Statement of the Sex Work Consortium on the Death of Tunchanok Donhomla

The murder of 17-year-old Tunchanok Donhomla in Pattaya, Thailand is a tragedy that demands justice. Every young person deserves to live free from violence, discrimination, and fear.

Deeply embedded gender-based discrimination means that women - including young women like Tunchanok - often face unequal access to power, resources, justice, healthcare, and economic opportunity. These inequalities are reinforced by patriarchal norms that seek to control bodily autonomy and sexuality while devaluing the lives of those who do not conform to social expectations. 

This case is a moment to confront the structural conditions that expose marginalized communities to violence and perpetuate systems of oppression and injustice.  

When gender inequality intersects with other forms of development injustice like poverty, discrimination, criminalization, homophobia, transphobia, racism, migration status, disability, amongst others; marginalized communities are exposed to violence while simultaneously facing greater barriers to seek help, report abuse, or receive justice. 

This also disproportionately affects groups whose work is still criminalized in many contexts, such as sex workers.  When consensual sex work is criminalized or heavily policed, workers are often pushed into unsafe conditions, isolated from support, and discouraged from reporting violence for fear of arrest, harassment, or discrimination. Stigma and criminalization do not prevent violence—they only make it easier for perpetrators to act with impunity.

If we are serious about ending violence, we must be serious about protecting the people most at risk. That includes through listening to sex workers and supporting the decriminalization of consensual sex work alongside stronger labor protections, access to healthcare including sexual and reproductive heath and rights (SRHR), and freedom from abuse and exploitation.

These principles are also increasingly reflected in international human rights standards[1]. The most recent report of the UN Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on SOGI recommends that States "decriminalize sex work and remove criminal and administrative sanctions"[2] recognizing that criminalization undermines the safety, health, dignity, and human rights of sex workers. 

The Sex Work Consortium is calling for:

• A full, transparent investigation into Tunchanok's death and accountability for those responsible. 
• Ensuring access to comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) for children, adolescents and young people, with age-appropriate information about human development, anatomy, relationships, consent, and sexual health. CSE empowers youth to make informed decisions, prevents unintended pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections, and protects them against violence and abuse.
• The full decriminalization of consensual adult sex work in all jurisdictions where it remains criminalized, in line with international human rights recommendations from the IE SOGI, amongst others. 
• Enactment of legal recognition of sex workers' bodily autonomy, labour rights, and human rights, including the right to organize, work safely, and access justice without fear of arrest or discrimination.
• Universal access to comprehensive SRHR, including gender-affirming healthcare, and mental health services. 
• Addressing the widespread stigma and discrimination that prevents sex workers from accessing social protection services at all levels[3].
• Implementing effective measures to prevent and respond to gender-based violence against women, girls, transgender and gender-diverse people, and sex workers, including survivor-centred policing and access to legal remedies.
• Enabling meaningful participation of sex workers and sex worker-led organizations in the development, implementation, and evaluation of laws and policies that affect their lives.
• An end to stigma, discrimination, and violence against sex workers through public education, human rights fulfillment, and evidence-based policymaking.

About the Sex Work Consortium

The Sex Work Consortium (SWC) is a global initiative led by the Planned Parenthood Association of Thailand under the International Planned Parenthood Federation. Grounded in feminist, rights-based, and community-led principles, the SWC promotes equity, transparency, and meaningful participation of sex workers in governance, service delivery, and advocacy; bringing together IPPF Member Associations, sex worker-led organizations, and regional and global networks.