Sex work to possibly become legal
The current regulatory regime criminalising sex work in South Africa had failed to protect the rights of sex workers exposing them to various abuses from the public, law enforcement and prevented them from accessing effective healthcare and healthcare facilities.
The Commission for Gender Equality (CGE) has welcomed the decision by the deputy minister of the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development to work towards the decriminalisation of sex work and sex workers in South Africa.
CGE spokesperson Javu Baloyi said deputy minister John Jeffery was planning to hold consultative meetings on the issue of the decriminalisation of sex work in South Africa.
“This step marks a significant progress towards exploring the possibility of the decriminalisation of sex work and sex workers in South Africa.”
Baloyi said the continued criminalisation and prohibitionist legal framework had sanctioned sex workers and sex work as criminal, which went against the human rights of sex workers in South Africa.
“In a study done by the Institute for Security Studies, sex work was found to be a decision driven primarily by financial insecurity rather than coercion and exploitation.”
He said in the opinion of the commission, sex work was an issue that had to be dealt with through economic and social interventions rather than criminal law.
Baloyi said the current regulatory regime criminalising sex work in South Africa had failed to protect the rights of sex workers exposing them to various abuses from the public, law enforcement and prevented them from accessing effective healthcare and healthcare facilities.
“The current criminalisation of sex work denies them their rights to human dignity, freedom and security of the person, freedom of trade and the right not to be discriminated against or treated unequally.”
He said sex workers were continually marginalised and relegated to second-class citizens as a result of the continued criminalisation of their profession.
“It is clear that the existing legal regime violates the human rights of sex workers who are entitled to all the human rights as contained in the South African constitution.”
He said as per the commission’s standing position any regulation of sex work and sex workers in South Africa had to follow a human rights approach that would deliver:
– Freedom and right of choice of work; freedom for sex workers to form unions and enable sex workers to challenge unfair labour practices;
– Freedom from discrimination;
– The right to the highest attainable standard of health;
– Freedom and security of the person including the rights to be free from arbitrary arrest and detention and;
– Right to be free from violence and the right to bodily and psychological integrity.
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