July 2004 103rd Issue

Hua Hin Jazz Festival 2004

Heineken - Koh Mr. Saxman and Todd Tongdee

The third annual Hua Hin Jazz Festival, easily the best yet, was a 3 day musical celebration. Far more than trad, funk, pop and big brass all played a role in this street party, stretching from the railway down Damnoenkasem Road and on to the beach.

Enough Heineken was downed to fill the Gulf, leading to the expectation that the main sponsors will be back again next year.

Koh Mr. Saxman and his Funk Machine, performed on the first two nights, with celebrity guests and music new and old to keep the audience clapping and cheering.

Sunday night, Todd Lavelle hit the stage, we had video, Akha tribal music, and Muslim magic. Todd “Tongdee” had the aucience in his well travelled hands. For those unfamiliar with Todd, this US native can do it all, writing, singing and acting in English, Thai and it’s dialects.

His music is people consious, environmentally friendly, different and very, very good. Check out toddeastwest.com for more information.

Congratulations to Hua Hin Hoteliers Club and the other organisers. Hua Hin looks forward to next year’s party.

British Man Deported

A British man, who lived in Cha Am for a number of years was arrested by Hua Hin police outside Burger King to the delight of a small crowd of taxi owners. Following a few days in a holding cell and a brief court appearance, the man was deported to England.

This man incurred the wrath of both the Cha Am and the Hua Hin police by illegally working as a taxi driver. He felt he was set up by his fare, and became aggressive to the customer, but local police said that they had been following his movements for over two months.

Ex-pats intending to live and work in Thailand must hold a valid visa and a work permit before commencing work. There are certain occupations that foreigners are not allowed to engage in, one of which is taxi driving.

MERCY HOUSE

Mercy House is the name of a little-known orphanage just a few kilometers south of Hua Hin in Pranburi. It was founded 7 years ago by Khun Wichai and his wife who managed to raise donations to build a modest dormitory on donated land.

Today the orphanage represents the only home and family for twenty-two children, 12 girls and 10 boys. Over the past seven years the orphanage has struggled to make ends meet and even today subsists on a monthly budget of less than 50,000 baht.

The children range in age from 4 to 15 and all attend school regularly in Pranburi. A number of Hua Hin expats have visited the orphanage and are universal in their praise for the work of Khun Wichai, his wife and two full-time caregivers.

Khun Wichai does not wish to simply "warehouse' children. He wants to give them lifeskills also, so that when they leave Mercy House, as some day they must, they will do so with the means to make a living and stand on their own.

To this end he is finalizing plans for a vocational school to teach skills such as sewing for the girls, motorcycle repair for the boys, etc. The land to build the school is available on a long- term lease at a nominal rent. It only remains for the funds to be found to build and equip the facility.

More on this next month…..if anyone would like to receive a copy of the "Friends of Mercy House" newsletter, simply email: rmurray@ksc15.th.com.

