Police have discovered 58 more sites of prostitution since the beginning of the year. In addition, more prostitutes are working on streets where police do not make regular checks, according to Du.

Despite prevention activities by police, prostitution continues to occur on more city streets and service facilities.

The city has a total of 32,262 service facilities. Of these, small hotels, karaoke bars and clubs, massage parlours and coffee shops are often sites of prostitution activities.

Inspections of 1,023 of these facilities from January to May found 667 violations. The facilities were fined more than VND8 billion (US$380,952). As many as 556 prostitutes and clients of prostitutes were detained by police.

Du said that the city also offered job training to prostitutes, including free hairdressing courses at L'Oreal Academy.

The city has worked with CARE, a humanitarian organisation providing disaster relief and poverty alleviation activities around the world to strengthen social services for prostitutes in the city.

Drug addiction

As of May, the city has taken care of 3,808 addicts. Of these, 2,056 received treatment in ward-level health clinics in charge of community-based treatment.

Since December, 3,416 addicts without a stable residence have been sent to Nhi Xuan Centre for Vocational Education and Employment in Hoc Mon District, Binh Trieu Admission Centre for Addicts and Prostitutes in Binh Thanh District, and Young People's Vocational Training Centre No 2 in the outlying district of Cu Chi.

They live at the centres while they wait for a court decision on whether they must go to rehab centres.

As of May, 2,226 of 3,416 of drug addicts were admitted to rehabilitation centres, raising the total number of addicts treated at the city's 17 rehabilitation centres to 7,756. 

VNS