Pawning virginity to the highest bidder

by NICHOLAS ASEGO

The lucky man was ‘Natsu’, a Japanese who came out on top with the winning bid.  Natsu floored five other bidders after a feverish final day where the price of 20-year-old Brazilian Migliorini’s virtue jumped from Sh15.2 million to Sh63 million.

The news wasn’t so good for her male counterpart, Russian Alex Stepanov. In a clear case of gender inequality, his ‘virginity’ only racked up a paltry Sh240,000 from a woman in Brazil named Nene B.

DEPRESSION

“In my childhood I suffered from bullying from my peers at school. At 16, I ended up leaving school to look after my sick mother, and soon after, we moved to Australia.

“In Sydney, I was given the diagnosis of clinical depression. Nobody wanted to make friends with me. I had never had a girlfriend, and I was scared that that would last my whole life,” says Alex.

For Migliorini, a Physical Education student, now that the price of virginity has been established, ‘Natsu’ will be tested for sexually transmitted diseases before having sex aboard a plane flying between Australia and the US to circumvent prostitution laws. Migliorini will also undergo an examination to prove she is as pure as the driven snow — before the actual driving commences.

EDUCATION

Migliorini is not the first woman to put up her virginity for sale. There was the American Natalie Dylan who, during a radio interview, revealed she needed money to pay for her college education. Natalie said she’s been forced to sell her cherry, because her stepfather took out a student loan in her name, so she was unable to finance her education.

She said, “I don’t have a moral dilemma with it. Why shouldn’t I be allowed to capitalise on my virginity? I understand some people may condemn me. But I think this is empowering. I’m using what I have to better myself.”

Her top bid came from a 39-year-old Australian, but she had no immediate plans to settle the auction, she said in a recent interview with CNN.

Some men may seek virgins because they want them as trophies, or desire purity. But as to why men would bid so much money on virginity, she said she has no answer.

“I honestly don’t know what they see in it,” Dylan said.

If you think Dylan’s auction amounts to prostitution, she completely agrees. She also said she’s not breaking any laws — after all, prostitution in Nevada is legal.

“I feel people should be pro-choice with their body, and I’m not hurting anyone,” she said. “It really comes down to a moral and religious argument, and this doesn’t go against my religion or my morals.”

BUSINESS

But long before Natalie, there was an Italian model who had planned to sell her virginity for more than Sh80 million in September.

Natalie said she was inspired by a report of a Peruvian woman who put her virginity up for sale. Although her mother didn’t agree with her, she still loved her as a daughter.

“Generally people have been supportive,” Natalie said.

“I’ve talked with my exes, some different guys, and they understand it’s just a business deal, and they know me, and they know I’m not this promiscuous girl. Honestly, even if I didn’t do this, I’d always be the girl who thinks prostitution is okay,” she said. “I would always want to find a partner that can accept me for me.”

Meanwhile, showgirl and men’s magazine model Raffella Fico, 20, told an Italian magazine’ “I can’t wait to see who’s going to pull out the money to have me.”

Miss Fico, who appeared in the Italian version of Big Brother earlier this year, said she would use the cash to buy a house in Rome and pay for acting classes.

“I don’t know what it’s like to be intimate with a man,” she told the magazine, Chi, adding that if the man who bought her virginity was ugly, then she would quickly get over it.

“If I don’t like him I’ll just have a glass of wine and forget about it,” said the aspiring actress from Naples — hometown of screen siren Sophia Loren.

— Additional information from the Internet.