There are 700 Thai women in prostitution in Berne, Switzerland, who
make-up a large portion of the total number of prostitutes. (Srisamorn Thoy, Xenia,
Mukadawan Sakboon, "Thai sex workers hit by recession in Switzerland," The
Nation, 5 May 1997)
Methods and Techniques of Traffickers
Women incur a debt of Bt600,000 - 700,000 for payment to men for false
marriages so they can remain in Switzerland legally. The women are in debt bondage to the
owner of the brothel, locally known as a salon, for this money. The men they marry are
usually unemployed, drug addicts or Thai men who earlier became Swiss citizens. They also
must rent a single room in the salon for Bt40,000 a month (Mukadawan Sakboon, "Thai
sex workers hit by recession in Switzerland," The Nation, 5 May 1997)
Thai women’s lack of education, job experience and the language barrier make the
women dependent on the brothel owners. A few quit and worked as waitresses, but when men
recognize them at restaurants and inform the owners, the women are fired. (Mukadawan
Sakboon, "Thai sex workers hit by recession in Switzerland," The Nation,
5 May 1997)
Health and Well-being
When Thai women in Switzerland become ill usually do not go to a doctor because of the
language problem, thus they go untreated. 'Many will wait until they go back to Thailand
to consult a doctor or go to a hospital. Unfortunately, they are often in bad shape by the
time they see a doctor. (Srisamorn Thoy, Xenia, Mukadawan Sakboon, Mukadawan Sakboon,
"Thai sex workers hit by recession in Switzerland," The Nation, 5 May
1997)
Thai women who have been in prostitution for seven to eight years usually have mental
problems and have become drug addicts or alcoholics. They take amphetamines to stay awake
to be available to more men in order to make more money to pay off the debt bondage, or
send money home. For the few hours reserved for rest, they have to use sleeping pills.
(Srisamorn Thoy, Xenia, Mukadawan Sakboon, Mukadawan Sakboon, "Thai sex workers hit
by recession in Switzerland," The Nation, 5 May 1997)
Policy and Law
Only Swiss citizens are officially allowed to engage in prostitution. Therefore,
foreign women in prostitution must remain hidden, or be deported, if caught. Thai women
sign contracts to work as go-go dancers, which is not illegal in Switzerland, but later
engage in prostitution. (Srisamorn Thoy, Xenia, Mukadawan Sakboon, Mukadawan Sakboon,
"Thai sex workers hit by recession in Switzerland," The Nation, 5 May
1997)
The maximum penalty for alien smuggling in Switzerland is three years. (Tass, 1995,
"Trafficking and Prostitution: The Growing Exploitation of Migrant Women from Central
and Eastern Europe," IOM, May 1995)
Pro-Prostitution NGOs
Xenia, a pro-prostitution nongovernmental organization has proposed that the Swiss
government amend the law to allow foreign women into prostitution. They recommend that
immigration laws should also be amended to make visas available to all people, and not
discriminate against particular nationalities. (Srisamorn Thoy, Xenia, Mukadawan Sakboon,
Mukadawan Sakboon, "Thai sex workers hit by recession in Switzerland," The
Nation, 5 May 1997)