Prostitution is illegal in Bhutan but in many of

Bhutan Bhutan (; dz, འབྲུག་ཡུལ་, Druk Yul ), officially the Kingdom of Bhutan,), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is situated in the Eastern Himalayas, between China in the north and India in the south. A mountainous ...

's border towns there are people openly practising in the sex trade.

Prostitution Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in Sex work, sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, n ...

mainly occurs in bars, clubs and hotels. Some of the sex workers are employed by bar and hotel owners to attract customers. Prostitution also occurs in the capital,

Thimphu Thimphu (; dz, ཐིམ་ཕུག ) is the capital city, capital and largest city of Bhutan. It is situated in the western central part of Bhutan, and the surrounding valley is one of Bhutan's ''dzongkhags'', the Thimphu District. The ancient ...

. There are thought to be 400–500 sex workers in the country, many from poor backgrounds, who enter prostitution for financial reasons. In 2017, the NGO ''Lhak-Sam'' proposed that sex work was legalised by the government, but the proposal was turned down.

Sex trafficking Sex trafficking is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation. It has been called a form of modern slavery because of the way victims are forced into sexual acts non-consensually, in a form of sexual slavery. Perpetrators of the ...

is a problem in the country.

Sex tourism

Bhutan is becoming a destination for

sex tourism Sex tourism refers to the practice of traveling to foreign countries, often on a different continent, with the intention of engaging in sexual activity or relationships in exchange for money or lifestyle support. This practice predominantly oper ...

for people from the West and

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. Some high-end

prostitutes Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-penet ...

are involved, tourists being more likely to be able to afford their fees. Some of the tourists are looking for sex with boys and girls. The ''Guides Association of Bhutan'' report some tourists ask for female 'guides' to accompany them during their stay in the country.

Legislation

The Penal Code of Bhutan criminalises prostitution: Chapter 26 - Prostitution and Related Offences * Prostitution :373. A defendant shall be guilty of the offence of prostitution, if the defendant offers, agrees to engage, or engages in sexual conduct with another person for money or property. * Grading of Prostitution :374. The offence of prostitution shall be a misdemeanour. * Promotion of prostitution :375. A defendant shall be guilty of the offence of promotion of prostitution, if the defendant: ::(a) Owns, leases, controls, manages, supervises a

brothel A brothel, bordello, ranch, or whorehouse is a place where people engage in sexual activity with prostitutes. However, for legal or cultural reasons, establishments often describe themselves as massage parlors, bars, strip clubs, body rub par ...

or otherwise keeps a prostitution business; ::(b) Procures a person for a house of prostitution; ::(c) Encourages, induces, or otherwise purposely causes another to become or remain as a prostitute; ::(d) Solicits a person to patronise a prostitute; ::(e) Procures a prostitute for a patron; ::(f) Requires a prostitute to give a part or all of the money or property received as a result of the prostitution. * Grading of Promotion of prostitution :376. The offence of promotion of prostitution shall be: ::(a) A misdemeanour; ::(b) A felony of the fourth degree, if the person used for prostitution is a child of above 12 years and below 18 years; or ::(c) A felony of the third degree, if the person used for prostitution is a child of 12 years and below. * Patronising a prostitute :377. A defendant shall be guilty of the offence of patronising a prostitute, if the defendant gives money, property, or other gratification to engage in sexual act. * Grading of Patronising a prostitute :378. The offence of patronising a prostitute shall be: ::(a) A misdemeanour; ::(b) A felony of the fourth degree, if the person used for prostitution is a child of above 12 years and below 18 years; or ::(c) A felony of the third degree, if the person used for prosecution is a child of 12 years and below. * Trafficking a person for prostitution :379. A defendant shall be guilty of the offence of trafficking a person for prostitution, if the defendant transports, sells or buys a person into or outside of Bhutan with the purpose of engaging that person in prostitution. * Grading of trafficking a person for prostitution :380. The offence of trafficking a person for prostitution shall be a felony of the: ::(a) Third degree; ::(b) Second degree, if the person is a child of above 12 years and below 18 years; ::(c) First degree, if the person is a child of 12 years and below.

Sex trafficking

Bhutan is a source and destination country for women and children vulnerable to sex trafficking. Bhutanese girls, working as domestic servants and entertainers in drayungs or

karaoke Karaoke (; ; , clipped compound of Japanese ''kara'' "empty" and ''ōkesutora'' "orchestra") is a type of interactive entertainment usually offered in clubs and bars, where people sing along to recorded music using a microphone. The music is ...

bars, may be subjected to sex trafficking, coerced by debt and threats of physical abuse. The

United States Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other n ...

Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons The Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (J/TIP) is an agency within the United States Department of State charged with investigating and creating programs to prevent human trafficking both within the United States and internation ...

ranks Bhutan as a ' Tier 2 Watch List' country.

References

External links

Drayang- The Dark Secret of Bhutan
{{Asia in topic, Prostitution in

Society of Bhutan