Human Trafficking, according to dhs.gov, “involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labor or commercial sex act.” Whereas this is true, I believe it leaves out other forms of human trafficking that may not involve sex. The website, uscis.gov labels it as a form of modern-day slavery and does not limit the definition to only the sex industry. I have spent some time mulling over the information I gathered while in Bangkok concerning the plague of human trafficking. I have realized that human trafficking or as I have come to refer to it, the modern slave trade, is a multi-layered topic. I have also come to realize that this like many other “hot topics” during political aspirations tends to fall away when the shock factor wears off. For the people this truly impacts it does not go away. We have all seen or heard the horrendous accounts of men and women who were stolen to work in the sex industry or factories of Southeast Asia and other parts of the world. In most instances, poor, eager to work, people enter into a verbal contract and find a different reality once they arrive. These people usually have few if any resources to escape once they leave their homes and are doomed to a life of servitude unless an outside entity intervenes. I hope to use my research to assist organizations in identifying people who need external intervention and returning them to their families and loved ones.

This was my last evening of research in Bangkok along Soi Cowboy. I witnessed a few children pass in front of the street where I was sitting but only saw one brought into the street. I was unable to get a clear photograph of the young female approximately 13-15 years old. She appeared to be escorted by a man and a woman who possibly could have been her parents or guardians. This was not a case of this street being used as a shortcut or a mere connection that they needed to pass through. I watched them walk past me both entering and leaving like any other sightseeing patron. I still feel this could be construed as possible grooming or at minimum a form of desensitization to this type of environmental stimuli. The rest of the evening passed uneventfully due to small crowds and a fairly calm atmosphere.

I was able to photograph another child being brought down “Soi Cowboy”. The picture can be found in the gallery. This was a small, possibly female child, being carried by a male. I did not see her mother or anyone in the area that was associated with the child other than the person carrying her. I have tried not to assume much in this research because of unknown cultural differences but as I sat in my usual spot, I asked one of the waitresses her opinion. I asked her if this was normal for people to bring their children down this street. She shrugged and said, “Tourists”. She went on to explain that some Thai people are forced to bring their children to work because of no other alternatives but they would not bring them to the go-go bars. This is something she has seen foreign tourists do and she could not understand. She explained to me that this could be a dangerous area and is no place for children.

This evening began as any other, I took my position at the main entrance of Soi Cowboy and waited. I intended to get photographic evidence of some of the things I have been seeing. I have added a picture in the gallery under the “Soi Cowboy” tab showing what appears to be a young girl walking with a man that may or may not be a parent or guardian. Regardless of the adult’s role, it is quite odd to see children transit through this area. There are alternate routes that would be easier to transit and contain fewer people and no exposure to this environment. A few hotels are located on the other side of Soi Cowboy, opposite where I am staging. This could be a possible excuse but, given the choice, most would take the easier path. This Person however did not and chose to take this little girl through not only a street lined with bars, but strip clubs and brothels line the street as well. The women that work in these establishments take to the street like carnival barkers promoting their wares. Some of these interactions can be aggressive at times, meaning they will sometime try to physically steer you into the establishment.

The bars were closed this evening, so I broadened the data collection area to include one of the larger mall-type retail establishments. I chose Siam Premium Outlets because I was told by locals that it was very busy and both tourists and locals shop there. I was also told that most of the shops in southern Thailand purchase quite a bit of their inventory from this mall. When I arrived, the place was packed with people. This would be a prime area to traffic people due to the heavy crowd and the multitudes of diverse nationalities, so no one culture would stand out. I also saw large load orders being moved on pallets, in and out of the mall. This would allow ample opportunity to move adults as well as children without raising suspicion. But in this type of crown, there would be little to no need to be so elaborate.  

Well, this night was a “washout” because of the rain, or at least I had to cut short my evening. I tried a new area I heard about called Khao San Road, this was described as a place tourists and locals alike frequented, and it was considered to be financially cheaper than Soi Cowboy and Nana Plaza. As you can see in the photos of the “Bangkok Pictures” tab, the area flooded very fast. But before the rain began, I was able to traverse the heaving throngs of partygoers and establish somewhat of an understanding of how the area worked.  Generally, the area is flanked on either side by restaurants and food stalls serving every type of food imaginable from a normal array of foods found in Thailand to the exotic like scorpions and spiders. In the middle of all this, you find the heart of the Khao San. It’s a mix of techno music and reggae meant to fuel the patrons into a massive rave-like environment.

I chose to walk the 1.5 km to Nana Plaza this evening to see if I would be able to notice anything in and around the area. I passed a plethora of differently themed shops, not to mention marijuana dispensaries, that have recently been legalized for public use. I was not able to observe any significant signs of overt trafficking while walking to this evening’s venue. In a culture that has such a relaxed attitude or outright acceptance of prostitution or adult entertainment, it is no wonder that human trafficking can occur. But we also must understand this vocation is not viewed in the same light as in Western, Christian cultures.

