Tokyo brothel busted by police for employing Vietnamese women forced into prostitution by coronavirus

The technical intern training program in Japan has rightfully attracted international condemnation for legalizing what often amounts to near-slavery conditions for foreign workers, especially Vietnamese. Employers — including small manufacturers — are allowed to pay these workers extremely low wages and it is all sanctioned by the government.

The workers are trapped, unable to change jobs and frequently in debt to middle-men for the fees to get their places on the scheme and come to Japan.

Over the years, many sad stories of abuse and even suicide have emerged from the “internships” program. But we think this is the first time we have seen this outcome and it also highlights the precarious situation for man people in these COVID times.

The Japanese media has reported on the bust of a brothel, seemingly operating outside yakuza protection, where the two alleged pimps (Japanese and Chinese) were arrested and several Vietnamese women.

The latter originally came to Japan as students or technical interns but lost their jobs due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. With no money to return home, even if the borders were open and flights operating, they ended up working as prostitutes. They also had families back home who were similarly hard hit by the pandemic and so they sent money back to help them out.

The three women — aged between 24 and 35 — were employed at a delivery health escort agency called Bi Wonderful, operating out of Arakawa ward in the east of Tokyo.

They now face charges over violations of their visa status and taking part in illegal employment. Of course, they are the victims in this but are treated as criminals by police. As one person commented on Twitter, they need assistance, not arrest.

Bi Wonderful was based in an ordinary multi-tenant building and had a room where the women waited for customers.