Banished from the Kingdom American Activist Defends Thailand's Akha Hill Tribe

By Antonio Graceffo
For the last thirteen years, American activist Matthew McDaniel has lived in the jungle, among the Akha Hill tribe, championing their causes to such authorities as the Thai government and the UNHCR. An investigation into his recent arrest and deportation demonstrates just how complex the Akha situation is.
Most anthropologists theorize that the Akha originated in Tibet. They made their way across China, establishing themselves in Yunnan. Some tribal groups continued moving south, eventually settling in Myanmar, Vietnam, and Lao. The first Akha are believed to have reached Thailand more than one century ago. For many decades, the Akha were able to farm and live in peace, separated from the ethnic Thais. But as the modern world expanded, it began to encroach on the jungle landscape. New road construction made remote mountain regions accessible to outsiders. Land, which had previously been
unwanted, was seized from the Akha to make room for large farming concerns. The Akha, who traditionally had no written language and no concept of money, were forced to join a cash economy, where papers held more power than the religious charms which they hung on their village gates to repel evil spirits. Land grants, work permits, and identity cards weren’t part of tribal vernacular.
More recently, among the casualties of the War on Drugs, were a disproportionate number of hill tribe people, most notably, the Akha. To his credit, Matthew uncovered a Swedish missionary who was sexually abusing hill tribe boys in an orphanage. The missionary is now in jail.
Using phrases such as “You can’t do that in MY village,” and “Give me back My Akha,” Matthew marched, unarmed, and alone, into an army camp, and demanded the release of an Akha man who had been arrested for drugs. In an interview conducted with the Akha in question, the man said that the soldiers had hung him from a tree, upside down, and beaten him for three days.
Even with all of the build up, my first sight of Matthew McDaniel was not a let down. He wore a tall cowboy hat, sported a mustache, and his feet were clad in ancient boots, which were coming apart at the seams. His vehicle was the infamous farm truck, which everyone in Northern Thailand had told me about, decorated with anti-missionary slogans.
As I accompanied Matthew on his rounds, visiting Akha villages, I was subjected to his constant commentary. Matthew gave me the short list of people he hated, and explained his accusations against each. The Forestry Department removes the Akha from their land. Photographers make money selling Akha images. Trekking companies charge 5000 Baht to visit the villages. Researchers earn financial grants, publishing works about the Akha. The police put Akha in prison. The Army kills Akha. Journalists write sensationalized stories to make themselves look good. Missionaries take Akha children from villages, and then use them to solicit donations from Western philanthropists. NGOs create huge, useless projects, which they impose on the Akha, without permission. And, once again, they do this to secure grants and win awards.
“Other than you,” I asked, “Who is doing good for the Akha.” Matthew laughed. “I wish there were someone else.”
Matthew’s charge of genocide may have been a bit overblown, but there was precedent. Akha who lack the Thai ID card are forbidden from leaving their villages. They are also prohibited from working or attending university. In extreme cases, such as Hoo Yoh village, where all of the farm land had been seized, the entire village, nearly 1,000 people, had effectively been sentenced to slow death by starvation, as they had no way to grow food or earn money.
The charge against the missionaries was not so cut and dry. Some, not all, missionaries ran large, well funded boarding schools and orphanages. Akha children were taken, with permission, from villages, and raised in a foreign faith. This has two negative impacts on village life. First, it reduces the number of marriageable young people in the villages, reducing the number of births, ultimately threatening the continued existence of the tribe. The other, damaging effect is that the more fundamentalist Christian sects forced the children to break completely with their culture, forbidding them from speaking their tribal language, keeping their customs, or wearing tribal dress. In the most extreme cases, they held a bonfire ceremony, where all tribal religious and cultural artifacts were burned. The children were then taught that their ancestors, the principal objects of worship in an animist religion, were burning in Hell, because they had not converted.
The fact that many of Matthew’s opinions seemed extreme to me, and that he subscribed to such wild fantasies of conspiracy may be attributable to the fact that after thirteen years of living in the jungle, his world views had become skewed, myopic. All he saw on a daily basis was suffering. At the same time, he was surrounded by people who could neither read nor write, and who were ignorant of the forces at work in their lives. To the Akha, Matthew had become an authority on every subject. The villagers not only consulted him on political and legal issues, but also on farming, medicine, and social problems. In short, he had become a highly influential force in the Akha community. With no one to challenge him intellectually, it is my belief that he had made himself a kind of god, building a following of ignorant tribal people, who accepted his every utterance as truth. Understanding Matthew McDaniel became a full time job. Was it wrong to become a god? He was doing good work in the villages, wasn’t he? This is where the concrete may not support the abstract. Yes, Matthew was working tirelessly to give moral support to the Akha, and to document their suffering on the web and in print. But What were his actual concrete works? Or said another way, where was donor money going? After all, Matthew was using the Akha to solicit donations, the same as most of the people he accused and hated.
Shortly after returning from my last trip, I received an email, informing me that Matthew had been arrested. For thirteen years, Matthew had been making the monthly trip to Maesai, to renew his visa. The last time he went, authorities took him into custody. The general consensus among the ex-pat community was that it had simply been a matter of time until Matthew were arrested and deported. Many even said that the arrest might be a blessing in disguise, because now, at least he wouldn’t be murdered.
When I asked the interpreter why Matthew had been taken into custody, his answers were nebulous. “Last year, he blocked traffic when the Princess came to Maesai.” said “John,” the interpreter.
“Did he do this on purpose?” I asked.
“No, it was an accident.”
“So, they arrested him this year for accidentally blocking traffic last year. This was the charge?” I asked.
“No,” replied John. “But Matthew always made trouble. When he saw foreigners walking with Akha girlfriends on the streets in Maesai he always accosted them. He thought he was the big shot of the Akha.”
“So the charge was that he was a big shot?”
“No, he wrote a very bad book.” Said John.
After eight horrific days, crammed in a jail cell, with eighty prisoners, and after being given little or no food and water, Matthew was deported to the US.
From exile, Matthew sent me email, saying “I know people in 300 Akha villages in Thailand, I know where they all live, their faces, their names. Who will look out for these people now?”
His final words to me were ones of defiant determination. “The battle now will be relentless, and on an international level.”