Tonight, I chose another venue called Nana Plaza. As the name implies this is not a street but an actual plaza. As I arrived at the location, I first notice a stark difference from Soi Cowboy, in that, the Plaza was not on a main road and had areas for crowds to gather across from the entrance. Another difference I was truly shocked to see was a true security presence. Your age is verified before you enter Nana Plaza and women must consent to having their purses checked. Once inside the area itself seemed cleaner than Soi Cowboy. It was open and bright, unlike the neon-lit alleyway of Soi Cowboy.

This night started like any other but quickly took a bit of a weird turn. I observed what must have been a group of about twelve children accompanied by what I assume is their parents or family, walking through Soi Cowboy. Some of the youngest, eight or nine-year-olds I am guessing, held each other’s hands like they were on a school trip as they passed me. I was unsure if this was a cultural difference in parenting due to a Western ideology or possibly more unsettling, a form of grooming. I watched as the children, mostly young Asian boys, passed among the adult entertainers, drunken revelers, and the people hocking their wares, no one seemed to be shocked or consider this behavior to be out of place. The police nor security made any attempt to intervene or discourage their entrance. As you can imagine, their eyes were wide and darting over their surroundings in an attempt to comprehend this alien environment. The body language they exhibited was a mix of apprehension, exhilaration, and shock. It was easy to see they were not where they wanted to be but their parents, or whoever they were, continued forward. It should be noted that they also were well below the age of consent for Thailand which is fifteen years old.

The surveillance this evening began a bit earlier than usual because I wanted to be on-site as the crowds began to arrive. As before, the throngs of people arrive in waves, I still find it curious that some parents deem it suitable to expose their young children to this type of environment. I would estimate the youngest I saw this evening was a four or five years old little boy. This child was apparently in the company of what I can only assume to be his mother as she worked and cooked over a small grill about fifty yards inside the entrance to Soi Cowboy. So, we must understand the desensitization of cultures to this kind of environment. This is not to say this only happens in faraway places, I have observed the same parental behaviors in the United States in places like Bourbon Street in New Orleans and Duval Street in Key West Florida.

I arrived in the area of Soi Cowboy just after midnight to find the street was packed with people from all over the world. I walked the street from beginning to end and back to see the way the people and the energy of the street flowed. The crescendo of opposing musical genres was at times deafening and different smells of hot people, food, marijuana smoke, and alcohol accosted the senses. I was, however, able to find an appealing vantage point near the main access of the street and watch the ebb and flow of tourists and locals alike, it reminded me of watching the operations of an ant colony. I was able to observe quite a bit of social interaction between people entering and exiting the first couple of establishments at the front of the street. I did not see anyone that appeared to be forced to come or go with anyone nor did they exhibit any fear of the people they seemed familiar with. Although I did see certain facial cues and body language of some women that could be associated with disdain or disgust as a result of drunken attention from a few men in the bar as they passed. But for the most part security and the local police were everywhere, so if anyone was to get out of hand, it would not bode well.

I ventured out around noon to scout the areas I would be concentrating on the evening’s observations and to understand the lay of the land. The areas I chose for this evening were "Soi Cowboy" and "Nana Plaza" both synonymous in the world of adult entertainment and possible ties to human trafficking. During the day the areas are all but deserted. A few food carts were selling local fare and vendors were resupplying food and alcohol for the upcoming evening's festivities. These two places usually start to become crowded just after sundown due mainly to the extreme heat during the day. Most tourists are out participating in prepaid tours of the areas with more wholesome attractions. Soi Cowboy and Nana Plaza are roughly in the same geographic area but are separated by other cultural shopping areas. The locals refer to them by names like, "Allah Street" (which is an area populated by Muslim shops and restaurants) and "Indian Street" (an area populated by Indian shops and restaurants). On this night, however, the areas of Soi Cowboy and Nanna Plaza were all but deserted like it was earlier in the day. I found a person wearing a security uniform and inquired as to why. I was informed that it was due to elections, and they could not serve alcohol, so no bars were open. So, with this new information, I needed to change my approach, so I located a restaurant to observe the activity around the entrance of Nana Plaza. Even though the bars were closed there were still fairly large crowds of people in the area, and I could observe "freelance" activity. Freelance is the term given to a person (male, female, transgender) that works as a prostitute outside the government regulations. I watched for signs of "branding" or other ways to identify affiliations. I observed nothing that would indicate this to be a forced behavior. Most if not all individuals I was able to identify had and were using cell phones. They did not solicit every person that walked by so this could indicate freedom of choice. This was merely a small sampling of a small area of observation, I hope to collect in the following weeks from different vantage points.