Why Don't Prostitutes Abort Their Fetuses?

Since the mid-1990s, abortion has been legal in South Africa. But you wouldn't know it if you went to the dockside nightclubs where local prostitutes solicit foreign sailors. At any one time, there's always a handful of pregnant ladies hustling the seamen.

Pregnancy, childbirth, and children represent major burdens for most Cape Town dockside pros. Pregnancy changes the women's body shape (less sexually appealing), creates new physical discomforts (morning sickness, swollen breasts), and encourages women to stop drinking, smoking, or using drugs (though they often keeping doing these things). Childbirth takes the women out of action for a span of weeks or months, making it difficult to earn money. And the resulting children are their legal and moral responsibilities, demanding money and time to keep them alive and healthy.

All of these things disrupt good business at the clubs, so why don't more prostitutes have abortions? Why do they still have these babies?

First, for moral and religious reasons. Many of these women grow up in Christian and Muslim families where they're taught that abortion is a sin. Though the women are willing to "sin" by selling sex, they're not necessarily willing to "sin" by aborting their fetuses.

Second, for short-term financial reasons. Since many of the women do not know who the father is, they try to place paternity on multiple clients so as to get access to multiple revenue streams. They hope that a number of guys will accept paternity and send money. It's a short-term ploy though, because the guys never give money for very long. But it can be long enough that the women think it will reap them benefits. If they do know who the father is—and he shows some interest—then she'll keep the baby on the assumption that it will inspire him to provide money. This rarely works out as hoped.

Third, for social reasons. Motherhood in the Cape Flats townships is common for teenagers and twenty-somethings, so having a baby entails few social penalties. Some folks may shake their heads, but the number of young unwed mothers in South Africa is so great that it's virtually normal for these women. Thus there's little shame in it.

Fourth, for family reasons. Most of these women do not have to actually raise the children themselves because they can dump them off on relatives, especially their own mothers. The tradition of grandmothers raising grandchildren is very strong in South Africa, because the mothers are often the breadwinners and need to work. So a young prostitute won't flinch about having a kid because she can often just hand it over to someone else.

Fifth, for spiritual reasons. Most prostitutes justify their business by saying that they're doing it for their kids. They understand that they've broken a major social taboo by selling sex, but they try to gain redemption by claiming that they're doing it for their children. That is, they claim that the obligations of motherhood are so important to them that they justify sex work. They pit one social value (motherhood) against another (don't sell sex) and believe that they're socially redeemable so long as they're doing it for their kids' upkeep.

Sixth, for temporal and economic reasons. Getting an abortion takes time. And money. Since the women work all night and sleep all day, going to the clinic during that daytime takes them out of their routine. But free abortions are only given after a number of consultations with the doctor. They must do some tests, talk with them, come again for the results, and then come again for the procedure. The fact that they have to make multiple visits during early daytime hours can be enough to make a pro hesitate until its too late. Of course, they could get it done quickly at a private clinic for about R1400 ($200), but the women often think of other ways they'd like to spend that kind of money (like drugs). Even though a child will cost much more in the long-run, the R1400 fee is often enough to make them hesitate till its too late.

So a myriad of factors influence why dockside prostitutes don't always have abortions. (Some do, of course, but plenty don't.) But what about the reason that they actually "want" the babies just because they want them? Sadly, this is almost never the case. Not while they're prostitutes, at least. (And it goes without saying that none of these children are actually "planned.")

Child of Prostitution

As I hold the tiny baby in my hands, I feel delighted & depressed. The cute little half-Asian girl came out 2 months prematurely and I'm worried she might have health problems.

Her mother—a dockside prostitute in Cape Town—worked the nightclubs until a few days before delivery. During her pregnancy, she never stopped drinking "baiju" (Chinese tequila) or smoking cigarettes. But I'm relieved to see the swaddled bundle appear normal. A beautiful half-Korean, half-coloured baby girl.

But what life awaits this child?