Matthew has since appeared before the UN, providing them with documentation he has compiled, regarding his accusations against the Thai government.

You can contact Matthew McDaniel at Akha@akha.org
You can contact the author at antonio_correspondent@hotmail.com
Find out more about the Akha or make a donation at www.Akha.org

ASIA TIMES online www.atimes.com

The year to fear for Taiwan: 2006
By Wendell Minnick

TAIPEI - If China ever makes the decision to invade Taiwan it is unlikely to be a large-scale Normandy-style amphibious assault. The reality is that China is more likely to use a decapitation strategy. Decapitation strategies short circuit command and control systems, wipe out nationwide nerve centers, and leave the opponent hopelessly lost. As the old saying goes, "Kill the head and the body dies." All China needs to do is seize the center of power, the capital and its leaders.

If China decides to use force to reunify the mainland with what it terms a breakaway province, the window of opportunity is believed to be 2006. This would give China a couple of years to clean up the mess before the 2008 Summer Olympics. Most analysts estimate that China's military strength will surpass Taiwan's defense capabilities by 2005. So 2006 - the Year of the Dog - is clearly the year to fear.

United States Defense Department officials now are reexamining China's military threat to Taiwan. This rethink has caused a dramatic shift in the way many think of defending Taiwan. Traditionally, Taiwan had always feared an amphibious assault - the Normandy scenario - and its defense strategy was always designed to stop such an attack. Now with a potential decapitation strategy believed to be in the works, US defense officials are beginning to think what had once been unthinkable: losing Taiwan in only seven days.

The Taiwan takeover scenario
China's deployment of its special forces and rapid-deployment forces, combined with air power and missile strikes, is the most likely formula for successfully taking Taiwan with the least amount of effort and damage. The military acronym KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid!) is in full force here. Special forces, which blend strength with deception and flair, offer China laser cutters rather than sledge hammers for defeating Taiwan's armed forces.

An airborne assault directly on Taipei by China's 15th Airborne Corps (Changchun), with three divisions (43rd, 44th, 45th) would be the first phase of the assault, with additional paratroopers being dropped in Linkou, Taoyuan and Ilian, to tie up Taiwan's four divisions assigned to the 6th Army (North). A Chinese airborne division contains 11,000 men with light tanks and self-propelled artillery. Some intelligence reports have indicated that China was able to airlift one airborne division to Tibet in less than 48 hours in 1988. Today, China's ability to transport troops has greatly improved. China is expected to be able to deliver twice that number - 22,000 - in two days.

Taiwan's 6th Army has seven infantry brigades: 106, 116, 118, 152, 153, 176, and 178. The 152/153 Dragons and the the 176/178 Tigers are said to be the best. Also a direct assault on the 6th Army's 269th motorized brigade, 351st armored infantry brigade, and the 542nd armored brigade would be mandatory for Chinese forces.

