NEW DELHI, Nov 26 (AFP) - The world's oldest profession is making increasing inroads in one of the world's most isolated countries, according to a report seen here Friday.

An editorial in the latest edition of the Bhutan English-language daily, Kuensel, bemoaned the growing sex trade in Phuntsoling on the Bhutanese border with India and the spread of prostitution elsewhere in the tiny Himalayan kingdom.

Describing prostitution as "a way of life" in Phuntsoling, it said the real dilemma was that "it cannot be stopped; nor can it be allowed to go unchecked."

The newspaper said a police crackdown had failed since prostitutes had started bribing policemen or providing them with free sex.

"It would be naive to believe that Bhutanese policemen are immune to temptations," Kuensel said, adding that the most horrific implication for the country "is the most frightening of all four-letter words -- AIDS."

The newspaper said most prostitutes came from India.

"With the government of India declaring an HIV-infected population of 3.5 million people, there can be no place for complacency," it said, while adding that education was a more effective long-term deterrent than punitive legislation.

"The world has discovered that the best people to influence sex workers are sex workers," it said. "The idea is, however, not to encourage the sex trade."

Bhutan, a monarchy without a written constitution, is situated in the eastern Himalayas, bordered on one side by China and the other by India.

Only opened to tourists in 1974, Bhutan has fought hard to retain its traditional way of life and retains tight controls on visa quotas.

991126
AF991134

Copyright © AFP or Agence France-Presse, 1999 - AFP stories and photos shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium. AFP news material may not be stored in whole or in part in a computer except for personal and non-commercial use. AFP will not be held liable for any delays, inaccuracies, errors or omissions in any AFP news material or in transmission or delivery of all or any part thereof or for any damages whatsoever. As a newswire service AFP does not obtain releases from subjects, individuals, groups or entities contained in its photographs, graphics or quoted in its texts. Further, that no clearance is obtained from the owners of any trademarks or copyrighted materials whose marks and materials are included in AFP photos or materials. Therefore you will be solely responsible for obtaining any and all necessary releases from whatever individuals and/or entities necessary for any uses of AFP stories, photos or graphics.  http://www.afp.com/