The Challenges Faced by Commercial Sex Workers in Port Elizabeth : Eastern Cape, South Africa

Commercial sex work is a worldwide phenomenon (industry) which has been legalised in countries like Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Greece, Turkey, Hungary, and Latvia in Europe. Though in South Africa, commercial sex work is still criminalised. Commercial Sex work is the engagement in the sexual activities in exchange for cash or any other economic benefits. Commercial Sex work has become a common phenomenon in the South African context and it is also rapidly multiplying on daily basis. The main objective of the study was to investigate the perplexing encounters encountered by the female commercial sex workers.A qualitative approach and an exploratory research design were used in conducting this study as these approaches allowed participants to share first-hand experiences regarding the issue under investigation. Snowball sampling method was employed to select participants for the study. Twenty-five females were selected to participate in this study to share their experience of working on the street. The data obtained through semi-structured interviews were analysed thematically and supported by the relevant literature. The findings revealed that the female commercial sex workers encounter numerous challenges in their daily work. The challenges experienced by the female commercial sex workers are inter-alia, different extents of abuse, such as physical abuse, psychological abuse and verbal abuse. Moreover, the women are discriminated against and experience societal prejudices. The criminalisation of the sex work industry deems to be complex, as it restricts the women from accessing different services such as the legal aid, healthcare and social services. The study further revealed that the women are in most circumstances victims of their clients and they receive little or no support from the police.