Most of the initial fighting would be in the Zhong Zheng District, Taipei, which contains the Presidential Building, the Ministry of National Defense, and the Legislative Yuan. As soon as China's troops hit the ground they would have to deal with Taiwan's Military Police Command (MPC). The MPC is responsible for protecting key government buildings and military installations. Its personnel are the gatekeepers, holding all the keys and guarding all the doors. They are considered no-nonsense and are humorless when approached. China's airborne forces would meet immediate resistance from these Taipei forces. Regular army units, all based outside of Taipei, would take hours, perhaps days, to respond. It would be up to the MPC to hold the Chinese back until reinforcements arrived - which might be never.

Assassins, saboteurs would be prepositioned
Pre-positioned special forces, smuggled into Taiwan months before, would assassinate key leaders, and attack radar and communication facilities around Taiwan a few hours before the main attack. Infiltrators might receive some assistance from sympathetic elements within Taiwan's military and police, who are believed to be at least 75 percent pro-Kuomintang (KMT), and hence, pro-unification. Many could use taxis to move about the city unnoticed. Mainland Chinese prostitutes, already in abundance in Taiwan, could be recruited by Chinese intelligence to serve as femme fatales, supplying critical intelligence on the locations of key government and military leaders at odd hours of the night; death is the ultimate aphrodisiac.

The second phase would begin after airborne forces captured Sungshan Airport. With a secure landing strip, China would fly in elements of its 14 divisions of "rapid reaction" troops using Ilyushin Il-76, Shaanxi Y-8, Antonov 26, and Xian Y-7 troop transports, with air support from China's 1,000 bombers and fighters. China's 10 Il-76 transports can carry 130 troops apiece, though this limitation could be overcome by commandeering aircraft belonging to commercial courier and passenger airlines. China has about 500 Boeings and Airbuses from which to choose. Some of China's heavy-lift transports would bring in BMD-2 Airborne Combat Vehicles and an assortment of armored vehicles. These air-lifted troops would spread throughout the city, securing bridges and key intersections. In addition, China has 200 transport helicopters capable of carrying commandos to Taiwan.

China might encounter opposition from Taiwan's new rapid deployment force. The newly created Aviation and Special Forces Command (ASFC) has united three aviation helicopter brigades, the 601st, 602nd, and 603rd, with the 862nd Special Warfare Brigade under one command. The 862nd is Taiwan's elite paratrooper brigade and modeled after the US Army Rangers. The helicopter brigades are made up of a combination of CH-47SD Chinook transport helicopters, AH-1W SuperCobra attack helicopters, OH-58D Kiowa armed observation helicopters, and UH-1H Huey transport helicopters.

Taiwan also has some noteworthy smaller commando units. There are two Marine Corps units: the Amphibious Reconnaissance Patrol (ARP) and the Special Services Company (SSC). The army also has two: the 101st Amphibious Reconnaissance Battalion (ARB) or "Army Frogmen", and the Airborne Special Services Company (ASSC). The ASSC is a new unit modeled after the US Delta Force. ASSC recruits from the 862nd and performs counter-terrorism and other special missions. The question of whether these forces could, or would, be moved into the conflict area in time is another matter.

Except for special forces and the marines, it is unlikely that the rest of Taiwan's infantry brigades scattered across the island would do much. As the saying goes, "It's not the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog that matters." Taiwan's military is rife with lethargic and ineffectual troops just begging for their 20-month tour of duty to end so they can go back to their girlfriends and jobs. Many call Taiwan's youth, including its young soldiers, the "strawberry generation" because they are soft and spoiled by the good life. US military officials visiting Taiwan often complain that the military's boot camps are too lax. The military appears more afraid of angering the parents of the conscripts than confronting a Chinese invasion, say visiting US soldiers. One politically correct legislator recently complained to Asia Times Online, "Taiwan has to do something about violence in the military." The correspondent reminded him, "The military is a violent institution." The conversation was over; the lesson lost.

