Drama ensued at Emali town in Makueni County, when police raided guest houses and arrested commercial sex workers together their clients for flouting the social distance rules that aim to curb the spread of coronavirus.
They were booked at the Emali Police Station after the monday night raid but the officers did not reveal much details about the clients with whom they were arrested. “They were arrested in two different lodgings with these women in miniskirts and several men,” said Emali Okumu Dullo, Emali Sub County Police Commander.
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Dullo also said that they had already taken all the culprits to Mulala Girls School for a 14-day quarantine as they will be arraigned after the quarantine for going against the directives that require people to stay at home and minimize further spread of Covid-19.
Bar attendants and revelers who had locked themselves in the nearby joints were also arrested when police forcibly gained entry into shops. Three more people were also sent into forced quarantine for violating dusk to dawn curfew.
“Anyone who will be found outside during curfew time, those in public places without masks will be arrested and taken to safer places,” said Maalim.
Majority of the sex workers in Emali depend on truck drivers plying the busy Nairobi-Mombasa highway and therefore ‘stay at home order’ is affecting their earnings since restrictions on movements deplete clients.
A representative from North Star Alliance, an organization that addresses the plight of sex workers, who requested to remain anonymous stated had sensitised sex workers on dangers posed by Covid-19 and agreed with them to operate between between 10 a.m to 6 pm.
North Star Alliance that serves several regions in Kenya is mandated with providing health talks to commercial sex workers, sensitisation on their work, clients and provision of free clinics.
“We have sensitised them on Covid 19 pandemic and preventive measures. We have been advising them to engage with local customers that they know and not to travel to anywhere outside their operational bases,” the officer added.
The organisation revealed that some hookers had subscribers from as far as Mombasa but due to the lockdown, they can not travel down coast and offer their services.
North Star Alliance also pointed out that gays are few along the busy highway but they have been affected more compared to their female counterparts because most of their clients prefer meeting indoors to the streets.
