Chinese prostitution dens sell sex on WeChat and Telegram like it’s ‘fast food’, Philippine senate hears

Philippine senate inquiry into the proliferation of Chinese-run prostitution dens links them to the rise of the online gambling industry

It hears prostitutes are priced according to nationality and that women – some still girls – are sold on smartphone apps like a takeaway

Reading Time:3 minutes

One of the slides presented by Senator Risa Hontiveros to the committee hearing. Photo: Handout

Published: 7:30pm, 28 Jan 2020Updated: 2:08pm, 17 Feb 2020

Wearing dark glasses, a hood and a mask, the 15-year-old Filipino girl explained to the Philippine senate committee that she had been recruited as a masseuse.

It was not until later she found she would be prostituted out as one of nine females under the control of a Chinese boss who sold her body nearly exclusively to Chinese clients in Philippine hotels. Her boss would keep half her earnings, which began at 6,000 pesos per client and increased if she stayed overnight. And “Carina”, as she was referred to in the hearing, was not the youngest to be exploited. One of her coworkers was just 14.

The teenager’s testimony, given via a video link, was just one of the shocking insights the committee gained into the rise of Chinese prostitution dens in the Philippines at a special hearing on Tuesday.

The committee also heard from law enforcement officials, who directly linked the proliferation of the dens to the rise of Philippine offshore gaming operators, or Pogos, online gambling firms that are based locally but employ mainly Chinese workers and cater to customers in China, where betting is illegal.

A gambling website in the Philippines featuring young, female Chinese dealers. Chinese gamblers are the main target audience for Pogos. Photo: Tory Ho

“We only experienced these activities when Pogos were created, Chinese Pogo employees are the ultimate clients of these prostitution dens, and they entertain only Chinese nationals,” the National Bureau of Investigation’s Deputy Director Vicente de Guzman III told the hearing.

Chinese prostitution dens sell sex on WeChat and Telegram like it’s ‘fast food’, Philippine senate hears

Philippine senate inquiry into the proliferation of Chinese-run prostitution dens links them to the rise of the online gambling industry It hears prostitutes are priced according to nationality and that women – some still girls – are sold on smartphone apps like a takeaway

Philippine senate inquiry into the proliferation of Chinese-run prostitution dens links them to the rise of the online gambling industry

It hears prostitutes are priced according to nationality and that women – some still girls – are sold on smartphone apps like a takeaway