Identity crisis within Taiwan's military
Taiwan's military also faces an identity crisis. The idea that Taiwan is part of China still resonates strongly within the military. For example, unit patches worn by soldiers often bear the outline of China, not Taiwan. The 6th Army, 8th Army, 46th Division, and Marine Corps have the image of China on their patches. The 117th Infantry Brigade has an eagle landing on mainland China. The 34th Division, 157th Infantry Brigade, and 200th Motorized Brigade display the Great Wall of China. None of the unit patches or emblems bears the image of Taiwan. In fact, visitors to military bases see no evidence whatsoever that they are located in Taiwan. China is the central theme of the whole military experience for Taiwan's conscripts. Even the names of naval vessels have Chinese themes.

Taiwan's navy would have little to do in this war scenario, except sink like rocks. A few would shoot down a small number of the Chinese planes heading to Taiwan, but most would be taken out of action by China's numerous anti-ship missiles. Of particular annoyance is the nasty Russian-made Sunburn anti-ship missile (ASM). Three times as fast as the US Harpoon ASM, the Sunburn does not slam into the side of a ship like the Harpoon; instead, as it nears the target it rises above it and then dives straight down through the deck of the ship. The speed and angle of the attack make it nearly impossible to shoot down or to disable by electronic countermeasures or jamming.

Taiwan's air force would be kept busy trying to repair runway damage caused by the estimated 500 short-range ballistic missiles deployed along China's coast and targeting Taiwan. China's Second Artillery Corps would launch Dong Feng 11 (M-11) and DF-15 (M-9) in multiple-wave and multi-directional saturation attacks on air bases, port facilities and other strategic locations. Only a small number would be intercepted by Taiwan's three Patriot (PAC-2 Plus) anti-missile defense batteries located around Taipei. The PACs will only be able to hit missiles coming down on northern Taiwan. The south is totally unprotected from ballistic missiles. China's special forces, infiltrated to Taiwan, would take a keen interest in locating and destroying the PACs. Everyone knows where they are, so it would not be too difficult.

Even if Taiwan could dispatch some of its fighter aircraft, China would meet them in the air with some of its brand new Sukhoi 30, Su-27 and JH-7 fighters. China took delivery of 154 Russian Su-27 fighters earlier this year. By the end of 2004 China is expected to have 273 advanced Sukhoi fighters. Those fighter pilots able to take off before their bases were destroyed would give the Chinese a hell of a fight, but once their aircraft began to run out of fuel they would have no where to land. Many would simply fight to the bitter end and eject if they cared enough.

In the meantime, China's 100 Xian H-6 (Tu-16) Badger and approximately 500 Harbin H-5 (Il-28) Beagle bombers would clean up those areas not destroyed by the initial missile attack. Of particular concern to the Chinese are two "secret" air bases located within hollowed-out mountains in eastern Taiwan, Chiashan in Hualien and Chihhang in Taitung. These would probably survive the initial missile strike, and require a little more effort from China's air force.

New pro-Beijing government swiftly sworn in
Once Taipei was captured, a new government chosen by Beijing would be sworn into office. There would be plenty of Taiwanese politicians to choose from. It is well known there are many pro-China legislators who have investments in China and more than a few who have had private meetings with Beijing officials. The inauguration would be conducted in the spotlight of the international media, giving it some psychological legitimacy in the eyes of the international community. There would be too many pro-China people in the US State Department - privately relieved the Taiwan issue was finally settled - to say anything in Taiwan's defense.

With the new government inaugurated, the new president would declare an end to all hostilities with China. During a nationwide televised speech, the new president would order all military forces to stand down. With the pro-China sentiments running high in the Taiwan military, it is likely that most would grudgingly accept the new president.

The new president would contact the US Department of Defense via the new hotline installed by the US government in 2002 and warn against any US military actions taken on behalf of Taiwan or against Taiwan's new guests, the Chinese military. Using the hotline would demonstrate to the US that the new president and his people have access to the codes necessary to transmit an encrypted message, and also validate that the new president has the authority to access the hotline within Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense - a demonstration of power and control.

US military forces could respond in this scenario if so ordered. The question is, how committed is the US to Taiwan's defense? Given the speed of the Chinese attack, it is unlikely that US aircraft carriers would initially be involved, except for the USS Kitty Hawk. The closest US military support that could act quickly is only 20 minutes away in Okinawa.

