U

nlike typical days, the Sunan Kuning red-light area in West Semarang, Semarang, Central Java, appeared deserted on Wednesday, the day before the start of the Ramadhan fasting month.

During normal days, the province'€™s biggest red-light district is always crowded, especially with men visiting dozens of karaoke parlors and brothels accommodating sex workers.

'€œSunan Kuning will fully close during the fasting month and 548 sex workers have so far returned to their hometowns after I advised them to do so before Ramadhan started,'€ Sunan Kuning chairman Suwandi told The Jakarta Post.

The decision to close the district for a whole month, according to Suwandi, is a gesture of respect toward local Muslims performing the fast.

To notify patrons, the management of the Argorejo Resocialization, the official name of the area, has erected a large banner informing them of the closure at the entrance to the location, which functions not only as a prostitution area but also as a rehabilitation center.

In 2003, the Semarang city administration issued a policy to relocate commercial sex workers to Sunan Kuning, making it easier for the administration to control their health and security as well as to help them find other ways of earning a living.

As a rehabilitation center, Sunan Kuning helps prepare prostitutes to return to their communities by, among other things, providing vocational training and strengthening their spiritual beliefs.

Suwandi said the sex workers returning to their hometown had also taken their year-long earnings, which had been kept by the center'€™s management.

'€œEach of them has saved more than Rp 1 million [US$75] on average,'€ he said.

As of Wednesday, Suwandi said only around 20 sex workers remained at the location. They, however, will soon depart to their hometowns and return to Sunan Kuning around a week after the Islamic holiday of Idul Fitri, celebrated after the end of Ramadhan.

Putri, a sex worker from Bandung, West Java, said she was looking forward to meeting her family during Ramadhan.

Putri, who has not informed her family about her real occupation, said she was not concerned if her family asked her why she was able to take leave from work for the entire month.

'€œThere'€™s no need for me to worry about that. The most important thing is to return home first. Excuses can be made,'€ she said.

Suwarto, a local resident, appreciated the annual closure of the red-light district during Ramadhan.

He said that in previous years some sex workers had took part in tarawih (special Ramadhan prayer services) in the evening together with other residents in local mosques.

'€œThis year, the location will be fully closed again. The local Al-Hidayah mosque and other nearby mosques will also hold the tarawih prayer during Ramadhan. We welcome everyone, including those from Sunan Kuning, to join the prayers,'€ he said.

Meanwhile in Banyumas, Central Java, local police claimed that they had closed down prostitution activities in the Baturraden resort area, with hundreds of sex workers leaving the area.

'€œWe have been coordinating with local organizations related to the management of sex workers to send them home during the Ramadhan fasting month,'€ Baturraden Police chief Adj. Comr. Susanto said.

'€œThey are only allowed to return after Idul Fitri.'€

Responding to the police'€™s instruction, Rani, a sex worker from Wonosobo, Central Java, said she had left Baturraden several days before Ramadhan. She had not, however, returned to her hometown and instead rented a boarding house in Purwokerto, a city located 15 kilometers west of the resort area.

Rani said she still provided services to regular clients during Ramadhan.

She, however, said she only met them in the evening as she performed the fast during the day.

'€œIs there any rule that prohibits people like me from performing the fast? We are fasting so that God forgives our sins. Meanwhile, we are forced to work like this [as prostitutes] to make ends meet,'€ she said.