Monday, September 28, 2009

volunteer meeting and the 2 day rule



Project X held a volunteer meeting last night. there were about 10 or so who came. some plans ahead would be to host a blog, flyers with info to help sex workers from other countries. a mission and objective was concretized last night - that project x focus on the welfare of sex workers and work towards their betterment. this objective was accepted by the group, giving it a clear framework to touch base on when in doubt. it is still vague as to what betterment and welfare entails but generally, on a macro scale it helps others to point to a direction even though the road ahead has many turns still before reaching the final destination. I was pleased on this development. I contributed my opinion based on what I feel should be a focus. Access to justice such as the law is one thing I've been seeking answers for. I wondered what kind of legal protection do sex workers have if they need protection against pimps or customers who violate their rights. And considering we've heard testimonials of sex workers harrassed or dealt with unfairly by police officers, how do they seek protection from such abuses in future. To whom should they turn to and to what extent can they seek for justice.

We then proceeded to talk about Sunday's Mid-Autumn festival gathering. YL reversed the idea of giving to one which is contemporary in nature. Instead of us giving to sex workers, why don't sex workers give to us. What would they be giving? A homecooked meal. Sex workers would cook and share their spoils with volunteers. I am unable to attend this but I am sure it would be a hearty meal nonetheless.

Later that night, we visited Geylang to catch up with some administrative needs. We didn't have anything to give, condoms or biscuits because it is with one of the volunteers. I don't understand why he keeps the bag of goodies with him and not bring it along. Sigh!

We met with the usual friends. Increasingly I am getting tired of some of their woes. A particular J whose stories are making him go round and round. And the increasingly annoying moments I've had where people just speak Mandarin and not care about engaging me into their conversations. All I got to do was stand around and try to pick up whatever Mandarin I could. I find this a terrible habit Singaporeans have - to no include others in their conversations based on common grounds and based on the fact that it's easier to speak in a certain language. And Singapore wants more foreigners to live here? How can we do that when we don't even respect each other as Singaporeans from diverse backgrounds.

Ok so I rant. Let's now touch on what I've learnt.

For the past months, there have been a common thread arising out of the police raids that happen. Two types of police officers would raid the space and they're considered the leader of the pack of police officers. One is Botak  which I presume is an Indian guy. Filled with moral rage and conscious need to right what is wrong in society, he makes his appearance for two days. He is considered to be quite ruthless for he likes to use vulgarities. The other is called Malay and no second-guessing what race he is. Malay likes to pull hair and once he pulled the wrong hair of a Singaporean woman, not a sex worker. He was reprimanded for it and J seems to think he's mild down. Both Botak and Malay comes for two days and then rest for another two days before reappearing again. This means, Geylang's business would not operate for 2 days and then resume for the next 2 days.