French MPs on Tuesday approved a new law that proponents say will protect sex workers by shifting the burden of the offence onto clients, but some prostitutes are crying foul, reports FRANCE 24.
The French union of sex workers (Strass, its acronym in France) called on members and supporters to protest the "repressive" bill outside the National Assembly, where lawmakers adopted the reform into law.
The legislation outlaws paying for sex, imposes fines for clients and overturns the existing ban on solicitation. In an unprecedented move, the bill also makes available 4.8 million euros per year to help sex workers quit the trade.
The comprehensive approach, which envisions an eventual eradication of prostitution, has earned support among other French organisations that assist and defend sex workers.
The law comes after more than two years of political wrangling, spurring heated debates – even among prostitutes – on the controversial topic.
The bill was authored by Socialist Party MP Maud Olivier - who represents the Essone département (county) near Paris - who has made the fight against prostitution her personal crusade.
“Prostitution is violence in itself”, the lawmaker states on her website, adding: “This poorly-understood violence is the only one that is still not recognised as such by law”.
Olivier says the law will help authorities tackle pimping and human trafficking, protect victims and help them escape the sex trade. It will also help better educate young people and clients of the harm caused by prostitution.
“The goal is to diminish [prostitution], protect those prostitutes who want to quit, and change mentalities” she told Le Monde newspaper on Tuesday.
Strass and other French advocacy groups disagree. This week the sex workers union accused Olivier and other lawmakers of upholding an “essentially repressive” reform.
The new law does nothing to help sex workers – of whom there are around 30,000 in France, according to official estimates – and even makes them more vulnerable, according to Strass.
Around a dozen organisations, which included Strass, but also Doctors of the World and France’s leading AIDS advocacy group, further argued that the measures to help sex workers transition to a new life was misguided and underfunded.
The law stipulates people have to stop prostituting themselves in order to qualify for cash stipends and other aid. “How can someone stop sex work without residency papers, long-term housing, or sufficient cash allocations?” the group asked in a statement, highlighting the fact that up to 80% of prostitutes in France are foreigners.
The law nevertheless represents a historic leap forward, according to other rights groups.
Le Mouvement du Nid (Movement of the Nest), a group that advocates for the abolition of prostitution, but also helps sex workers access medical attention, legal counsel and defends them from harassment, has mounted a detailed and impassioned defense of the legislation.
It has hailed France for joining other European countries that have shifted the criminal burden from prostitutes to clients.
“Sweden, Norway and Iceland have already ended this historic injustice, which consists of punishing the victims of the system, while defending the impunity of those who impose sex through economic power”, le Mouvement du Nid said in a statement.
The group said the law was unprecedented in its “ambition to offer real alternatives to people who are looking to leave prostitution behind”.
The only thing supporters and detractors seem to agree on is that the law could fundamentally impact the way prostitutes work.