Police have arrested four Chinese women, aged 25 to 40, in connection with a prostitution ring out of a beauty salon in the upscale Maadi district of Cairo, an Egyptian judicial source said Monday. Investigations are currently underway.
The source told Al-Masry Al-Youm the women were being detained for a period of four days by the public prosecutor. Their embassy was notified to arrange their defense, the source added.
Estimates show there are between 60,000 to 100,000 Chinese residents in Egypt employed in various professions. Lately, an increased number of Chinese street vendors have appeared in Cairo streets selling their wares door to door. This trend has caused some, including trade unionists, to raise concerns that these vendors are taking jobs away from Egyptian workers.
In the past few years, Egyptian-Chinese trade has experienced a boom with bilateral trade reaching US$5.86 billlion in 2009. The low prices of Chinese goods has led to an increased demand for them in the Egyptian market.
Translated from the Arabic Edition.
