no show from me this week

A last minute call for work had me missing this week's outreach. I could not support Ai's visit to see the MP for her constituency. Ai is currently needing a new place for herself temporarily before getting a place of her own once divorce papers are filed in. The current tenant was not helpful but asked that she leave during the given deadline. Ai got two options to follow-up with her case and I think she will be doing so on her part. YL is hoping to contact her networks and assist in finding Ai a new place.

Moments

I saw this sign at a residential apartment in Geylang area. I didn't quite understand what it meant by 'hookers' and I thought it is more commonly used by Westerners. I wondered why this sign was here in the first place and what the objective would culminate into. How does the apartment management affirm that a potential tenant is a 'hooker'? To my knowledge, brothel owners apply licences (yellow card) for sex workers they hire but street walkers do not have one. So I wondered how would one identify a woman/man as a 'hooker'?  

On another note...


Met with Ai tonight at Geylang. She shared about being in the sex work business since 16. She shared about how her family don't check in on her enough. She shared about how she talked to God most of the time and sometimes even to herself. She loves her pets, always going home early to feed them. Ai is Singaporean, she doesn't like kissing men since young because she does not like the moist left on her lips.

An is also Singaporean, over 40. She shared today that her own daughter ran away from her many years ago with her money. She has an adopted daughter which she cares for a lot. She takes anti-depressants and says she thinks about her daughter a lot.

When Ai and I crossed the road, Ai she held my hands. She held it and I remember holding hands with my dad and mum and grandma. I was conscious of pressing her hand too hard as I didn't want to hurt her. She stared at me as if she knew that I was uncomfortable. We parted ways after crossing and I said I'd see her next week.

Maybe I'm not used to getting close to anyone not even family members. But I truly liked Ai and An, their stories are bizarre and how they work through their days intrigued me. I wondered if they could cook and if I could learn from them some dishes to make.

Confronting the Empire

Tonight was one of the first few nights I’ve witnessed a sense of progression. Aside from the activities in line for awareness-raising from the volunteers, L shared about the possibility of reporting cases of mismanagement of power from the police. This means, an officer using vulgarities and other verbal abuses will be dealt with. In a bid to confront the empire, L showed a spark of heroism. A long-time coming, or is it just me perceiving a brief encounter?

H brought a friend who summed up her experience well. She focused on how the space made her felt, more specifically for areas where the ‘fish-tank’ is and other darkly corners. The feeling of being on the edge and alert of one’s environment adds a layer of mystic to Geylang. The space feels like a township on its own, a character misunderstood by many. There are spots distanced from the main areas of visibility, suitably created for different dealings. A barber, a dealer or a teary woman. What’s their story? Tonight, the group felt that much closer to confronting the empire.

6th July 2009

A man in his late twenties was not willing to allow us conversations with a Singaporean sex worker of in the entrance of Lorong 20. Information was passed on the sex worker still. I was taken aback at the openness and boldness he displayed at quickly telling us to move away. His sense of authority was clear and he did this because we were blocking the way for potential clients to walk in. I wonder if our presence really makes a difference in the way their business is run. Would their customers think that we’re already taking the service of the woman if we were seen to talk to her?

One of the familiar pimps of this area still showed bad vibes as compared to the first time I met him. I wonder if the lack of friendliness is due to us imposing on his turf. He seems to have a lot of women under his watch and best thing was, he sets them in a place with dim lights. Would customers find this setting visible and what if the lack of lighting is one of the root causes of a lack of services taken up? Would placing the women in a place with better lighting help increase business?

Upon entering into Lorong 20, we met with lady (transgender) in traditional clothing. H offered biscuits but she responded in Mandarin to say no thank you. I wondered why she would respond in Mandarin when we spoke to her English. Could it be that she felt dis-empowered and showed her authority to H in an attempt to safeguard her social identity? That made me wonder how the sex workers see volunteers and our role in Geylang? Do we make people uncomfortable? Are we reinforcing certain norms they’re generally faced with in the world?

One of the highlights of this evening was meeting K. Her good nature was addictive and she is beautiful. A transgender with good sense of fashion, K shared that with her Pink IC, she is able to be let off by the police easily. She was once mistaken by police officers to be Indonesian of which she produced her IC to prove her nationality. A week ago (29th June 2009), Ai who is also a Singaporean, shared she did not have any good experience with law enforcers. She reported that her hair was pulled and that she was tied up with a plastic handcuff even though she offered to follow the officer in peace. Ai felt a great sense of injustice at being treated with disrespect. How would K and Ai channel their frustrations at such instances? Where would they receive recourse from? Would anyone ever listen or believe them when they share this?

It was precisely this point that brought me to the conclusion of tonight’s outreach. A reporter from The New Paper who was with us this evening asked that we include him on when we receive news of raids. He asked me if the stories I heard were something I’ve seen with my eyes. At that point of time, I truly understood and felt like I was in the shoes of a dis-empowered migrant worker or sex worker. That if I cannot produce evidence, I am guilty until proven innocent.