A proposal to legalize and regulate karaoke bars and massage parlors in Rangoon Division was put forward at a regional parliament session on Monday.

Karaoke bars, commonly known as KTVs, and massage parlours are generally regarded as fronts for businesses offering sex workers in Burma.

The proposal, which was lodged by Thaung Kyaw, an MP from the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) representing Yankin Township, is to be debated in the regional parliament session on 12 December.

On the same day, another USDP MP, Myo Khin, who is also based in Yankin, a neighbourhood situated just east of Inya Lake, raised a formal question in the Rangoon parliament, asking whether there is a plan to create a Night Zone specifically for KTVs, massage parlours, nightclubs, bars, and other night entertainment venues – currently scattered across the city in residential areas.

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