Number of active sex workers plummets in Tijuana’s infamous ‘tolerance zone’
SAN DIEGO (Border Report) — The number of active sex workers employed in Tijuana’s “tolerance zone” has dropped in recent months, going from the normal of about 13,000 to 8,400, officials say.
Ashley Judith Romo Solís, head of Tijuana’s Sanitary Control Department, says the number of active workers includes those providing sexual favors for money on the streets, nightclubs and brothels.
All sex workers, men and women, must register with the city.
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“We have 27,385 in our registry, but we consider them ‘inactive’ after four years if they don’t renew their permits,” Romo Solís said. “Many come here, go through the process and start working only to return home never to be seen again.”
Romo Solís said sex workers must be tested for sexually transmitted diseases every four months in order to work legally.
On Jan. 1, however, the city stopped financing health centers where sex workers could seek free medical care and testing
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“The sites provided sex workers with screenings for sexually transmitted diseases and HIV that are required to get a permit,” she said, adding that 200 to 250 workers per day were seeking free lab work at these sites.
Romo Solís said the lack of free testing is not likely the reason for the drop in the number of active sex workers in Tijuana.
“The workers have found a way to get tested. So far this year, we’ve had 150 positive cases for STDs, including 15 for syphilis,” she said.
Romo Solís believes the drop in sex workers is seasonal and expects the numbers to go back up again as summer arrives.
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