Sweden’s sex work laws: Too good to be true?

[Rachel Divine]

To reduce human trafficking , sentence to life prison for those people who do it , no matter if they get caught with one girl/guy or 20 .... and/or any other circumstances ...
In America exists the death penalty and didnt stop people from killing others ....

[Banjaxed]

To reduce human trafficking , sentence to life prison for those people who do it , no matter if they get caught with one girl/guy or 20 .... and/or any other circumstances ...
In America exists the death penalty and didnt stop people from killing others ....

Life imprisonment is the current maximum penalty under section 4(7) of the Criminal Law (Human Trafficking) Act, 2008. However, there have been no convictions yet, though as of May 2012 there are seven either due to come before the Courts or are having files prepared by the DPP.

One argument from TORL has been that it is incredibly difficult to secure convictions under this existing legislation, and that is why the law needs to be changed. However, what they fail to mention is that they want to amend the 1993 Act in order to criminalise clients, and have proposed nothing that directly targets those involved in human trafficking beyond what is already there.

[Rachel Divine]

Life imprisonment is the current maximum penalty under section 4(7) of the Criminal Law (Human Trafficking) Act, 2008. However, there have been no convictions yet, though as of May 2012 there are seven either due to come before the Courts or are having files prepared by the DPP.

One argument from TORL has been that it is incredibly difficult to secure convictions under this existing legislation, and that is why the law needs to be changed. However, what they fail to mention is that they want to amend the 1993 Act in order to criminalise clients, and have proposed nothing that directly targets those involved in human trafficking beyond what is already there.

First of all, are no convictions , second , if was one or two , they would not have been life in prison for good..
Knowing you would get away with , or serve 2 years with suspension encourage traffickers ...

[Banjaxed]

First of all, are no convictions , second , if was one or two , they would not have been life in prison for good..
Knowing you would get away with , or serve 2 years with suspension encourage traffickers ...

That is one problem with it. Though it is possible for a Judge to stipulate that one must serve a minimum of 30 years of a life sentence, it's incredibly rare. Normally the sentence is reviewed after 12 years, and temporary release is granted but this can be revoked if a person offends again and they go back into custody.

It's very much the same as the position in relation to manslaughter, in that the sentence can be anything from a suspended sentence and a fine, to life imprisonment. Completely at the discretion of the Judge.

Targeting clients is sidestepping the problem altogether, and to me, shows that the traffickers are really the last thing on TORL agenda, but rather it wants to target the more numerous group being clients, and by extension the escorts themselves.

[LaBelleThatcher]

I do not think TORL know, or care anything about trafficking at all.

If you care about something the one thing you do NOT do is wave are dodgy stats from dodgy US websites. What you do it sit down, very quietly, with everybody who might just know something and get every little thing those people know out on the table, like a jigsaw puzzle and see what the picture looks like when you put it together.

Instead, what TORL have done is to systematically alienate and exclude everyone who might know something about real coercion and trafficking.

Partly, it is about this big, international NGO junketing society where the entry fee is to dedicate your organisation to blindly chanting "End the Demand" and creating false rationales to justify that.

Partly it is about disempowering enough sex workers to justify their continued funding. One fact they can only lie about, not change, is that, since their foundation in 1989 very few sex workers will voluntarily engage with them. They give the majority of sex workers the creeps at best. They certainly have never had anything real to offer.

This is awkward, it's only a matter of time, since the crash, before somebody turns off the tap on funding any NGO that is actively avoided and opposed by it's user group.

[Half Man and Half Dildo]

Rubina, the word bombshell in your username does not do you justice !!!

[Rachel Divine]

could you explain exactly please what would employment in this area mean?thank yo

Maybe she meant regulation on prostitution , each person to pay a tax , money will go to the Government ..

[Banjaxed]

could you explain exactly please what would employment in this area mean?thank yo

I would gather that she means generally.

Officially all escorts, like every other sole trader are subject to legislation in addition to the criminal law, covering things data protection, civil liability, taxation, equal status in service provision, etc. as things stand in the current partial criminalisation or "non-criminalisation" as one journalist referred to it.

Employment law is a complicated one, considering any form of agency or organised prostitution is illegal ab initio. Similar to that, further complication is added by the likelihood of any contract with an escort being void on the grounds of public policy or immorality (depending on the prevailing social norm).

[Galway_Stud]

What do yea think law will be

[Morpheus]

One argument from TORL has been that it is incredibly difficult to secure convictions under this existing legislation, and that is why the law needs to be changed. However, what they fail to mention is that they want to amend the 1993 Act in order to criminalise clients, and have proposed nothing that directly targets those involved in human trafficking beyond what is already there.

Targeting clients is sidestepping the problem altogether, and to me, shows that the traffickers are really the last thing on TORL agenda, but rather it wants to target the more numerous group being clients, and by extension the escorts themselves.

That's exactly it Banjaxed! The TORL have duped the public into thinking that this new legislation has to do with trafficking, when it has absolutely nothing to do with it! The laws governing trafficking are already very strict. The issue is one of implementation (i.e. garda and legal resources) and the legal loopholes of obtaining convictions for trafficking.

When this has been pointed out to any of the TORL organisations, their standard line is that you can't separate trafficking from prostitution! It's a bit like saying you can't separate marital abuse form marriage! So why not just ban marriage!!!!!

The original consultation document by the Dept of Justice on this matter was excellent. See below:

In devising policy responses, including legislative and enforcement measures, it is

also crucial to clearly distinguish between human trafficking for sexual exploitationon the one hand, and prostitution on the other. While the two can sometimes overlap,human trafficking and prostitution are different phenomena requiring distinct policyresponses, if each is to be targeted effectively, efficiently and in a manner which

reflects the relative gravity of different types of criminal activity


Unfortunately this message seems to have got lost in the constant noise made by the TORL!!