This was one of the pieces of advice I received when exploring opinions on female workers in the Katunayake export-processing zone (KEPZ). One of my educated young male friends from Colombo ridiculed my intention of doing research on female factory workers in the Katunayake EPZ, arguing that the women were not worthy of researching. Further, my own family made a considerable effort to protect me from the ‘dangers of Katunayake’, i.e. harass-ment and violence, which female factory workers are frequently exposed to.