'There is more to Goa than the beach' is a tag that seems appropriate to use along the coastal belt in current times, when the sex trade is quite openly visible all along. They can be seen from south to north, and the sight is getting murkier and starker.
The sex trade has long been a part of life and history. There were sex workers in the past, there are now, and there will be in the future because sex plays a fundamental role in human life. It’s how we perceive it that matters.
Before the government tore down the shanties of sex workers in Baina, perceived at that time as Goa's red light area, the sex trade was prevalent in Goa and it continues till now, although its operation is discreet.
Back then, a man could pick up a woman or a man in gardens, at bus stands, near lodges and at markets. Beaches were out of bounds and Baina was the only one where these were available. And the beach, however, was not used as a beach by very many.
Back then, a man could pick up a woman or a man in gardens, at bus stands, near lodges and at markets.
When Baina was cleared, the ladies from there moved to other destinations, in government terminology, and women with foreign flesh began strutting on our shores. The sight is sore because many look impoverished.
There are girls from various states of India, and there are girls from different countries of the world. But, the frightening thing is that operators in league with some locals started selling Goa as a sex destination.
When the casinos were permitted, there was talk that the flesh trade was part of their starters. Many, those not in the know, watched patiently to see what it was all about and when it started, many decided to taste the fun.
A visit to any casino in any place in the world will spell out three things – sex, booze and drugs. Or else, it is akin to going to gamble without a dime. When the games started, the activities were configured around the gamble.
Many, those not in the know, watched patiently to see what it was all about and when it started, many decided to taste the fun.
That gamble has spilled onto the beaches, and more and more men and women are now searching for partners for intimate experiences.
Paedophiles were discovered in Goa around 30 years ago. One foreigner was caught, yet the charade continues, with our children pushed against the wall.
For many, seeing Indian children roaming around with foreigners, foretold goodness because our minds were, and many times are, out of tune with reality. The inability to read between the lines is our undoing.
The sex trade has taken international ramifications in Goa, and this is frightening because here violence is bad, crime is common and help seldom comes because there is a lot to lose at stake.
The sex trade has taken international ramifications in Goa, and this is frightening because here violence is bad, crime is common and help seldom comes because there is a lot to lose at stake.
Prostitution is a by-product of drugs, of alcohol, of poverty and worse, of our greed to make money at the cost of the vulnerable. This is the lowest a human can stoop.
Is there a way out? Definitely – help when one hears a cry for help. Don’t turn or pretend nothing is wrong. A prostitute needs love as much as any other and that love is constant though the bounce may vary.
The point is never to stop loving because it is only through love that a human can be brought out from the lowest pit. Nothing else works better. And, love is energy. It can be transferred, but never suppressed as explained by the laws of Newton.
Let goodness be the first step in cleaning our beaches of what looks to be a slur to society. It is our own doing, and therefore, the cleaning needs to start with us.
