valentine*, 27 years old, left Carabobo, Venezuela, four years ago, because money was insufficient at home. Now, he lives in Colombia, in the border city of Cúcuta, and, although he is not a professional, he knows and likes computers, even though he has not been able to afford to attend university. In order to survive, he dedicates himself to recycling in the street -collecting residues or rubbish for later use- and to sexual activity.
Like her, many Venezuelan migrants work as prostitutes in Colombia “as the only means of survival,” which, according to Jaime Valencia, director of the organization Aid for Aids, is called “sex for survival.”
According to a study prepared between 2021 and 2022 by this organization, together with the USAID Connecting Paths for Rights program, 92.6% of sex workers between the ages of 18 and 25 are not affiliated with any service. of health, thus running the risk of contracting a serious illness due to his trade.
The vast majority of these people entered Colombia irregularly. The findings indicate that 93.2% of the people surveyed do not have their passport stamped, adds the report, prepared in Barranquilla, Bogotá, Cali, Cúcuta, Maicao and Medellín, with the testimonies of 600 Venezuelan refugees.
It is the case of valentine, who entered Colombian territory through trails or irregular steps, with 2 dollars in hand for her and a friend. Despite having the PPT Temporary Protection Permit, she has survived thanks to informal jobs.
They contact her by phone, Facebook or through a page in which she is registered. Even unknown people who, despite seeing her dirty, due to her recycling, offer her up to 10 dollars and, having nothing to eat, she agrees without hesitation.
Although you have heard of the mafias that exploit migrants, through sexual activities, he says that when the opportunity presents itself, he prefers to work on his own. “They are people who exploit one… One does it out of necessity, not to make another rich”, he adds.
She would like to return to Venezuela, she has her whole family there, but she also dreams of starting a business in Colombia.
and just like valentine, Sandra* never thought that prostitution would be the way to survive.
He is 21 years old, was born in San Cristóbal and has two children. Although she is afraid of contracting a disease, she works for them, to “give them a future.” “It scares me a lot because I have my two children and I work honestly for them,” she explains.
He arrived in Colombia at the age of 15. She worked in a stall, selling vegetables, in Cúcuta, where she has lived for a year, but “because she is Venezuelan,” she affirms that she received only 80,000 pesos (less than 20 dollars) per week and replaced the work of her colleagues.
Finding no other job option, a woman offered her to work in a bar and there she began “doing little bits… As a sex worker, that is, selling my body,” she says.
If his country improved the job offer, he would return. But, for now, he dreams of saving money and setting up “a dog and hamburger stand,” either in Colombia or Venezuela.
valentine think alike. If there were a better opportunity, he would not hesitate to change his profession, since he says that, with recycling, he earns between 25,000 and 40,000 pesos (between 3 and 6 dollars) and as a sex worker, she manages to collect between 10 and 17 dollars a day.
violence and diseases
For Valencia, the director of Aid for Aids, one of the most worrying factors is “the profound violation of the rights of these populations”, since they cannot find other means to survive. He even says that these people face violence of all kinds: sexually, physically and emotionally.
According to the study, almost 4.4% stated that they had HIV at the time of having sex. Valencia affirms that “many of them do not have access to treatment or information.”
Despite engaging in sex work and having no other way to survive, 91.4% of the people surveyed intend to remain in Colombia.
Valencia emphasizes that it is a population that is violated on many fronts: migrants, some with a different sexual orientation and some sexually transmitted disease.
This is the case of Sasha Sánchez, a transsexual woman who was also infected with HIV.
She remembers that “at that moment when she was already hungry and lying around”, she decided to sell her body for money. This 26-year-old Venezuelan arrived in Colombia 3 years ago with the hope of undergoing some surgeries. But, as she says, although everything looked “pink, it wasn’t like that.”
He has not been able to get stable work and has suffered discrimination. Despite knowing all the skills of a hairdresser and stylist, she reached a point where money was not enough and she decided engage in prostitution.
“I have sold candy, but more than anything, I don’t know, here, prostitution. I feel like prostitution is the fastest unpacking,” she told the voice of america.
He has lived in Bogotá, Cúcuta, Cali, Bucaramanga and Pamplona, but Medellín is his favorite city, where he dreams of opening his own hair salon, despite not having proper documents. Before, he helped his mother to clean the family houses, but he had to migrate to look for “a better future.”
However, he confesses that he has been a victim of abuse. Even that she has felt “violated”, because sometimes she gets tired and doesn’t want to have sex.
She even remembers that she has been beaten and mistreated. But she says that her situation has improved, compared to when she arrived in Medellín: “I didn’t care what they were going to give me… she told her… ‘Give me food, I want food.’ I didn’t care about anything, I was just hungry.”
She has thought about retiring from prostitution. Since she contracted HIV, she confesses that she has developed a “sex phobia”. And, although she claims to be in good health, she knows that she wants to change her life “as long as they accept us,” she told the VOA.
Although the study was carried out in Colombia, the director of Aid for Aids points out that in other parts of the region, the situation may be similar, with many migrants engaging in survival sex.
Liz Lizama, IOM spokesperson, told the VOA that “smugglers continue to exploit migrants and people in vulnerable situations, spreading misinformation about migration routes and borders, and leaving people in highly vulnerable situations.”
In Colombia, migrants who are in an irregular situation have problems getting a stable job or starting a business, since they do not have the necessary documents to opt for this option. Some of them say they also suffer discrimination or are paid very little because they are Venezuelans.
* The real names were not revealed to protect the identity and safety of the migrants.
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