15-Day Visas Boost Sex Trade in Kurdistan

For the past two years, Sirvan has been living in Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan. He travels between Iran and Iraq on a regular basis because of his job. When in Erbil, he often meets up with Iranian friends, taking advantage of the city’s nightlife. “There are a few streets in Erbil where Iranian women hang out,” he says. By “Iranian women,” Sirvan means Iranian prostitutes, who he says are “mostly young”. 

As elsewhere in the region, prostitution is illegal in Kurdistan. Sex workers must practice caution and be wary of police. But business is good. “They have plenty of clients here,” Sirvan, who also uses their services, says. “Of course, the prices vary and depend on several factors, like age and whether you have your own place or not. Foreigners pay around $100, but Iranian men pay between $30 and $40. Women prefer not to go with Iranians because they often cheat when it comes to paying.”

Iranians traveling to Iraqi Kurdistan are permitted only a 15-day stay. If they want to stay longer, they are required to return to Iran and renew their visa. Those who have work permits can stay from six months to a year, depending on their type of employment and the specific requests of their employer. To become a resident, Iranians must secure a guarantee or reference from a Kurdish citizen.

Iranian sex workers in Kurdistan normally stay for a 15-day period, return to Iran for a few days, and then travel back to Kurdistan for another 15-day stint. The go-betweens who make these travel and permit arrangements for sex workers are often known as “aunties”.

“I was paid $3,000 to lose my virginity”

Mahboubeh, a 40-year-old from Isfahan, says there are three types of sex workers in Kurdistan:  “First, there are young, fancy girls who come from Iran as part of a business arrangement between Kurdish businessmen and Iranian merchants. The stay at top hotels, mingle with officials and have high incomes. No good can come from snooping into their affairs and I advise you not to pursue them too much,” Mahboubeh says.

“The second group are both young and more mature women who come here through people like me. Some of them are Kurds, most of whom have work and residency permits that are organized by their employers. Others come on the 15-day visas. Their average income during a 15-day period is about $3,000, which of course depends on the girl herself and whether she can get a good tip on top of the agreed price. The third group are middle-aged women, generally residents. Their clients are Iranian workers or low-income men from the area.”

“Our biggest problem here is that there is no culture of pregnancy prevention,” says Mahboubeh. “Many men here do not like to use condoms. Once in a while, the government cracks down on the trade. Of course, sometimes government employees cooperate with us in exchange for money or sex. No work can really be done without their cooperation.”

Rouzhin is 28 years old and is from northwestern Iran. She has a one-year visa and has just started out in the trade. “When I came here I was a virgin,” she says. “When a government official insisted, I gave in, fearing for my own safety. It was not a good day. But I got a good amount of money: He gave me $3,000 in exchange for my virginity. I had a relationship with him for a few months and he gave me considerable financial help each month. I built up my business little by little and now I make $3,000 a month. I have decided to go to America and start my life anew. This is not a good place to live for too long. It’s traditional society and women have no rights. Also, because our profession is not legal, we don’t have security.”

Mahmoud Chumani is the president of a drivers association that works between Haji Omran on the Iranian border and Erbil in Iraq. “A considerable number of Iranian prostitutes come from Iran to the Kurdish Region,” he says. After their passports have been stamped, the taxi drivers take them to whatever locations they request.”

Entering Iraqi Kurdistan is not always straightforward. Security forces have arrested a number of drivers and tourists who have entered the region as tourists.

Iranian Conspiracy?

The market for rumors is as hot as the market for sex. Zagros, an Iranian Kurdish refugee who belongs to an Iranian Kurdish opposition party believes that sex trade on the Kurdish borders is supported by Iran’s security forces. Not only do they pay for these women’s services, they use them to gain knowledge about Kurdish activism in the region.“They have infiltrated Iranian Kurdish opposition groups and have created problems. Of course, the opposite can be true: sometimes intelligence organizations in Kurdistan have absorbed those who were working for the opposition.” He also links the spread of sexually-transmitted diseases among sex workers to the security forces.

Such claims are difficult to verify. But what is clear is that there are large numbers of Iranian women working in the lucrative sex trade on Kurdistan’s borders. It is obvious to anyone who walks out on to the crowded streets of Erbil at night. The women are there, selling their bodies, as they do on the streets of Dubai, Kuala Lumpur, Antalya and Istanbul.