CAMPAIGNERS have called for Scotland’s lawmakers to reject a sex work policy after recent statistics showed that violent crime against sex workers almost doubled after it was introduced in Ireland.
Sex workers in Ireland have reported a 92% increase in violent crime since the “Nordic model” came into place in March 2017. This is a Swedish law which criminalises people who buy sex rather than those who sell it.
The sharp increase was revealed after statistics were released in March by UglyMugs, an app where sex workers can report incidents of abuse and crime and receive alerts about dangerous clients.
Charities in favour of decriminalising sex work said the stats were “sadly not surprising” and added to evidence that the law hinders the ability of people “to report violent crimes, exploitation and abuse”. One called for a “Scottish model” of regulation.
Groups in favour of criminalising sex workers’ clients argued that doing so reduces demand and holds to account “those who profit from the sexual exploitation of others” and from “human misery, such as pimps and human traffickers”.
Some sex workers described the Nordic model as an “ill-thought-out policy” that puts them at risk from “criminals and violent clients” by pushing the practice further underground.
They called on the Scottish Government to consult them regarding future policy-making.
The Scottish Government said they were focussed on preventing “vulnerable individuals” entering sex work, reducing the prospect of harm and trafficking, and supporting those looking to exit the industry.
Sex work in Scotland is currently legal but aspects such as “soliciting” or “loitering” on the streets, as well as “brothel keeping”, are illegal. Sex workers working in pairs from a flat for protection are also said to have been prosecuted for brothel keeping, something the Scottish Government has acknowledged.
There is fierce debate between politicians, campaign groups and charities about whether to criminalise further elements of sex work, or move towards decriminalisation.
A 2018 study by aid agency Medecins du Monde found that the law in Sweden had a “detrimental effect on sex workers’ safety, health and overall living conditions”. Some participants in the survey said the law had triggered a “decrease in condom use as well as increased difficulties continuing treatment for those who are HIV positive”.
A Swedish Government report reviewing the impact of the Nordic model found that by 2008, street prostitution in Sweden had been reduced by half compared to when the law was introduced in 1999. It added that in the same period, “the number of women in street prostitution in both Norway and Denmark subsequently increased dramatically”.
The report referenced a survey showing a drop in demand among male clients and said sex workers had not reverted to internet-facilitated sex work. The National Criminal Police believed the ban had acted as a barrier to human trafficking in Sweden.
It claimed fears that criminalisation would drive “prostitution underground”, increase physical abuse and worsen conditions for sex workers had “not been realised.”
https://www.thenational.scot/news/1...l-of-sex-trade-laws-after-increased-violence/
Sex workers in Ireland have reported a 92% increase in violent crime since the “Nordic model” came into place in March 2017. This is a Swedish law which criminalises people who buy sex rather than those who sell it.
The sharp increase was revealed after statistics were released in March by UglyMugs, an app where sex workers can report incidents of abuse and crime and receive alerts about dangerous clients.
Charities in favour of decriminalising sex work said the stats were “sadly not surprising” and added to evidence that the law hinders the ability of people “to report violent crimes, exploitation and abuse”. One called for a “Scottish model” of regulation.
Groups in favour of criminalising sex workers’ clients argued that doing so reduces demand and holds to account “those who profit from the sexual exploitation of others” and from “human misery, such as pimps and human traffickers”.
Some sex workers described the Nordic model as an “ill-thought-out policy” that puts them at risk from “criminals and violent clients” by pushing the practice further underground.
They called on the Scottish Government to consult them regarding future policy-making.
The Scottish Government said they were focussed on preventing “vulnerable individuals” entering sex work, reducing the prospect of harm and trafficking, and supporting those looking to exit the industry.
Sex work in Scotland is currently legal but aspects such as “soliciting” or “loitering” on the streets, as well as “brothel keeping”, are illegal. Sex workers working in pairs from a flat for protection are also said to have been prosecuted for brothel keeping, something the Scottish Government has acknowledged.
There is fierce debate between politicians, campaign groups and charities about whether to criminalise further elements of sex work, or move towards decriminalisation.
A 2018 study by aid agency Medecins du Monde found that the law in Sweden had a “detrimental effect on sex workers’ safety, health and overall living conditions”. Some participants in the survey said the law had triggered a “decrease in condom use as well as increased difficulties continuing treatment for those who are HIV positive”.
A Swedish Government report reviewing the impact of the Nordic model found that by 2008, street prostitution in Sweden had been reduced by half compared to when the law was introduced in 1999. It added that in the same period, “the number of women in street prostitution in both Norway and Denmark subsequently increased dramatically”.
The report referenced a survey showing a drop in demand among male clients and said sex workers had not reverted to internet-facilitated sex work. The National Criminal Police believed the ban had acted as a barrier to human trafficking in Sweden.
It claimed fears that criminalisation would drive “prostitution underground”, increase physical abuse and worsen conditions for sex workers had “not been realised.”
https://www.thenational.scot/news/1...l-of-sex-trade-laws-after-increased-violence/
