Asan paid W8m to woman who pledged to quit sex work — then returned to the job

The city of Asan in South Chungcheong Province paid 8 million won ($5,520) in self-reliance support funds to a woman who had pledged to leave the sex trade — even after confirming she had returned to work at a sex business.

According to the Maeil Shinmun on Wednesday, People Power Party Asan city lawmaker Lee Yun-gyu reviewed self-reliance support project data submitted by the city and found that Asan had allocated 45.2 million won in its budget this year for a project to prevent prostitution and support victims.

The self-reliance funds cover living expenses, relocation costs and education and training fees. As the number of eligible recipients grew, the city asked the city council earlier this month to approve a supplementary budget adding 11 million won.

In the course of that process, however, it emerged that Asan had paid the support funds in full to a woman, identified only as A, who had promised to stop engaging in sex work but then showed up for shifts at a sex business.

According to Asan city officials, A reported for work at a sex business on May 18 — less than a month after being selected as a support recipient. A had been selected as a support recipient in April and was midway through two preliminary counseling sessions at the time.

City officials confirmed this at the scene yet still paid A a total of 8 million won on May 28 — 1 million won in living expenses and 7 million won in relocation costs.

A told investigators that "the business owner just asked me to sit there, so I sat there." Asan city said it "judged there was no problem because she had gone to work before the funds were disbursed."

"If the city handed over support money after hearing the sophistry that she was 'just sitting there' from someone with no genuine will to leave the trade, that is the very definition of no-questions-asked, handout-style administration," lawmaker Lee said, calling for a comprehensive audit of all cases.