Under the 5th Air Force based in Japan, Okinawa's Kadena Air Force Base has two fighter squadrons of F-15 Strike Eagle fighter aircraft (44th FS Vampires and 67th FS Fighting Cocks). In addition, the Misawa Air Base in Japan has two fighter squadrons of F-16 Falcon fighter aircraft (13th FS Panthers and 14th FS Samurais). The 7th Air Force in Korea has three squadrons of F-16s and the 11th Air Force in Alaska has three squadrons of F-15s and one squadron of F-16s.

Call in the US Marines?
The US Marine Corps is another potential thorn in China's side. Under the Marine Aircraft Group 12 in Iwakuni, Japan, the marines have three squadrons of F/A-18 Hornets, one squadron of EA-6B Prowlers, and one squadron of AV-8 Harrier fighter aircraft (Okinawa).

China has every reason to fear US air power. US pilots are far better trained than the Chinese. China has been lax in its training programs, so it would not be surprising to see TV images of Chinese aircraft plummeting to earth in flames. One can understand why China fervently hopes US military forces will be pulling out of South Korea and Japan.

If the US were able to send aircraft carriers to the scene, the US Navy's Pacific Fleet has six aircraft carriers in its arsenal: USS Kitty Hawk, Carl Vinson, Nimitz, Abraham Lincoln, John C Stennis, and Ronald Reagan. These ships carry F-14 Tomcat, F/A-18, and EA-6B aircraft. The Kitty Hawk is the only permanently forward-deployed aircraft carrier in the US military. Based at Yokosuka, Japan, it recently visited Hong Kong and is often mentioned in media reports regarding potential conflicts involving Taiwan.

The US Marine Corps has seven amphibious assault ships in the Pacific equipped with a variety of helicopters, fighter aircraft and assault troops. These are basically self-contained invasion forces. There are the USS Tarawa, Belleau Wood, Peleliu, Essex, Boxer, Bon Homme Richard, and Iwo Jima. Basically mini-aircraft carriers with an attitude, the Tarawa, for example, can carry four AH-1 Sea Cobra attack helicopters, six heavy-lift CH-53 Stallion transport helicopters, 20 M-60 tanks, 29 light armored vehicles, 29 AAV-7 amphibious assault vehicles, and 1,900 men of a Reinforced Marine Battalion.

US aircraft carrier strike group may move to Guam
China may also have to consider the newest arrivals to Andersen Air Force Base in nearby Guam. In February, six B-52s Stratofortresses arrived from the 5th Bomb Wing based at Minot, North Dakota, at the request of the US Pacific Command (PACOM) in Hawaii. PACOM requested a "rotational bomber force on the island until it's no longer needed".

PACOM argues that the move is in response to North Korea, but others are suggesting that Taiwan is the basis of much of the move. This is a common theme in US military planning in Asia: the overt reason used is North Korea, but the covert one is Taiwan. Guam is now being considered for possible placement of an aircraft-carrier strike group to be moved from Hawaii.

Japan is another element in the equation, and it could intervene. Many argue that if China takes Taiwan, both Japan and South Korea would quickly develop and deploy nuclear weapons - probably in a few months. Losing the Taiwan Strait to China and facing a militarily adventuresome Beijing would send shock waves throughout the region. If Japan chose to intervene, it has nine squadrons of F-15 fighters to throw into the fight. Japan's naval arm could engage Chinese naval forces with close to 50 destroyers, 10 frigates, and 16 submarines.

However, in an escalating conflict involving the US, there is a possibility that China would attack US military bases in the region. Slamming DF-21C Terminal Guided Missiles on Okinawa could be a start. Beijing would consider this to be an option only after US forces have engaged Chinese naval vessels and aircraft crossing the Taiwan Strait, according to analysts. China might even get more aggressive by using special forces against US military bases in Japan, Alaska and Hawaii. All these options would give China more time to consolidate forces on Taiwan, and forestall US intervention.

Why is Taiwan worth fighting for?

