KUALA LUMPUR: Lorong Haji Taib's ladies of the night used to be a common sight. Not anymore it seems these days.
Recently scouting the area were some Harian Metro reporters. There were some "ladies" spotted initially, just standing by the sides of the back alley, waiting for potential customers to come. But as it became apparent who these visitors were, the presence of the reporters sent them scurrying.
However, their response doesn't come as much of a surprise. It's not just what they offer but their appearance or gender identity is often treated with derision too.
It was obvious to reporters that they were transgender women or plainly, men who dressed up as women.
There were five seen loitering at one of the alley's five-foot ways near the stairs. Clad in eye-catching attire that exposed their 'assets,' they tried to entice anyone passing by the dimly lit alley with only faint streetlights.
During the first encounter, they attempted to flee but were stopped by a reporter posing as a customer.
In a brief conversation through the iron grille, one of them offered massage and sexual services for a fee of only RM50.
"Only RM50, massage with other services. If you just want a massage, find a woman. We're women too, but we do everything," one of them responded, met with laughter from other transgender women on the stairs.
Lorong Haji Taib was once popular for prostitution activities and the vibrant transgender community during the 1990s, making it a somewhat dreaded location.
Back then, almost every step of the shop houses in this alley had transgender women gathering, enticing any passing man to use their services.
In fact, at that time, the community in the capital city was well aware of the activities in the alley, and some even came just to watch their bold offers of 'services.'
However, after the movement control order (MCO) phase, the alley was said to be cleaner, coupled with the presence of the Chow Kit police station replacing the small police booth that had been there for a long time.
It is true that Lorong Haji Taib is now cleaner and not as lively as before, but immoral activities still persist and continue to fester.
Night markets and foot massage services, which may be attractions for tourists from within and outside the country, serve to cover only a part of the stain in Lorong Haji Taib but not entirely.
A survey by Harian Metro reporters confirms this, as to make this alley truly clean and open to all, consistent steps need to be taken to put an end to it.
Moreover, a conversation with a longtime resident in the area confirmed that although the number of transgender individuals is not as high as before, some still emerge every night, and their numbers increase as midnight approaches.
