If the broad thumb rule is that barely 10 per cent of such cases are wither reported or detected, it will be fair to assume that close to 750 women in this belt are either forcibly or out of choice, being victimised by people who are using parlours as fronts for illegal sexual activity in an eighteen-month period. These figures may not have precise accuracy but do have a precise direction- up.
To say that the issue is complex is an understatement. It needs precise surgery but an error on the operation table can cut a life supporting nerve which will affect livelihood, tourism and economy and not necessarily in that order. If there are 750 odd victims in one belt alone, there will be many more who will suffer abject collateral damage if either spas and salons are shut down in one stroke, like mining, till all regulations are in place or the Goa Public Health is interpreted at will by the Health Department to cherry pick and attack salons.
Under Section 15 A (f) of the Goa Public Health Act & Rules, each massage parlour requires provision to be made for “male masseur for massage of males and female masseur for massage of females”. The breach results in fine which may extend to Rs 2000, if conviction by a magistrate. Several well-known parlours and salon owners have exclaimed in frustration, that health inspectors do the rounds of salons and then send notices stating that they witnessed “cross massaging”. This really is the actual bone of contention. Spa owners across the board have condemned this. As Asha Arondekar, a Spa owner said in a discussion in HCN, the TV channel of the Herald group on Monday, “We cannot stop people from carrying out their profession. If a female masseur has no problem working with a male client, within the law, why should anyone have a problem?” Incidentally and importantly, Section 15 (A) (f) does not prohibit cross massaging.
The other issue is that spas and salons, are important touch points of tourism. A majority of clients who come to these spas which are now known as rejuvenation centers, are tourists and visitors. Hence, it is legitimate business that adds to the economy.
However, where the balance is going wrong, is that several fly by night operators with a basic shop and establishment license are opening massage parlours, which act as fronts for sex shops. These activities have been bracketed with the legal business of spas, leading to a crisis in the industry. As Deputy Inspector General O P Mishra said in the HCN discussion, “It’s a new way in which commercial sex activity is percolating in the State.” And this has added to a so called sunshine industry where girls are sourced not just from Thailand but also places like Andhra Pradesh and Darjeeling where there is a crisis of jobs and employment.
So that brings us to the issue of dealing with this. The balance is critical. As in mining, the industry cannot be shut down. Moreover a witch hunt of genuine spa owners must stop and stop now and allow them to function under the actual provisions of the Health Act.
At the same time, it is in the interest of the industry that a clean-up of the sleaze happens and the sex shops that masquerade as massage parlours are shut. There has to be sensitivity on both sides, but the solution cannot be to ban cross massaging which in turn will impact businesses in many of these places. This needs to be understood in the wider context that those who ask to be massaged by the opposite gender are not looking for sex or eroticism. Many women ask for head massages from men and men want a soft touch massage from women. These are choices adults make in a civilized world without any laws being broken. We need to get real.
