SEX WORK AND THE LAW - HIV/AIDS Data Hub

including any place which arranges for dancing or selling food, liquor or tea or other
beverages or any place for baths or massage which has people in charge of pleasing or
taking care of customers or having operating hours after midnight. In order to obtain a
licence, the operator of the Place of Entertainment must be at least twenty years old, have
good health and not have been penalized for any sexual offence or trading of obscene
objects.
Thailand
The Act requires entertainment places not to be adjacent to any places related to religion,
education, clinic, youth club, dormitory, or living areas. The operator’s duties include:
to prepare a biography of every employee prior to the commencement of work; not to
employ any person under eighteen; to inspect the age of its patrons through official
documents and not to allow any person under twenty other than its employees to enter;
not to permit any person other than the one who is responsible for taking care of the Place
of Entertainment to stay overnight.
Other Acts, regulations and policies
National, provincial and local regulations and policies also impact on sex workers. These
regulations and policies include rules relating to the 100% Condom Use Policy; clauses in
tourist areas that have been declared ‘Special Administrative Zones’, e.g., regulations and
penalties for ‘bothering tourists’; regulations under the ‘Social Order Policy’ that influence
working hours, zoning, etc.; and local council regulations that can control sex workers
conditions, e.g., dress codes.
Other Acts that specifically mention prostitution or which may be used to punish sex
workers include:
Alien Workers Act B.E 2551 (2008)
Criminal Code BE 2429 (1956), Criminal Code Amendment Act (No. 14) BE 2540 (1997)
Anti Money Laundering Act B.E. 2542 (1999)
Drug Suppression Act BE 2547 (2003)
The Criminal Code Section 282 provides that it is an offence to procure, seduce or take
away for an indecent act, a person to gratify the sexual desire of another person. Penalties
for this offence are imprisonment of one to ten years and fine of 2,000-20,000 baht. The
Criminal Code also provides serious offences for procuring underage sex workers.
Workplace Rules (Bar Rules)
Employers in Entertainment Places impose a standardized system of work rules for all
salaried employees. Infringements are penalized by salary cuts. Rules are applied for such
things as lateness, weight gain, taking days off, displeasing customers, uniforms, work
performance, meeting drink quotas and customer quotas. Employers commonly enforce
a policy of mandatory STI and HIV testing of sex workers, and HIV-positive sex workers are
usually dismissed. Three-monthly HIV testing is mandatory. 553
553 Lowe D., (2011) Concept note: The role of the International Labour Organization in improving the working
conditions and sexual and reproductive health of sex workers in Thailand, ILO Regional Office for Asia and the
Pacific, (unpublished), p.8.
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