The mother has been a dockside prostitute for 9 years. She has another half-Korean child from another seaman, but he's long-gone. The father of this newborn will dock in Cape Town next month, seeing his baby for the first time. He says he's excited, and that he'll provide financially, but Mom merely shrugs. She knows such promises are inevitable, but they're not likely to stand the test of time & distance.

Like the father to her other child, this seaman will probably end up marrying a Korean woman in a few years time, starting a "legitimate" family in the East. His Cape-born love child will not form part of that family. She'll float on the edge of his imagination, remembered as a product of his wild youth. Meanwhile, his daughter will be absorbed into the mother's family, adding to the genetic potpourri of the coloured community.

In the maternity ward, we try not to worry about the future. We celebrate life and even speak of hope. Admittedly, such talk feels forced.

But Mom and Baby are surrounded by friends—fellow pros—who bear gifts (nappies, food & formula), fuss over the baby, and wish her the best. They've been here before; they understand her predicament. They also know that she didn't want the baby. But here it is anyway.

In the midst of the celebrations, our eyes pity the baby girl. She will have to learn so many things:

- to live without a father
- to curb her curiosity about about Mommy's late-night jaunts
- to lie to her friends and neighbors about Mommy's work
- to guard the secret of her "shameful" birth
- and perhaps to cope with the physical side-effects of a drunken pregnancy

As we take turns rocking the baby, we silently pray that she'll be able to live in the light, beyond the shadowlands.

A Prostitute's Dilemma

You're a prostitute and you're pregnant: what do you do?

That's the dilemma facing 4 dockside sugar girls in Cape Town. For most, it's nothing new—they've all borne children from foreign seamen.Still, it creates pressures, responsibilities, and expectations that most want to avoid.

For most of the women, pregnancy is an occupational hazard. They're fairly resigned about it. Though abortion occurs, many refuse it on moral grounds. Coming from working-class backgrounds, their families can usually absorb new members, despite their constraints.

Each of the four women face unique circumstances in their pregnancies:

The first—7 months pregnant—worked at the clubs up until a month ago when she was banned for stealing a Spanish seaman's jacket and wallet. She fled with the money to go smoke "buttons" (mandrax) with the local Nigerian merchant under a freeway overpass. Most likely, she will return to the clubs after her delivery, make amends with the owners, and continue soliciting like before.

The second—6 months pregnant—seems utterly despondent about her child. She often says she doesn't want it, but won't go for an abortion. Instead, she drinks lot of tequila, smokes ceaselessly, and takes poor care of her health. No pre-natal check-ups. She seems to want a miscarriage. But she also hopes that the Korean father will start sending money. He's coming to Cape Town next month. And what a surprise awaits him: he doesn't know yet he's got a child on the way!

The third—2 months pregnant—shrugs at the pregnancy while trying to raise a smile. The Filipino father died recently, so she can expect no financial support from abroad. Instead, she uses her situation to garner dividends in the present: she shows off her rounding tummy to the Filipino seamen, eliciting "pity money" from them. She tugs at the heart-strings of sailors who understand the "tragic" dimensions of her story, a story they are partially responsible for creating. Most seamen are not immune to the needs of these women.

The fourth—2 months pregnant—sees the baby as the glue that will bind her to her Filipino guy. She plans to marry him in November. She speaks with longing about setting up a home and a family with him, her eyes glistening with hope. Meanwhile, though her would-be husband doesn't like her to still come to the clubs, she continues going so that she can earn "tips": small fees for in-club companionship and conversation.

But I will be surprised if her dreams come to fruition. Though dockside relationships can lead to marriage, more often the practical, financial, and cultural concerns get in the way of a long-term union. The Filipino will probably send maintenance money for a year or two, then slowly let the connection fade, essentially abandoning his own child in the process. This is the typical story.

Dockside pros complain that pregnancy interferes with soliciting (making them feel tired, less attractive, etc.) and their ability to make money. But just as important, they rue that their kids will essentially be fatherless. Indeed, for many of the children, the father is not just absent, but unknown.