Sex workers call for an end to policemen `fishing'

More than 300 supporters of decriminalizing sex work took part in a scooter parade in Taipei's Wanhua and Datung districts yesterday.

One of their demands was for the city government to stop using policemen as bait to "fish" for prostitutes engaging in sexual transactions.

"Fishers" is a slang term used by prostitutes to refer to policemen who pretend to be patrons and seek to arrest suspects engaging in illegal sexual transactions.

Supporters also demanded that Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) express his policy on the sex industry by June 15, the date that designated as Policemen's Day.

"Even though Ma was trying to differentiate himself from Chen Shui-bian, what he did was simply to amend the policy a little, but it is filled with hypocrisy," said the statement issued by the Collective of Sex Workers and Supporters.

Other social groups also joined the event. Wang Huei-woan (王慧婉), vice chairman of the Grassroots Teachers' Association, said the association also supported the cause because sex is a legitimate need of humans.

"As educators, we think that it is better to lay out everything on the table rather than using hypocrisy and lies to cover up the reality," Wang said.

In addition to the parade, organizers also put on skits mocking the government for playing "number politics" by taking on individual prostitutes to raise its arrest figures.