Sex Work and The Law: An Approach Towards the Protection of Women’s Rights
Raspiatur Rashpi: Sex work is exchanging of sexual services between two adult man and woman in lieu of consideration with their consent. Criminalization or decriminalization of the sex work is a continuous debate in today’s world. Those who support the decriminalization of sex work basically argues that criminalization of sex work violates the human rights of the sex workers. On the other hand, the other side argues that sex work leads to gross violation of human rights of sex workers and it is the main reason of violence against women.
It can reasonably and prudently be understood that sex work results in a pervasive, illegal, violent and aggressive criminal atmosphere where sex workers exploited physically and mentally. This is the worst form of violence against women.
Bangladesh is one of the notable Islamic countries where sex work is legal. The number of sex workers is alarming and it is rising every year. According to UNAID’s report of 2016, the total number of female prostitutes is 1,40,000. At present there are 20 brothels in the country. The largest brothel is in Daulatdia which has around 1300 sex workers. More than 100 clients come and go to the brothel daily. Child prostitution on the other hand is very much alarming in the country. In a report of 2004, UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) stated that there are 10,000 underage girls used in commercial sexual exploitation. Human Rights Report Bangladesh estimates the number as around 29000 recently.
The constitution and domestic laws of Bangladesh clearly prohibits both prostitution and child prostitution in the country. Article 18(2) of the constitution says, ‘the state shall adopt effective measures to prevent prostitution and gambling.’ On the other side, the country makes this practice legal. This also frustrates the provisions of Convention on the Elimination of all kinds of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) which asks all the states “to take all appropriate measures, including legislation, to suppress all forms of trafficking in women and exploitation or prostitution of woman.”
Section 372 and Section 373 of The Penal Code, 1860 declares selling and buying of minor girls below the age of 18 for the purpose of prostitution as a punishable offence. The offenders under these two sections are said to be punishable with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years and shall also be liable to fine. But according to a report of Asia Human Rights Commission, more than 20,000 children are born and live in the brothel areas of Bangladesh and most of these children enter the profession before the age of 12.
The authority generally ignore the minimum ages of 18, most of the time the age of these minor girls are circumvented by false statements of age . Section 13 of Human Trafficking Prevention and Suppression Act, 2012 provides penalty for calling for prostitution. It says, “If a person invokes another person by using a face or angled or indecent expression for the purpose of prostitution inside or outside the house or in the public place or outside of the house, he will be deemed to have committed an offense and for such offense, he shall be punished with imprisonment for not more than 3 years, or shall be punished with fine not exceeding 20 thousand taka or with both.” Section 12 of this Act provides penalties for those persons who establishes or operates a brothel or actively assisted or participated in the establishment or operation of the brothel.
But the matter of irony is that all these good laws are only on texts. No one fears the law, no one executes the law. Sex work is a serious threat to the health of the sex workers. HIV affects large number of sex workers who engage in prostitution. The national sex worker program had found that 60% of the female sex workers were HIV positive. Sex workers are four times more likely to be HIV infected, compared to non-prostitute woman. They are likely to use addictive drugs to have unprotected sex and to satisfy their clients. Because they are forced not to use condoms that eventually makes the risk of HIV greater.
Sex workers take or are made to take steroid drug dexamethasone to gain weight and to look better. 46% of the sex workers had experienced sexually transmitted infections. Continuance of giving sexual services makes the sex workers physically vulnerable and almost many of them face miscarriage of children. Sex work also increases social violence against women. Rape, stigma, social exclusion which are all common risks faced by sex workers. A survey on the health of child sex workers found that 57% of the sex workers experienced violence or abuse from their clients. A study of violence against women engaged in prostitution found that 68% reported having been raped.
Sex workers are also in higher risk of murder. According to Salfati’s study, sex workers are 60 to 120 times more likely to be murdered and murdered after rape than non-prostitute females . Sex work results in human trafficking also. Its easier for the traffickers to induce the sex workers for trafficking.
UAE, Thailand, South Africa, Soudia Arabia, Romania, Philippines, Lithunia, South Korea, China and Afghanistan have made this sex work illegal because of its negative impacts on society and the whole country. It is high time Bangladesh made sex work illegal. Only criminalization of sex work will not solve this problem. A large number of sex workers come to this profession voluntarily because they have no option left to survive. To eradicate this social menace, alternative way of living should be provided to them. They can be made engaged in small and medium cottage industries, online businesses to earn livelihood. We have so many laws. What is needed is the proper execution of these laws.
Writer: Raspiatur Rashpi; Student, Department of Law, University of Chittagong.
