Busan's red-light district survives Korea's 2004 sex trade ban

gettyimagesbank

Short-staffed, under-funded police grapple with crackdowns on brothels

By Lee Yeon-woo

BUSAN ― Prostitution is illegal in Korea. The country's ban on the sex trade was introduced in March 2004 and went into effect later that year.

Despite nearly two decades of law enforcement, the nation still has brothels and red-light districts operating at night in almost all big cities and provinces, albeit at a somewhat diminished scale.

Before the introduction of the Special Law on Sex Trade in 2004, there were 35 red-light districts nationwide, according to figures compiled by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family. The number declined to 15 in 2021. Gyeonggi Province has four, Seoul, Busan and other provincial cities have at least one or two each. About 900 women are involved in prostitution for a living in those areas, according to ministry data, although a far larger number of people are believed to be part of that profession in other parts of the country that operate under the radar of law enforcement.

Kim Kang-ja, a retired police officer best known for her role behind the crackdown of a major red-light district in Seoul when she was head of Jongam Police Station in the early 2000s, said the remaining red-light districts are a chilling reminder of a policy failure driven by budgetary constraints.

"The nation introduced the sex trade ban a long time ago, but it became powerless because of a lack of budget and staff," she told The Korea Times when asked about the existence of brothels operating in the nation in violation of the law. "To make it effective, there are three things the nation must have. They are money, sufficient policing resources, and rehabilitation programs for those women who have been sexually exploited. I knew this and that's why I was against the sex trade ban back in the early 2000s as the debate back then was unrealistic and would not bear fruit."

Kim said she deplored the short-sightedness policymakers back then.

"There are almost no staff capable of conducting a crackdown on prostitution and there is no money allocated to it," she said.

As a result, the world's oldest profession has survived the sex trade ban in Korea. And Busan's Wanwol-dong, known for its red-light district, is one example.

Its name portrays the shady nature of the place. "Wanwol" means "flirting with the moon." The moon has been used as a metaphor to describe a woman.

The place is considered to be the first red-light district in Korea, but the exact origins are open to debate.

"Everybody (in Busan) knows about this place," Byun Jeong-hee, director of the non-profit group, Center for Women's Rights or "Sallim," said while showing a reporter around Wanwol-dong.

"Just ignore it if someone comes up and tries to start an argument with us," Byun added.

She said women are practically forbidden from visiting the alley, but men are free to wander around. Even though no one confronted us that day, this reporter could feel the suspicious glances of passersby from various directions.

To the left of a forked road in Cheonma-ro is a residential area, while on the right is the Wanwol-dong red-light district. Courtesy of Sallim

Women usually in their 40s and above, called "nakai" in slang, sit in chairs in front of brothels when they're not soliciting customers. An ATM is conveniently located for withdrawals to make cash payments prior to service. Courtesy of Sallim

Wanwol-dong is Busan's last remaining red-light district.

As of 2022, 24 brothels are in operation in the area, with an average of three to four women who service customers in each one. When dusk comes, the quiet alley turns vibrant. The red lights come on and the women sit behind windows lining the street in seductive poses. Women usually aged in their 40s and above, called "nakai" in slang, show up and solicit men who are in cars or on foot. The male clients turn their eyes on the girls inside the window to choose one.

Wanwol-dong has the longest history among the nation's modern red-light districts. It grew during Japan's colonial occupation of Korea in the 1900s, but has been run by Koreans since 1945.

Brothels in Wanwol-dong in the 1890s. Screenshot from Busan Grand Culture Net

An old Japanese-style house remains in an alley in Wanwol-dong. Courtesy of Sallim

There have been several attempts to shut down the area since the sex trade ban was introduced in 2004, but all to no avail.

"The city government and police's will to shut down this area have faded as time goes by," Byun said.

To find a breakthrough, Sallim has pushed for the urban regeneration of this area since 2019 to shut down the remaining brothels completely. However, that goal has been hard to achieve due to an association of pimps called "chungchohoe."

"They only want to reap financial profits by building high-rise buildings (in addition to prostitution). They are either the owner of the building or a pimp closely linked to the owners. For city government to drive urban regeneration, residents' intentions ― mostly pimps in this case ― are very important. Pimps filed complaints to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport and even held demonstrations (against urban regenerations)," Byun said.

About a year later, Wanwol-dong was eliminated in the final selection for urban regeneration from Busan City. Chungchohoe is now seeking ways to redevelop the place to receive financial subsidies from the government.

Those who profit from the sex trade in Wanwol-dong demonstrate against Sallim's efforts to shut down and regenerate the region in front of the non-profit group's office in 2019. Courtesy of Sallim

However, Sallim had no intention to give up. Since 2002, they have supported those women who have become victims of human trafficking and wish to leave the industry to stand on their own feet by offering various programs such as counseling, vocational training, and running emergency shelters. Some of their activists even dared to disguise themselves as sex workers to enter brothels.

"We are famous in the area," Jung, who was also the founding member of Sallim, said with a grin.

So, they started archiving records to keep the Wanwol-dong issue alive. They made records of not only Wanwol-dong's past, but also its current ups and downs. Observing other major red-light districts in Busan ― such as "Haeundae 609," and "Beomjeon-dong 300" ― disappearing also affected their approach.

"I visited those places after shutdown. There was nothing that can remind us of these regions' existence. Only the history after the shutdown has remained. It's just a cut-off (as if nothing has happened there)," Jung said.

Sallim keeps various forms of records on Wanwol-dong. They took videos of the current Wanwol-dong, interviewed their activists and the women who work in the brothels, and even disclosed documented city government correspondence from their archives. There's even a document signed by the 2021 Busan City mayoral candidates promising their efforts to shut down the region promptly.

Now, around 20 citizen archivists voluntarily participate to record Wanwol-dong's history. Some take photos of the place, paint animals in Wanwol-dong, or make videos.

"They told us they were so ignorant of this area and now they felt embarrassed," Jung said.

An exhibition showcasing their works was even held from Nov. 2 to 6 in Busan, titled "Uncharted Village."

People view the exhibition "uncharted village" held in Busan from Nov. 2 to 6. Some archivists participate in the exhibition by giving docent tours. Courtesy of Sallim

"We desperately want Wanwol-dong to be shut down. But, we defy some people's attempts to erase it because they think the place has a shameful history. Its history should be recorded," Byun said.