Prostitution in the United Arab Emirates is illegal.
Punishments for engaging in
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 ...
include heavy fines and imprisonment, with foreign prostitutes typically being deported from the
UAE.
In 2006 the UAE deported 4,300 foreign prostitutes. Despite its illegality, prostitution is widespread, especially in
Dubai and
Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi (, ; ar, أَبُو ظَبْيٍ ' ) is the capital and second-most populous city (after Dubai) of the United Arab Emirates. It is also the capital of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and the centre of the Abu Dhabi Metropolitan Area.
...
.
The authorities generally turn a blind eye provided it is kept out of the public eye.
UAE nationals are permitted a number of residence visas. These are mainly used for domestic staff, but any surplus are often sold through middlemen to prostitutes to enter and remain in the country for two years. Residence visas may change hands at upwards of £5,000.
And, "agents arrange for prostitutes to enter the country on a 30-day tourist visa.
Although there is
street prostitution
Street prostitution is a form of sex work in which a sex worker solicits customers from a public place, most commonly a street, while waiting at street corners or walking alongside a street, but also other public places such as parks, benches, e ...
, notably Hamdan Street in Abu Dhabi,
most prostitution takes place in the bars and nightclubs of hotels.
Dubai
Sex trade in Dubai has been prevalent for many years. In 1936,
Sheikh Saeed's ''wali'' forced the prostitutes to get married or to leave.
During the 1950s and 1960s, two madams controlled the Persian prostitutes. One controlled the
red-light district
A red-light district or pleasure district is a part of an urban area where a concentration of prostitution and sex-oriented businesses, such as sex shops, strip clubs, and adult theaters, are found. In most cases, red-light districts are particu ...
in
Bur Dubai, the other around Nasser Square (now Baniyas Square).
ordered that all the prostitutes were rounded up and deported. This caused a
run
Run(s) or RUN may refer to:
Places
* Run (island), one of the Banda Islands in Indonesia
* Run (stream), a stream in the Dutch province of North Brabant
People
* Run (rapper), Joseph Simmons, now known as "Reverend Run", from the hip-hop group ...
on the local British bank when the women tried to draw out all their savings.
Modern Dubai is one of the main centres of prostitution in the UAE and is dubbed "Sodom-sur-Mer".
Prostitutes frequent the bars and nightclubs in the hotels.
Many prostitutes from poorer countries, such as Nigeria,
come to work in Dubai for a short while and then return home with their earnings.
Prostitution, although prohibited, is prevalent and easily accessible in Dubai. Women engaged in this business operate in brothels or massage establishments situated in the city's red-light areas. However, it is not only women, but also men who offer their services in the city. Typically, red-light districts are located in the city's more established areas, such as
Deira and
Bur Dubai.
There are also
brothels in Dubai.
The Cyclone, near the airport
was closed down in 2007 after it was featured in
Vanity Fair magazine,
but the operation simply set up at another location.
Known by visitors as the ''"United Nations of prostitution"'', the club has as many as 500 prostitutes on the premises on an average night, many from China, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Russia, Ukraine, Bulgaria and Taiwan.
The Cyclone appeared in the 2008
Leonardo DiCaprio and
Russell Crowe
Russell Ira Crowe (born 7 April 1964) is an actor. He was born in New Zealand, spent ten years of his childhood in Australia, and moved there permanently at age twenty one. He came to international attention for his role as Roman General Maxi ...
film
Body of Lies.
Human trafficking is a problem in Dubai,
often Chinese or other Asian criminal groups force women from India or Nepal into prostitution in UAE.
There are many Iranian prostitutes in Dubai and some of them stay in the city for a long time. In 2014,
Iranian Immigration & Passport Police Office announced that the number of Iranian prostitutes in the UAE is growing.
Over the years, Dubai emerged as an influencer capital of the world, where the social media influencers used their popularity to depict the city’s extravagance. However, on the dark side of
influencer marketing culture in Dubai were several influencers who had been funding their lifestyle by selling sex for thousands of pounds. Influencers get direct messages from men on
Instagram
Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...
, respond to them and agree to meet. Men pay them with flights, jewellery, bags and cash. Besides, interviews revealed that influencers with more followers are paid more.
Sex tourism
The UAE attracts many foreign businessmen as it is gaining a reputation as the Middle East's top
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 ...
destination.
Many of them arrive regularly from the
post-Soviet states, South America, Eastern Europe, East Asia, Africa, South Asia, and other states of the Middle East.
Sex trafficking
In 2007, the United States State Department placed the United Arab Emirates as a "
Tier 2" in its annual Trafficking in Persons reports, meaning that it does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so.
The UAE is a destination and transit country for women subjected to
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 ...
.
[ ] Some women, predominantly from Eastern Europe, Central Asia, South and Southeast Asia, East Africa, Iraq, Iran, and Morocco, are subjected to
forced prostitution in the UAE.
In 2016, 22 cases related to sex trafficking were brought before the courts.
References
{{Asia in topic, Prostitution in
United Arab Emirates
Crime in the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates
Prostitution in Asia
Women's rights in the United Arab Emirates
Human rights in the United Arab Emirates
Society of the United Arab Emirates
Social issues in the United Arab Emirates