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Memorandum submitted by Object (PC 44) TACKLING DEMAND FOR PROSTITUTION (POLICING AND CRIME BILL, PART TWO, CLAUSE 13) 1. Executive Summary
Object welcomes Clause 13 which will ensure that buyers of
prostitution services take responsibility for their actions. The reforms set out in this clause
signify an important step towards social justice and gender equality in
2. About Our Organisation
Object is a human rights organisation that challenges and raises awareness of the increased sexual objectification of women and girls in the media and popular culture, in particular via mainstreaming of the sex industries. We undertake such work because of the links between the sexual objectification of women and attitudes underpinning ongoing gender-based discrimination and violence. Object facilitates grassroots lobbying and works closely with colleagues in the women's sector, acting as an advisor to Amnesty International UK, and providing educational material to groups such as the NSPCC, WOMANKIND worldwide and Rape Crisis. 3. Why Clause 13 is needed
3.1 Prostitution as a form of violence against women
Prostitution
is a predominantly gendered activity and constitutes a form of violence against
women, as defined in the United Nations Declaration
on the Elimination of Violence against Women. Prostitution has
devastating effects on the lives of many of those involved. Physical assault, sexual violence, and
psychological abuse are regular occurrences for
the majority of women who are exploited in this way. With many women being drawn into prostitution at a
young age, the chaotic lifestyle, substance dependency and abusive
relationships make it difficult to leave without support. Appendix A includes
testimony from such women involved in prostitution. Thousands of women and girls
have also been trafficked into and within the
The
historical failure of the
3.2 A human rights approach to prostitution
At present, 3.3 The proven record for intervention: Nordic region
3.4 Facts and figures on prostitution · One
global study of prostitution found that over two-thirds would like to exit in
every continent, from 68% in · Nine out of ten surveyed women in prostitution would like to exit the lifestyle, but feel unable to do so (Farley et al)[5]. · 75% of women involved in prostitution were groomed into prostitution when they were children[6]. 74% of women cite poverty and the need to pay household expenses and support their children as a primary motivator for entering prostitution[7]. · 68% of women in prostitution meet the criteria for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in the same range as torture victims and combat veterans undergoing treatment (Ramsay et al)[8]. · Four out
of five women working in · Almost
one in ten men in · Ten
years ago, it was estimated that around 80,000 women are in prostitution in the
· Up to 70% of women in prostitution spent time in care, 45% report sexual abuse and 85% physical abuse within their families (Home Office, 2006)[12]. · Up to 95% of women in prostitution are problematic drug users, including around 78% heroin users and rising numbers of crack cocaine addicts (Home Office, 2004b)[13]. · Women in
prostitution in · More
than half of
4. Rebuttal of opposition to Clause 13
4.1 'Clients face a 'hefty fine and criminal record through no fault of their own'
The law currently recognises other offences as serious enough to warrant the offender accepting responsibility for their actions, regardless of whether or not they knowingly breached the law, for example the sale of alcohol to minors. In the case of prostitution, whereby a person is sexually exploited for the gain of another, does this not warrant an offence serious enough to place responsibility on the offender? People who pay for sex exercise free will using disposable income, whilst contributing to serious exploitation.
4.2 'Any sex worker who receives help may be considered 'controlled for gain'
This is a fallacious argument: a recent case in the Court of Appeal (R v Massey 2007) upheld that the definition of 'controlled for gain' did not extend to individuals working alongside people in prostitution (e.g. receptionists [aka 'maids'], partners or taxi drivers) but applied only to those shown to have controlled another's activities for their own financial benefit. When interpreting the proposed new offence, law courts will look to previous relevant case law such as this case, and clear proof of control for gain will need to be proven. There is no evidence in relevant case law, nor in government commentary, that maids or people selling sex other than the individual in question will fall under the definition of 'control' unless a maid or person involved in prostitution 'instructs or directs the other person to carry out a relevant activity or do it in a particular way.' 4.3 'Trafficking figures are flawed'
It
has been alleged that trafficking figures have been exaggerated[16] - the implication
being that trafficking for sexual exploitation into the
4.4 'Safe premises are already being targeted'
References
have been made to police operations in which receptionists have been threatened
with the offence of 'controlled
for gain'[17].
