Look to New Zealand to change prostitution laws

[fortunateone 156618]

[url]http://www.thestar.com/opinion/commentary/2014/03/18/look_to_new_zealand_to_change_prostitution_laws.html[/url]

Canadian policy-makers overhauling our prostitution laws should look to New Zealand, which considers sex work as a human and labour rights issue.

by: Emily van der Meulen Elya M. Durisin Victoria Love Published on Tue Mar 18 2014

[QUOTE]Regarding Justice Minister Peter MacKayâ??s response to our article on the Starâ??s oped page of March 11 entitled â??Sex workers should have a say on prostitution lawsâ?:

Peter MacKayâ??s objection to the premise of our article exposes a key disjuncture in what constitutes meaningful consultation with sex workers when creating new prostitution laws. We contend that adequate consultation is one where sex workersâ?? distinct knowledge and expertise is valued and prioritized above that of individuals and interest groups that do not have this particular experience.

Sex workers have lived and worked under the current legislative system and are best positioned to understand both the causes of harms and their solutions. They are also directly impacted by prostitution laws and therefore have a different and vital stake in the future of such laws.

MacKay writes that he has been exploring all options to address the harms that flow from prostitution to communities and beyond, and that doing nothing is not an option. We disagree: doing nothing certainly is an option, especially given that many of the prostitution laws not contested in Bedford still exist in the Criminal Code.

There also remain numerous other criminal laws that can be used to deal with exploitative conditions in the sex industry, such as those against physical or sexual violence, extortion or assault. By not introducing new criminal sanctions that prohibit consensual adult activities, other areas of policy can develop. Labour and health policies, for example, will uphold the spirit of Bedford and will prioritize sex workersâ?? rights and safety.

If MacKay is insistent that something must be done, then he and other policy makers should look to New Zealandâ??s 2003 Prostitution Reform Act, which considers sex work as a human and labour rights issue.

A New Zealand government review five years after implementation concluded that decriminalization has had a beneficial effect on sex workersâ?? safety as they are empowered to refuse particular clients and practices. Sex workers are also more likely to call police in instances of violence and there has not been an increase in underage prostitution, despite concerns that there would be.

Importantly, the New Zealand review also concluded that there was evidence to suggest that criminalizing sex workerâ?? clientss does not effectively deter the demand for purchasing sexual services and can instead increase sex workersâ?? vulnerability.


Emily van der Meulen, Elya M. Durisin and Victoria Love are editors of Selling Sex: Experience, Advocacy, and Research on Sex Work in Canada (UBC Press, 2013).[/QUOTE]