When fellow columnist Kristina Chetcuti wrote about so-called ‘gentlemen’s clubs’ a few weeks ago, she attracted the ire of several readers. They swarmed to the comments board and took her to task in no uncertain terms for daring to suggest these establishments were sad and dingy places which hosted the degradation of those who worked in, and visited them.

It is clear that many gentlemen’s clubs are fronts for enforced prostitution and modern day slavery- Claire Bonello

To a man (because the commenters were mostly men) they took up the cudgels in defence of the inalienable right of women to shimmy round poles in the nude, and the equally inalienable right of men to pay to watch the shimmying. Chetcuti’s concerns about the deleterious effects of these clubs were pooh-poohed out of hand. The commenters made her out to be a Maltese version of Mary Whitehouse – a prude pursing her lips at the thought of a G-string bisected bottom waving around in viewer’s faces.

The brave defenders of bare breasts and bottoms went on to deride uptight Maltese parents for hiding everything sex-related from their children and for not emulating the French.

According to the commenters, French parents start expounding about the joys of sex as soon as their children are out of nappies, and this has had the sole effect of cementing the French people’s reputation of ‘savoir-faire’ and ‘savoir vivre’ (sic).

There were more pearls of wisdom from the assorted strip club defenders. They were far more offended by obese housewives, they told us. Presumably, their aesthetic sensibilities were not as offended by the sight of the leering patrons of these establishments, salivating like over-excited Boxer dogs at the flesh on display.

Someone concerned about Malta’s economic prospects insisted that spending his money in strip clubs would boost Malta’s catering industry. He ignored the fact that an equally patriotic boost could be given at a regular pizza and pasta joint.

Another punter expressed his admiration for the great talent shown in these performances while chiding Chetcuti for daring to tell him how to spend his money (for the record – she did not). And then of course, there was the supposedly clincher argument – Chetcuti had no business getting all judgmental about what consenting adults do behind closed doors.

Except it’s not that simple. Contrary to what these commenters would like us to believe, ‘gentlemen’s clubs’ are not just places where saucy girls prance around in minimalist outfits simply to make a bit of cash in order to make ends meet. You’d have to be ultra-naïve or intentionally turning a blind eye to the real nature of business in these establishments, to think that’s all there is to these places. And you’d have to have lead a far more sheltered existence than that which commenters accuse Chetcuti of having, to believe that these places operate on a totally legal and above board level, where there is no exploitation, coercion or pimping.

Whenever I hear the term ‘consenting adults’ used in relation to these establishments, I snort in exasperation. The sad sacks ogling away may like to think that the women shimmying away in front of them are all regularly employed by benevolent employers beavering away in the ‘entertainment and leisure industry’. It’s far more likely that the women are coerced into gyrating their butts off for peanuts, while the establishment owners make a profit from their activities – whether at the front or back of the house.

Rather than being proof of a hip and progressive mindset which characterises a liberal society, the refusal to recognise the real nature of these establishments betrays a heartless disregard for those vulnerable members of society who are being exploited.

Evidence of the sordid and exploitative nature of what goes on in these clubs and related circles was provided in the report of a court judgment handed down on Thursday. It was a harrowing account of women being trafficked from one country to another, imprisoned for long months and bought and sold like cattle.

One of the eastern European women entangled in this web of vice testified that the man who was convicted by the courts asked her to send him some women from Russia to work in one of these clubs – which she named. A woman was brought over and made to prostitute herself at a farmhouse and another place in Marsascala. After a fortnight, the accused ‘sold’ her to a guesthouse for €600, with a policeman acting as an intermediary in this shameful sale. The ‘sale’ of stubborn women was par for the course for this man and his policeman friend – who would also lend a helping hand in the issuing of visas.

It is clear that many gentlemen’s clubs are fronts for enforced prostitution and modern day slavery, and not just naughty but nice bars. This view is reinforced by Professor Terence Coonan, executive director of Florida State University Centre for the Advancement of Human Rights.

In a speech he gave at the University of Malta last year, he said: “We have seen in the US that in metropolitan areas where there is a tolerance for commercial sexual activities such as strip clubs, a whole subculture can thrive which is of concern to anti-human trafficking advocates,” He also mentioned the potential for taxi drivers, bouncers and “enforcers of different kinds” to profit from facilitating sexual services for clients in the club, and warned: “It would be something for Malta to be mindful of as gentlemen’s clubs proliferate more and more.” Perhaps the people embarking on their valiant defence of gentlemen’s clubs should keep these words in mind before commenting.

cl.bon@nextgen.net.mt