Such operations have not culminated in arrests - because - as has already been
shown, the offence of 'controlled for
gain'
is not applicable to people working alongside those involved in prostitution,
such as receptionists. 2008 research
identified approximately 1500 illegal brothels in
4.5 'The law will be impossible to enforce'
It is clear that investigating sexual violence poses unique challenges - all the more reason to ensure that such serious crimes against the person are sufficiently covered by legislation. Investigations and prosecutions that are supported by the person involved in prostitution should present fewer difficulties than those where the person involved does not support the prosecution. However, this is the case with all sexual offences (such as rape and trafficking into prostitution) and is not a problem specific to, nor created by, the proposed new offence. It is important to note that those giving evidence in relation to the proposed new offence would benefit from special measures under section 17 of the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 (such as video evidence, live links, protective screens) and would be given anonymity under the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 1992.
4.6 'Clause 13 will drive prostitution underground and compromise the safety of women in prostitution'
Prostitution can never exist truly 'underground' since those who purchase sexual services must always be able to access those who provide sexual services. Displacement from the street to off-street locations and via websites are growing trends, exacerbated by modern technology (CCTV, increased internet access and fluency) and lower tolerance amongst community networks for the anti-social behaviour that often accompanies street prostitution.
Prostitution is not the world's oldest profession. Agriculture existed well before commercial sexual exploitation. Nor is it just a 'job like any other'. No other paid activity requires exit strategies and no amount of 'harm minimisation' can ever make prostitution safe. The safety, health and wellbeing of a woman is automatically and extensively compromised by her involvement in prostitution. Immediate risks to individual health and safety (such as rape, sexual and verbal assault, STIs, physical injury and control mechanisms) are supplemented by mid-term symptoms, including a range of dependencies (for example, substance-based, emotional), and gynaecological complaints which are compounded by the longer-term psychological impact of dissociation required to tolerate regular sexual contact divorced from emotional or sexual desire, along with aggravated sexual health problems (Farley et al, 2003; Zimmerman et al, 2006).
The most pressing risk to women's safety is the proliferation of the sex industry. By failing to respond - on a statutory basis - to growing demand for prostitution (Ward et al, 2005) and the normalisation of commercial sexual exploitation in the media as acceptable and aspirational, women with limited options are subjected to fundamental violations of their human rights. With the gender pay gap static at 17% (Fawcett Society, 2008), it is a damning indictment of 21st British society that growing numbers of women feel they have no alternative in order to make a living - whether that means surviving in the most literal terms, or earning enough to support themselves and their families in a manner which they see fit.
5. The need for exiting resources
An unequal society where women are discriminated against and exploited is one which creates the conditions where women can end up in prostitution. As well as tackling demand for prostitution, we need to make more progress in tackling gender inequality and women's poverty. We urge for greater resources to be placed into exit strategies to assist people to live their lives without resorting to prostitution in order to survive.
6. Conclusion
The
· European Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (2005) · Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) · UN Slavery Convention (1926) · Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery, the Slave Trade and Institutions and Practices Similar to Slavery (1956) · European Convention of Human Rights (1950) (the ECHR) · International Convention on Civil and Political Rights (1966) · UN Working Group on Contemporary Forms of Slavery (est. 1975) · UN Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women (1994) · UN Forth Conference on Women (1995) Platform for Action · UN Convention against Transnational Organised Crime and its Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (known as the Palermo Protocol) (1998) · Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (1971) and the Optional Protocol to the Convention (1999) · European Union Council Framework Decision on Combating Trafficking in Human Beings (2002) · UN Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others (1949).
We therefore urge Members to support this important clause which takes a significant step towards social justice and equality by tackling demand for the purchase of sex - a key driver for sexual exploitation.
February 2009
APPENDIX A KATIE "I worked as an escort and later in a brothel - I have found it almost impossible to find any validation of my absolute belief (from first hand experience) that the sex industry is not empowering or liberating for women, and that the mainstreaming of pornography and women as objects does immense damage. Talk of 'choices' for women caught in the trap is meaningless: as a sex worker one is in the unenviable position of having to defend the indefensible - clients and the people making money from you simply won't entertain the truth. All of the women I worked alongside had drug or alcohol abuse problems and or a history of sexual abuse or mental health problems.
