This is What Happens when you Make Porn Illegal [Part 3: The Lucrative Sex Service Business]

All content is SFW and does not contain any images that could be considered NSFW.

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So far, we've deliberated the status of illegality in porn that South Korea enjoys and the general social effects of the underground market of pornographic content. Mix this into a very conservative nation where even middle-aged seasoned professionals continue to live with their parents, and it's no surprise that sex or access to sexual content is almost impossible for the average Korean.

Where does one go then to relieve one's lower-body compulsions? You guessed it. Into the literal hands of another.

The sex industry is booming in South Korea, constituting over 1% of the GDP and surpassing the whole of local agriculture in profits. Prostitution, and other sexual services, is illegal (but of course we've learned that illegality can sometimes do very little to curb social norms) and on face-value is never spoken openly about.

• Sex workers in Korea protest for protection rights. Source: Yahoo News

Now, you might think that I'm conflating the lack of porn with a thriving sex industry when there is a sound argument that these could be unrelated. After all, Japan has both a high amount of pornographic production/distribution and a notorious sex industry. I do agree that there are many other factors at play, including familial elements where marriages are typically not predicated on “love” and a general service-based culture that also affects the food industry and general consumerism. Still, I cannot imagine a situation where banning access to physical catharsis concerning one of human's most compelling impulses would not result in strong alternatives. Plus, it makes a natural segue from a firewall to the sex industry. ;)

Unlike places such as The Netherlands where prostitution is lumped in with personal freedoms and exists more as a touristic novelty, sexual companionship is very routine in this hyper-conservative nation and almost recreational when observed from a macro lens.

A Spicy Menu of Options

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Of course, the streets don't just populate with street walkers and ladies of the night come sundown, the industry is much more varied and discreet. In a country where sex can never be allowed to emerge onto the surface, Seoul has a long road to go before becoming like Sao Paolo or Amsterdam (though there are parts of the city that used to be very similar). Instead, there's an intricate and constantly evolving sublayer of a sex industry in Korea. The range from the most innocuous, almost juvenile little services to the most decked-out, high-end escort companionship that comes with several hours of programming. Here are some the popular choices -

Kissbang 키스방 // “Kiss Room”: Paying for young female superficial companionship. These arrangements are typically short and do not exceed basic contact and kissing.

• Source: The Grand Narrative

Anma // Sex Service Spa: Private rooms or apartments with arranged services and operate under the guise of a typical massage parlor. These can range in types of acts and offerings at many economic tiers.

Bacchus Woman: Women (typically older / 50+) who offer basic sexual services to older men at a low cost. These women usually market themselves in code outdoors, such as parks and plazas where older people tend to congregate.

• Source: Movie "The Bacchus Lady

Now sure, every major city and even many small towns will have some kind of underground option to get one's rocks off. What's stunning in Korea however is that over 50% of men report on having paid for these services at some point and many resort to this regularly. Take away access to sexual gratification and the alternative becomes the mainstream.

• Source: Video Blocks

It's a two-way street as well. Since sexual services are in such high constant demand and (mostly) men are willing to pay a premium (an avg. of $150 basic hour of services), the escort industry is highly attractive to females who can easily earn more than a typical office salary with part-time companionship. A surprisingly high number of girls engaging in this practice - I read one previous statistic of anywhere between 1 of 7 – 1 of 11 young women in Korea will have offered romantic services at some point in their lives. Worst of all, underage women willingly submit to this industry as well.

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With issues such as prostitution, it's hard to come up with real reasons why this practice exists and how to potential curb such a profession. I think one of the ways to broach this issue and a have a productive discourse is to trace it to the most basic of societal and legislative moves. From my point of few, I'm quite certain that making pornography legal would contribute to a marked decline in both spy-porn and escorting. Perhaps I'll explore that reasoning in a future post if readers haven't found this short series too cringy...

Article 1, Korea's Bondage
Article 2, Hidden Uploads