To anyone who looks at a map of the region, the reasons are obvious. Taiwan's strategic location makes it extremely valuable. The Taiwan Strait is a critical sea lane, and taking Taiwan would allow China to choke off international commercial shipping, especially oil, to Japan and South Korea, should it ever decide to do so. In addition, Taiwan serves as a vital window for US intelligence collection. Taiwan's National Security Bureau and the US National Security Agency jointly run a Signal Intelligence facility on Yangmingshan Mountain just north of Taipei (see Spook Mountain: How US spies on China, March 6, 2003). Taiwan's inclusion into China's military power structure would be unthinkable for Japan.

Of course, this is only a scenario based on selected facts and seasoned with conjecture. Speculation about what China could do and what it will do are rarely comparable. Too many media pundits make mention of a Normandy-style invasion, or an apocalyptic-style missile strike, without seriously considering the fastest way between two points. Of course, China, be warned: "No plan survives the first seconds of combat."

Wendell Minnick is the Jane's Defence Weekly correspondent for Taiwan and the author of Spies and Provocateurs: A Worldwide Encyclopedia of Persons Conducting Espionage and Covert Action (McFarland 1992). He can be contacted at janesroc@yahoo.com.

(Copyright 2004 Asia Times Online Co, Ltd. All rights reserved. Please contact content@atimes.com for information on our sales and syndication policies.)

Sex and denial in South Korea
By David Scofield

It's the world's oldest profession, and in South Korea it's a recession-proof industry that contributes more to the nation's economy than the agriculture and fisheries industries combined. And it's expanding. The Ministry of Gender Equality estimates that South Korea's sex industry generates profits in excess of US$22 billion a year, while employing some 500,000 women and girls. But non-governmental organizations and civic groups suggest the number may be even higher, concluding that if all informal venues of prostitution, such as the myriad wonjokyoje, or younger girls "dating" older men for cash, were factored in, the number of prostitutes could well exceed a million.

Venues where women and girls are available for a price total at least 390,000, according to civic groups, and they are quite literally everywhere in South Korea. Every neighborhood has at least a few singing rooms, room salons, business clubs, tea rooms or barber shops where sexual services can be bought. Given the openness of the prostitution and the leaflets and flyers advertising the multitudes of locations where women can be procured, one could be forgiven for not realizing it's all illegal.

Legal prostitution was abolished in 1948. The anti-prostitution law - a bill that also gave a virtual green light to red-light districts - was enacted in 1961. And in 1999, legislation provided for publication of the names of those who procure sex from minors, though it is rarely enforced. The nation's Commission on Youth Protection asserts that more than half the girls arrested for prostitution are under 16.

South Korea is not known for openly confronting societal problems, traditionally preferring to shunt nationally embarrassing issues to the side, in the belief that if something isn't acknowledged it will cease to exist. But the sex industry is not disappearing. Indeed, it is one of South Korea's few truly recession-proof industries enjoying steady growth, largely immune to economic cycles. However, Korean society is changing and women, long exploited and often abused by the still rigidly patriarchal society, are beginning to demand that their legally enshrined personal and human rights be respected.

With the help of the Korean Bar Association, some prostitutes have begun taking ruthless brothel owners to court for violating their human rights. And as these women come forward and give testimony about being physically confined and forced into the sex trade, often to repay loans proffered by the same gangsters who own the sex clubs, the ugly realities of South Korea's sex industry are beginning to come to light. Women receiving loans from gangsters must pay ridiculously high rates of interest, making it impossible for the girls and women ever to pay them back.

Groups of sex workers from South Cholla province in the country's southwest told of being forced to perform sex for fear of suffering violence. They said they were held captive and their every move was monitored, making escape impossible.

And what of the police who are sworn to uphold the law and protect the weak? According to recent reports and testimony from sex workers themselves, many police officers have long been taking payoffs from brothel owners, with some even demanding sex with prostitutes in return for turning a blind eye to the brothel's activities. In one recent incident, again in Cholla province, two police officers are being questioned, and another two sought, for allegedly having group sex with at least four junior-high-school girls working at area sex clubs.

