthy in the society. It is
also a big embarrassment to the government and the families who their youths
are involved in such acts, such families will lack their respect from people in
the society no matter their position in the society, (Onah, 2000). This
research work then, seeks to investigate the effects and causes of commercial
sex work among AkwaIbom girls.
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