Struggling Bolivian Sex Workers Protest Coronavirus Crackdown

As governments worldwide impose harsh measures to slow the spread of the deadly coronavirus pandemic, sex workers remain one of least discussed but most affected groups, when it comes to the drastic economic impact of the social restrictions. In the United States, Nevada’s legal brothels have been ordered to close, as AVN.com reported, while in Berlin, Germany, where sex work has been legal for two decades, business is reportedly down by 50 percent. In the already impoverished South American country of Bolivia, sex workers are protesting that country’s measures, which include a 5 p.m. curfew, and a two-week lockdown that forced businesses—including dozens of legal brothels—to shut down, according to a Reuters report. Sex work is legal but heavily regulated in Bolivia, with brothels required to have government licenses to operate. Most sex workers are represented by a trade union, but struggle just to make a living, according to the Reuters report. "We are also part of Bolivian society. We are sex workers, women, aunts and grandmothers that also have to worry about our work hours,” union rep Lily Cortes told Reuters, adding that if the brothels are closed "unfortunately the sex workers will go out to work the streets and the result will be worse." Bolivia, a country of about 11 million people, had confirmed 32 coronavirus cases as of late Wednesday, without any deaths so far. But sex workers are also suffering due the coronavirus containment measures in Bangladesh, another largely poor country—but one with a population of more than 160 million. Sex work is also legal but regulated in Bangladesh, where there are 12 government sanctioned brothels, according to Reuters. The largest of those brothels, Daulatdia—located just outside of the country’s capital city of Dhaka—employs about 1,500 sex workers who were all put out of work on Friday when the Bangladesh government banned customers from patronizing brothels as part of the coronavirus containment measures. The government has promised to compensate the laid-off sex workers with a one-time payment equivalent to $25, along with a 65-pound bag of rice. But the sex workers there say that won’t be enough. "If we were informed beforehand, we could have tried to save up as much as possible. Now many of us have to take loans to not stay hungry," said one 30-year-old sex worker at the century-old brothel. ”Right now, we need the government aid as soon as possible.” The average worker's wage in Bangladesh is slightly over $60 per month. The country has reported 39 cases of coronavirus—but five of those patients have died. Photo by Teomancimit / Wikimedia Commons