A few small but positive steps
The fact that investigations are taking place and that more women are beginning to speak out are small but positive steps forward. Only five years ago, two men in the city of Daejeon were found to be harboring a runaway middle-school girl. The two were accused of having sex with the young girl for months in exchange for giving her lodging. They were arrested but later released, since the judge in the case determined that the sex was consensual and that the money they gave her was too small a sum to be considered payment for sex - her minor status apparently not withstanding. Another judge in the same city ruled that massage parlors, another in a long list of venues where sex can be bought, while technically violating laws against prostitution, were also performing an "indispensable service" to the community by offering a place where men could relieve their sexual frustrations. All charges against the owner were dropped.

And this is where the problem lies. As long as South Korea maintains the illegality of prostitution while turning a blind eye to one of the fastest-growing industries in the nation, the industry itself escapes regulation and the sex workers do not enjoy even the most basic of human rights. In 2002 in a red-light district in Kunsan, 15 sex workers were killed when the building where they were confined caught fire. With the doors bolted from the outside and bars over the windows to prevent escape, the girls were unable to flee the flames, all suffering a horrific death. A Seoul court ruled in favor of the bereaved families, awarding them a total of $2 million in compensation from the brothel owner.

The same judge, however, ruled that the local government and the police had no legal responsibility, even though the brothel confined the women with the likely knowledge of the local authorities.

The federal government seems set to continue denying the scope and scale of the sex industry, declaring this month that it would "shut down" South Korea's red-light districts by 2007. The government was careful to focus only on red-light districts, even though government ministries estimate these areas account for only 2 percent of South Korea's enormous sex industry. These districts have been in steady decline for the past 10 years, relics of Korea's postwar camp-town past. Seoul's red-light districts include Hawolgok-dong, Chongnyangni, Yongdungpo, Yongsan, Chonho-dong and other smaller zones, areas that feature block after block of young women in windows. These extensive areas feature women displayed under red fluorescent lights, the same kind of lights Korean butcher shops use to display meat.

Putting these zones on the chopping block will do little to curb South Korea's sex industry, as most men prefer clubs, singing rooms and massage parlors - or increasingly popular Internet portals - to procure sex. Indeed, the closing of these red-light districts, if it actually happens, will actually increase the health risks to workers and their patrons, as government reports have found that the rates of sexually transmitted disease are higher in the more popular and ubiquitous clubs and salons than in traditional red-light zones.

Further, the move against these historical zones could well be geared more toward freeing up real estate for residential development than striking a blow against prostitution. The area around "Miari" in Hawolgok-dong, for instance, is virtually surrounded by residential apartment blocks, creating an obvious profit incentive for residential rezoning.

But even this very modest government initiative is encountering stiff and curious opposition from the association of brothel owners - the association's existence a testament to just how tacitly condoned the brothel business is. They are demanding that the government scrap its plans. Invoking their constitutional rights, the brothel owners are threatening to sue the government for infringing on their constitutionally guaranteed property rights if the government closes their brothels.

Through all of this, one fact is clear. The sex industry in South Korea is enormous and it is not about to go away. With most areas of South Korea's economy showing lackluster growth, the sex industry - the billions of dollars it generates and the hundreds of thousands it employs - cannot be legislated away. The still patriarchal Korean culture tolerates men seeking sex for pay. This may be contributing to family discord and divorce - South Korea's rate is almost 50 percent, making it second only to the United States. There are no signs, however, that the industry is slowing.

As long as the nation remains tacitly tolerant of the practice, the industry must be taken out of the shadows and into the open through legislation and regulation. The most abhorrent aspects of the industry - the abuse of children and trafficking and enslavement of women - must be abolished, while the revenues from the industry can be taxed for the benefit of the larger society.

David Scofield, former lecturer at the Graduate Institute of Peace Studies, Kyung Hee University, is currently conducting post-graduate research at the School of East Asian Studies, University of Sheffield.

(Copyright 2004 Asia Times Online Co, Ltd. All rights reserved. Please contact content@atimes.com for information on our sales and syndication policies.)

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