Philippines Philippines The Philippines ( ; or ' ), officially the Republic of the Philippines (), is an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Situated in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of about 7,641 islands that are categorized broadly under three main geographical divisions from north to south: Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. The capital city of the Philippines is Manila and the most populous city is Quezon City, both part of Metro Manila. Bounded by the South China Sea on the west, the Philippine Sea on the east and the Celebes Sea on the southwest, the Philippines shares maritime borders with
Prostitution in the Philippines police conduct indiscriminate or fake raids on commercial sex establishments to extort money from managers, clients, and victims. The United States Department of State Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons ranks the Philippines as a 'Tier 1' country. Prostitution in the Philippines Prostitution in the Philippines is illegal, although somewhat tolerated, with law enforcement being rare with regards to sex workers. Penalties range up to life imprisonment for those involved in trafficking, which is covered by the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003. Prostitution is often available through bars, karaoke bars (also known as KTVs), massage parlors, brothels