By Hassan Osman Kargbo
The population of the country is gradually increasing on a daily basis; and the job facility is not commensurate to the country’s population. And it is not a secret that the cost of living is amplifying on a daily basis, which has led many young girls to engage in the trade called prostitution. Many girls have taken it as the easiest way of making money irrespective of the negative implications they might encounter in the process.
Prostitution is the business or practice of providing sexual service to a man in return for money. This profession has rapidly increased in not only the east end of Freetown but also the capital city, and other major town across the country.
Massah Daramy who is in her early 20s and popularly known as lady K; she shares her experience as a prostitute in the last past four years. According to her, she came to the city barely five years ago. Since she came to Freetown, she had tried to do petty trading but she has been experiencing huge lose in her petty trading business.
She continued that she later think of going to the club on a Sunday night where she met a guy and the guy gave her above 300 thousand Leones for just a night and she later realized that going out at night is really lucrative and beneficial to her than doing her petty trading.
‘I spent almost two years in my petty trading business; since I started my petty trading business, I have never received above one hundred thousand per day as a profit, but when I went to the club just for a night I collected almost 300 thousand Leones and that is how I became addicted to prostitutions,’ she explained.
She admitted that a lot of them started prostitution voluntarily because of poverty, the hunger situation, economic crisis, family pressure, and migration to the city. She added that they normally encounter some difficulties at the night that is why some of their colleagues have decided to do it now in the day hours.
Lady K mentioned that they have now various WhatsApp groups where they shared their contacts and guys will call them and upon sealing negotiations they go to the guy and service them in the day hours because what have been happening to their colleagues at night.
She acknowledges the fact that prostitution is not a career job, and promised to find herself a better job when the need arises. She noted that for now she don’t have that money to start up a better business, but she assured that she will surely try to engage in something better.
Alice Yeabu Turay confessed that some people think they love the prostitute life they are living. She said she is doing it to take care of her son and her aged mother.
‘I know that this is not a good job for us, but for me I am doing it to take care of my old mom and my son. I lost my fiancé in a road accident, so I just have to do this to take care of my family,’ she lamented.
Moreover, there are lots of young girls that engage themselves in prostitution in the country; and despite they are claiming that it is the easiest way of earning them moneys, there are implications that they faced at night. A lot of human right organizations have spent millions of United States Dollars to minimize if not to stop prostitutions in the country, but some girls are obstinate not to leave the street because they think it is their only means of survivals with their family.
This people are faced with so many challenges and one of the challenges they faced with is stigmatization. Young girls that ply their trade in as prostitutes are normally stigmatized in various communities across the country. But, our countrymen should be aware that despites the path of life they have taken they are still our sisters and relatives in the country, and as such, they most treat them fairly and they are part and of the society. The stigmatization may sometime lead to isolation. So, when we isolate ourselves from them, it may not help situation rather it may cause more harm than good because it may lead them to continue doing their prostitutions; because no one will not be around to mentor them to desist from the act of prostitution.
Harassment is also another key challenge they are faced with at nights. Many prostitutes say people/men harass them while performing their jobs at nights. These people confined to FORUM that they are not enjoying the freedom they deserve because of what security personnel and other guys who normally takes advantage of their vulnerabilities. They are faced with domestic violence in the streets.
Also, these girls are faced with sicknesses along the line whiles plying their trade; they are exposed to sexually transmitted infections/diseases like gonorrhoea, HIV, syphilis among others. All these sickness are not helpful for their well-being in the society.
There are many after effects for girls that involve in prostitution, so as such government and other private organizations need to come on board to find ways and means for young girls that are in prostitutions.
The central government and other social actors should join forces in creating a favourable environment which will enhance the creation of lucrative jobs to discourage young girls as well as women from engaging in prostitution in not only Freetown but also the country as a whole.
