I disagree with the views held by Steve Oh ('Legalising prostitution will still commodify women'). In my opinion, legalising prostitution will commodify sex, not women or men.

Whether or not we choose to acknowledge it, sex, and all issues related to it, is a commodity. That's why scantily-clad women sell calenders. That's why the Chippendale boys were so popular. That's why Jennifer Lopez was the most downloaded woman the year she wore That Green Dress to the Grammy's. That's why they put Halle Berry in Swordfish . That's also why prostitution is the oldest trade in the world.

If it is legal to gamble with real money, trade tobacco for money, trade alcohol for money, then why is it illegal to trade sex for money? Because of morality? Because of societal norms? Because of our 'Asian values'? Who exactly determines all these denominations?

Prostitution is not limited to the stereotypical dingy back alleys and dirty rooms, nor is it constrained to high-class condos. Prostitution is the exchange of sex for benefits, and it happens around us all the time.

I am well aware that my examples would probably draw a lot of flak, but when a man treats a woman to dinner and movies and they go back to his place for a nightcap, would this constitute prostitution? A college student sleeps with an older man who lavishes her with expensive gifts. Is this prostitution?

Why then is it illegal to trade money for sex? Certain vices like tobacco, alcohol and prostitution should be allowed, but they must be heavily monitored.

By legalising prostitution, people participating in the trade can be closely scrutinised to prevent the spread of sexually-transmitted diseases through the provision of medical services and allowing workers to go for regular check-ups. Designated areas or red-light districts can be set up to control solicitation.

Through legalisation, we can prevent the forced recruitment of unwilling women into the trade itself - because they will not be threatened into compliance, intimidated into silence, or fear their pimps and managers any longer, because they will have a viable avenue or outlet to speak up against injustices.

Of course, legalisation must be followed with stringent supervision from the authorities. Perhaps the 'blame', so to speak, for the continued cross-border trafficking of women by syndicates can be placed on poor enforcement instead of this being seen as a legal issue.

After all, minors are not allowed to buy cigarettes, yet we see it happening around us all the time. Should we then blame the law or poor enforcement?

Until reliable statistics surface, I have serious doubts that prostitutes remain in the trade because they are being forced to. Prostitution is not about sex, it is a job, like being a salesman - only here the commodity being traded is sex, which causes jitters among certain quarters.

I do not think that prostitutes rank lower than 'normal' folk on the rungs of social hierarchy. The trade brings a source of income, and whether the women choose to do it because it pays better than a job in McDonalds, or for other reasons, is none of my business.

Everyone should be allowed to do whatever they wish to as long as it is within the constraints of the law, and as long as it does not hurt anyone. I try not to impose my values or my morals on other people, because it leads nowhere. Ultimately, one is answerable to one's own morals and conscience, and assuming that person is religious, one's god.

Of course, the sanctity of marriage will eventually be brought up at some point, but again, the man or woman who purchases the services of a prostitute is not forced to do so. Instead of blaming prostitutes for marital problems, perhaps the question to be asked is why some people are unable to stay faithful to their partners.

As for men treating women as objects of sexual pleasure by dominating and using them - look again, it is all around us. Look at the available statistics on the reported cases of rape, battery, assault and adultery.

It strikes me as a sad and bleak kind of situation that whenever these things happen, or whenever a high-profile rape case is highlighted in the media, there will always be people who think the woman should not dress in a certain way, that she should not have disobeyed the man, and that she should not have walked alone in dark alleys.

My point is, stopping certain men from perceiving certain women as somehow 'lesser' beings should always start with education. It is this erroneous perception that we have to tackle through education.

Taking prostitutes out the equation isn't going to stop some men from thinking that women exist for their pleasure. Attack the roots, not the symptoms.

Again, prostitution is not a shameful profession, no more than selling cigarettes is shameful. If a woman, or a man, willingly enters the flesh trade, I do not see why we should stop them from doing so. After all, this is Economics 101: where there is demand, there will be supply.

It is true that parents do not encourage their kids to become prostitutes, the same way parents don't really encourage their kids to be road sweepers or garbage collectors. Perhaps we should stop being so puritanical and judgmental about certain people and walk a mile in their shoes.

So drawing similarities between prostitution and paedophilia, prostitution and bestiality, or prostitution and incest, is like drawing comparisons between consensual sex and rape. Paedophilia and bestiality are not consensual acts, nor is incest. However, prostitution is consensual.

Criminalising prostitution isn't going to make it go away, it will just force the trade to go underground and create a thriving black market - because the demand hasn't gone away. (Is our society free of drugs? Is our society free of porn? Is our society free of prostitution?)

This will lead to more sad stories we read in papers about poor women who have been tricked and forced into the flesh trade against their will, because there is absolutely no way to regulate the ebb and flow.

Of course, I realise the chance of any of my somewhat `radical' arguments being accepted is minuscule, to say the least.

It would be impossible to completely eradicate prostitution, but at least by legalising it, we can keep tabs on the sex workers, and more importantly, stem the spread of STDs.