The high-profile raid on Victoria's Secret Massage parlour in Bangkok may have stamped out one human-trafficking case, but it will not dent the unregulated and illicit sex trade of other trafficking rings. It's no secret that the sex trade operates and even flourishes in most Thai cities.
As long as prostitution remains technically illegal, as it has been in Thailand since 1966, the industry will continue to foster police corruption while putting many at risk of being trafficked into the profession or forced to work under conditions akin to slavery.
Over a year before last Friday's raid police triggered headlines by cracking down on Nataree Entertainment massage parlour, and there have been similar raids on other sleazy outfits since.
However, these periodic raids on establishments that appear to have been deliberately singled barely scratch the surface of the Thai flesh trade and the trafficking of minors.
If the authorities are serious about tackling this issue they should consider making prostitution legal in order to regulate the industry.
This could prove a challenge given the expected level of social resistance. But it is high time for the government to spark debate on the merits of legalising an industry considered indecent and immoral that is nonetheless tolerated.
The former Thaksin Shinawatra government made such a move in 2003 when the Justice Ministry held a public discussion on its proposal to legalise prostitution. Ultimately the plan failed to bear fruit.
If Thailand cannot get rid of prostitution, it must learn to live with it.
Sex work was not illegal in Thailand prior to the promulgation of the Entertainment Places Act in 1966, which makes the owners of premises offering sex work criminally liable. Then the 1996 Prevention and Suppression of Prostitution Act and the 1997 amendment to the Penal Code made the profession illegal.
Notwithstanding the existence of the three laws and the endless series of periodic police raids, the sex trade has thrived for decades. It is estimated that the industry generates underground revenue worth over 100 billion baht every year. Popular massage venue in Bangkok are believed to earn over 1 million baht every day. None of those profits are taxed. But as the Victoria's Secret raid reveals, police and other state officials receive bribes to turn a blind eye.
While minors and women are lured or forced into the trade by traffickers, many others choose the profession of their own volition to support themselves and their families.
Because the industry is not regulated it makes the women and girls more vulnerable to abuse and coercion by traffickers and operators of brothels, massage parlours, karaoke bars and other "entertainment" establishments.
They are unlikely to come forward to seek help from the authorities, fearing the legal consequences they may be subjected to. Others may literally not be able to escape their indentured servitude, working as de facto prisoners.
Legalising prostitution and treating it as a regulated profession could not only prevent abuse and exploitation but also ensure the women are well cared for and regularly receive advice on preventing sexually transmitted diseases.
Registering business establishments and sex workers would bolster state coffers due to the taxes levied on them while improving the human rights of those employed and granting them labour law protections.
Regulations are sorely required to prevent sex workers from being forced to have unsafe sex, or sex with any customers against their will. The practice of employing minors must also be prohibited.
Beyond the legal hurdles, Thai society needs to tackle widespread prejudice against the profession.
Most choose to enter the job out of necessity, while others are attracted by the money. Either way, Thai law forces them into an unregulated trade controlled by people who, at the very least, do not have their best interests at heart.