JO "As an ex-prostitute myself, and as someone who has worked with and also studied prostitution as part of my degree/MA studies, I've looked at prostitution, and the case for legalisation is not good. The vast majority of women start working as prostitutes before the age of eighteen (in fact, the average age is just fourteen...I was thirteen, and yes, I'm British, and yes, I worked in Coventry, in the late 1980s, and no, not one punter complained or refused due to my age) - legal brothels will not employ a woman who is under eighteen, so this large group of women will be marginalised still further by legalisation. Secondly, the vast majority of women who work as prostitutes have problems with substance addiction - and legal brothels very rarely, if ever, employ a woman who is addicted to drugs. So this group, i.e. the majority of women who are currently working on the streets, will also be marginalised still further by legalisation. In effect, legalising brothels forces the majority of street prostitutes into still more dangerous practices, making them fearful of police, forcing them to work in badly-lit and unfrequented areas, and leaving them open to yet more abuse - with no legal recourse, as they are apparently the ones breaking the law. Whilst it's easy to say 'wait until you're eighteen' or 'get off drugs', the reality is that this won't happen, any more than telling under-sixteens to abstain from sex works. The only 'benefit' of legal brothels is that it appears to offer a legitimate 'choice' into the sex industry for women - usually women from Eastern Europe and Africa, for whom the only way to earn what might be meagre for us, but a substantial wage for them, is yet again on their backs. Rather than challenging this disgraceful lack of employment choice for women, legalising brothels merely encourages it. My argument against legalisation is not a moral one, it is purely functional. You cannot ensure the safety of women in sex work by making it legal, because by creating rules around it you will automatically marginalise a lot of women who have to work outside of that framework. The only way to ensure the safety of women in prostitution is to ensure men treat them as equals, not just a doll to smack about and come inside. Because trust me, no matter how fancily the trade is dressed up, no matter how legalised and expensive, the violence (whether physical or verbal) and disrespect are always there. Men regard buying a prostitute in the same way as hiring a slave that they can do with as they please, despite any laws or verbal agreements. It is that dynamic of prostitution that is so dangerous, and this dynamic will not change unless women are seen as on an equal footing with men, and not just sex objects. Legalising prostitution only compounds the problem and legitimises regarding women as sex objects - 'oh, she was a whore, she was asking for it'. The illegality of prostitution is not the problem, and it's not the reason why so many prostitutes resort to drugs, self harm, and even suicide - it's the endless violence that is. And you WILL be called a whore, b*tch, sl*t etc and treated like dirt, even in a legal brothel. No amount of health checks and security guards will make the hurt of that, day in and day out, any easier to deal with. Why legitimise it in the first place?"
[1] Ekberg, Gunilla (2004) The Swedish Law that Prohibits the Purchase of A Sexual Service: Best Practices for Prevention of Prostitution and Trafficking in Human Beings ,Journal Violence Against Women 2004, 10:1187-1218 (Sage Publications). [2] Ekberg, Gunilla (2008) Summary of Speech given at a conference organised by the Coalition Against Trafficking in Women Asia-Pacific (CATW AP), April 25 2008, Manila, the Philippines. [3] Ibid. [4] Farley,
M. (2003). Prostitution and Trafficking in Nine Countries: An Update on Violence
and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.
Journal of Trauma Practice, Vol. 2, No. 3/4, 2003, pp.33-74. [5] Ibid. [7] Ibid. [8] Ramsay, R. et al (1993). Psychiatric Morbidity in Survivors of Organized State Violence Including Torture. 162:55-59, British Journal of Psychiatry. [9] Dickson
(2004). Sex in the City: Mapping Commercial Sex Across [10] Ward, H. et al (2005). Who Pays for Sex? An analysis of the increasing prevalence of female commercial sex contacts among men in Britain. Sexually Transmitted Infections 2005;81:467-471; doi:10.1136/sti.2005.014985. [11]
Kinnell, H. (1999). Survey of Sex Work Characteristics and Policies in the [12] Home Office
(2006). A coordinated prostitution strategy and a summary of responses to 'Paying
the price'. [13]
Home Office (2004b). Paying the Price: a
consultation paper on prostitution. [14] Home Office
(2004a). Solutions and Strategies: Drug
Problems and Street Sex Markets. [15] Ibid. [16] Briefing on the Policing and Crime Bill 2009, English Collective of Prostitutes [17] Ibid. [18] Bindel and
Atkins (2008). Big Brothel: A Survey of the Off-Street Sex Industry in |