However, I have always been concerned about how this (being a sex worker) may affect my family," Daniel said frankly. "I do not have a moral problem with having sex for money, as long as it's safe. "Some of them do it because they want to make more money, though." But as far as I know, no one has done this against their will or owing to their financial backgrounds," Daniel said. "I think men turn to prostitution for many reasons. Most male sex workers (MSWs), like Daniel, have chosen their vocation voluntarily. He lost his appeal and was banned from Hong Kong for the next two years. He continued working as a prostitute during his visits. He appealed and continued to come to Hong Kong while his appeal was underway.
Daniel was charged with breaching the condition of his stay, when he was caught working on his tourist visa. He earns as much as 30,000 yuan in a month in Singapore. Sometimes he takes his customers to his hostel, where he pays HK$150 a day.ĭaniel now spends about three quarters a year in Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia. Daniel is pleased that he can earn a living in Hong Kong without a working visa. He attends up to five clients charging HK$600-800 each time. Daniel arrives periodically on a 7-day permit. He had already chatted with some potential customers on instant messaging services before setting out. In 2006, Daniel arrived in Hong Kong seeking to ply his trade. He was paid 1,000 yuan, a fair amount at that time. He uploaded his photograph to a compensated-dating website. After about two years of nine-to-five office work in Shanghai, Daniel was bored. Soon he found some friends with similar taste.
Driven by curiosity, he sought out gay photos online back in 1998, back when Internet access was still new to him. The medium-built and sun-tanned young man from Anhui province asked to be identified only by his first name and declined any photos, but he spoke candidly about his life as a sex worker, offering a rare glimpse into a common subculture that is being overlooked in modern society.ĭaniel claimed he was not sensitive to his sexual orientation when he was a boy. When Daniel, 33, decided to explore the gay world in 2000, he never thought he would eventually enter the oldest profession of mankind - prostitution. He found office work boring so despite his well-to-do family background on the mainland, Daniel took up the sex trade.