Sir, - It is clear that Kevin Myers has no personal experience of women in prostitution (An Irishman's Diary, February 18th).
I have quite a bit and I have never met a woman after whom cars crawl whose work was freely chosen. Choices made out of desperation or even youthful delinguency are not free choices. Nor is any individual's sexuality so sacrosanct that a human being must be sacrificed to it.
I am sure there are "pretty women"' and "happy hookers" who do not even call what they do prostitution and that's their own concern, But the prostitution to which Kevin refers, the vast majority of prostitution in the world, is an exploitation of the poor and desperate, whether women, children or men. No matter where in the world, the number of human beings in sexual prostitution is directly relative to poverty. It is a slave trade because people are often forced into it by others, or by the circumstances of their lives.
Nowadays money to feed a drug habit is a big issue, and sexual abuse in early years has always been a significant factor in the history of many women in prostitution.
Once in prostitution, it is almost impossible to escape. The experience leaves scars which prevent one from leading a normal life. Also the woman must fictionalize her past work experience to get the most simple job, and live in fear of being discovered. How many would even think they might be eligible for a FAS course? The Pretty Woman scenario simply does not happen.
Prostitution has a brutalising effect on women, not only because of the pimps, the conditions, and the fact that some of the clients are violent, but because such acts with a stranger for money are borne by "turning off" or "pretending it isn't happening". Hardly a recipe for emotional health.
I am aware of all the arguments in favour of legalising prostitution. But isn't legalising prostitution putting human beings on a par with public lavatories? And what about children? Are we going to legalise their prostitution too?
Why can't Ireland be the first country to attempt to come to grips with this problem of poverty and disadvantage in a compassionate way. It is not "their" fault. It is ours. - Yours, etc.,
June Levine, co-author with Lyn Madden, Lyn, A Story of Prostitution. Ranelagh, Dublin 6.