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Memorandum submitted by Sophia Mardell (PC 34)
Dear Sirs
I am emailing in response to the policing and crime bill, regarding the committee discussions on Thursday.
I
am a sex worker who has worked in the
I feel strongly that sections 13 (criminalization of clients) and 20 (power to close brothels on grounds of suspicion only) should be dropped from the bill.
There is no doubt that in the sex industry, as in all areas of life, there is a minority of men that abuse women. However, it is wrong to assume that clients of sex workers are, in general, contemptuous of, or abusive towards women.
If abusive men are not deterred by the existing laws against assult, ABH, GBH, robbery, and rape, they are unlikely to be deterred by this new legislation. On the other hand, the more respectable, well intentioned majority, which sex workers want to encourage, will very likely be put off for fear of making an honest mistake that could result in a criminal record. This drop in demand will almost certainly result in some women compromising their safety precautions in order to maintain a reasonable income, thereby increasing their risk of abuse.
Furthermore, in my experience, clients are as concerned as anyone else about the problem of people trafficking, and most could easily be persuaded to report their suspicions if a hotline were provided and widely advertised. This will never happen if they are in fear of being arrested themselves.
The power to close brothels on suspicion only is also likely to be detrimental to the safety of sex workers.
Although it is claimed that this power will only be used to close abusive establishments, there have been several cases of discreet, well run, safe and fair brothels being prosecuted. In one case an establishment was prosecuted after drawing attention to itself by reporting an incident of trafficking.
If sex workers fear that their place of work will be immediately closed down if they make themselves known to the police, then they will be reluctant to report crimes against themselves, a fact not lost on potential abusers.
I would suggest that instead of the proposed legislation:
More effort should be made to ensure that crimes against sex workers are taken seriously by the police and the justice system.
That a distinction be made between brothels that are well run and fair, and those that are coercive and exploitative, and that good practice be encouraged.
That the law should allow sex workers to work collectively in order to provide each other with support and protection.
February 2009 |