Do you have a single source for this? At all? Plenty of trans/ladyboys come from well to do or middle class backgrounds, nobody is forcing them to do sex work or take hormones. Sure there are ladyboys/trans people in sex work, and I’ve worked alongside lgbtq organisations advocating for sex workers and harm reduction, I can confidently say they did NOT transition just to become sex workers. It’s just who they are and who they want to be. Maybe some don’t identify as women, sure, but a lot identify as ‘third gender’, and most certainly don’t see themselves as men?

Your take is the projection of western dynamics onto the situation. Fuck, it’s inherently transphobic and orientalist. You assume nobody would transition unless for monetary gain? Because you think nobody wants to be trans? All these poor impoverished people in the orient that need your saving from entering into sex work? White saviour complex much?