â??Devastatedâ?? former sex worker on the problems with Canadaâ??s new prostitution law

[Sweet Emily J 172062]

[B][U]â??Devastatedâ?? former sex worker on the problems with Canadaâ??s new prostitution law[/U][/B]

By Thandi Fletcher | December 8, 2014

[URL="http://metronews.ca/voices/opinion/1234276/former-sex-worker-on-the-problems-with-canadas-new-prostitution-law/"]http://metronews.ca/voices/opinion/1234276/former-sex-worker-on-the-problems-with-canadas-new-prostitution-law/[/URL]

[QUOTE]
When Kerry Porth worked in the sex trade a decade ago, she says she never encountered a situation where she felt in danger.

Although she struggled with severe drug addiction, poverty and occasional homelessness at the time, Porth credits her ability to stay out of harmâ??s way with being able to work from home, where her partner was always nearby.

â??I think that speaks to the value of being able to work indoors and have someone there to protect you,â? she said.

Porth, now an advocate for sex workersâ?? rights and a board member for Vancouverâ??s Pivot Legal Aid Society, fears Bill C-36, Canadaâ??s new prostitution law, will compromise the safety of those still working in the sex trade.

â??Iâ??m pretty devastated about it,â? said Porth, who appeared before the House justice committee in July to speak out against the new legislation. â??This bill is really going to place sex workers in further harm.â?

Justice Minister Peter MacKay has said that once passed into law, the prostitution bill will mean safer conditions for sex workers. But for Porth, the claim is laughable.

Over the past year, she and others have worked tirelessly to convince government of the link between criminalization of prostitution and violence against sex workers.

She said the new law will make prostitution more dangerous by driving sex work into the shadows, rushing communication with clients and preventing sex workers from properly screening clients.

For sex workers who operate indoors, she said, the new law makes it difficult for them to advertise their services, forcing them to place vague classifieds.

â??They canâ??t be explicit about what acts theyâ??re willing to perform,â? she said, adding that this could drive some sex workers to the street in search of new clients.

The new law also heightens safety risks for street-level sex workers. Under the new law, she said sex workers wouldnâ??t be inclined to work in well-lit areas because clients will want to avoid police detection.

Already, she said, her fears are being realized.

The day Bill C-36 received royal assent, Porth said a sex-worker friend told her three clients had refused to provide their real names and phone numbers.

â??Those are essential screening techniques that sex workers employ,â? she said. â??Clients are going to be really leery about complying with screening techniques when they fear thereâ??s a police officer on the other end of the phone.â?

[B]Old vs. New[/B]

Last December the Supreme Court of Canada threw out existing prostitution laws, saying they violated the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Under the old law, buying and selling sex was legal, but activities around it were illegal. The key difference under the new legislation is that selling sex remains legal but buying sex, and communications around buying sex, will be against the law.
[LIST]
[*]It is now legal to communicate with the intention of selling sex in some circumstances. This is a change from the previous laws, which made it illegal to negotiate the sale of sex in any public place.
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[LIST]
[*]It is now illegal to sell sex in public view or next to a school ground, playground or daycare centre.
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[LIST]
[*]It is now legal, technically, to advertise your own services, but illegal to advertise the sale of othersâ?? sexual services.
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[LIST]
[*]It is against the law to benefit materially from another personâ??s sex work, with some exceptions.
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