Policemen detain suspected prostitutes in a campaign to crack down on prostitution in Xi'an, in northwestern China's Shaanxi province on Aug. AP Photo. BEIJING -- A state TV expose on prostitution in China's "sex capital" and an ensuing, much-publicized police crackdown has drawn criticism from the public, who expressed sympathy for the sex workers and suggested that authorities target other kinds of wrongdoing.
Coverage of the weekend raid by 6, officers in the southern city of Dongguan -- filled with images of handcuffed women with their heads bowed -- spurred many people to post comments online that were more critical of the China Central Television broadcaster's reporting and the crackdown than the prostitution it uncovered. Another popular phrase was "Don't cry, Dongguan," suggesting a shifting view of prostitution among some members of the Chinese public.
Some online users suggested the women ended up in the sex business because they had sick parents or siblings to support, and called for authorities to offer more care to them during the crackdown. Others said police manpower would be better used rooting out corruption among public officials and other crimes. Some voices called for China's now-entrenched sex trade to be made legal and to end discrimination against sex workers.
Legalization must take place under some narrowly-defined circumstances," such as special zones that are regulated, Wang Yongzhi, 37, who works in IT in Beijing, said Tuesday. Shanghai-based Gong Bin, 26, who works as a trader in a food company, said he feels sympathy for girls who choose to make money through the sex trade to meet their financial demands, and blamed society and their environment.
I was too embarrassed to watch this kind of report before while now so many people around me are talking about it," he said. In CCTV's report broadcast Sunday, undercover reporters with hidden cameras filmed sex services being offered for sale in hotels in Dongguan. In one, footage showed a string of women lined up, identifying themselves by a number, price and hometown.
