Newsletter 2

Implementation of the Nordic or Equality Model of Prostitution will decrease violence against women.

· Prostitution is a form of violence against women and is incompatible with women’s equality. Most prostituted people are women, and most buyers are men. When a woman is in a room with a man who has bought her services there is a clear power imbalance and the woman is vulnerable.

· Decriminalisation and legalisation are demonstrated to be failed policy approaches to prostitution. The legalisation of prostitution has been shown to increase trafficking[1] as well as increasing the demand for prostitution.[2]

· The only way to increase safety for women is to decrease prostitution. This has been successfully demonstrated in countries which have adopted the Nordic or Equality model. This model targets the demand for prostitution by criminalising the actions of pimps and buyers, rather than the actions of prostituted persons.

· In jurisdictions such as Sweden which have implemented the Nordic Model, violence against prostituted women has decreased.[3]

· In addition, the model incorporates support for exit programs and public education programs which discourage the purchase of sex and educate men that abuse of women is unacceptable. In addition, it implements policies of social and economic support to assist prostituted persons to leave the industry

[1] Seo-Young Cho; University of Marburg - School of Business & Economics, Axel Dreher; University of Heidelberg, Eric Neumayer; London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), Does Legalised Prostitution Increase Human Trafficking? World Development, 41 (1), 2013, pp. 67-82, Date Written: January 16, 2012 at: https://papers.ssrn.com/ sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1986065 [2] The New Zealand Prostitution Review Committee, 2006-7. p.118. [3] Remembering the murdered women erased by the pro-sex work agenda (feministcurrent.com)