A Legalife-Ukraine phone helpline for sex workers. Results and achievements in 2024

During 2024, the our team of the National Hotline for SWs consisting of 2 operators, 3 psychologists and online consultants provided highly qualified counselling support to sex workers in Ukraine.

Compared to previous years, the number of calls and consultations on our Helpline has increased significantly.

From January to December 2024, the Hotline received 2654 calls from sex workers on various issues.

The team provided 3632 consultations in response to these calls, including:

- 424 psychological consultations

- 344 legal consultations

- 1478 peer-to-peer consultations

- 1386 referrals of LGBT people to other organisations and specialists as needed.

CO ‘LEGALIFE-UKRAINE’ found additional funding to provide psycho-emotional support to the sex worker community in the context of war. In 2024, more than 300 psychological sessions were held to support the mental health of leaders and activists.

PROBLEMS FACED BY SEX WORKERS IN UKRAINE

Most often, we were approached by women, who found themselves in difficult life situations, for example:

• police officers extort money from sex workers, force them to draw up/sign illegal protocols, conduct illegal searches;
• police use physical and psychological violence against sex workers (moral humiliation, insult, coercion to cooperate, coercion to have sex, rape);
• SWs have experienced/are experiencing violence;
• They are trying to take away the child from the SW/ They are trying to deprive the SW of parental rights, citing the type of her activity;
• SW is blackmailed, intimidated or has (her/it) freedom restricted;
• SW does not know where to get medical/social/legal services or (she/it) is denied such services, citing (her/its) type of activity;
• SWs experiences psychological discomfort, depression, panic attacks, cannot overcome family problems or establish contact with children;
• SW needs help in obtaining a passport, registration, signing a declaration with a family doctor, etc.

Additional problems are insufficient information for SWs about available services and rights to receive them, lack of qualified doctors/specialists, working hours of SWs and medical institutions. Also, corruption and insufficient funding of programs, prevention of receiving free services in state institutions.

SEEKING PSYCHOLOGICAL AND LEGAL SUPPORT

The number of appeals from SWs regarding psychological problems arising from the war (stress, panic, disorders in children and relatives) continues to grow. Our research shows that 92% of SWs in Ukraine surveyed experience a deterioration in their psycho-emotional state and mental health due to the war.

The main factors that negatively affect the psycho-emotional state of SWs are: loss of income/job/housing, vulnerability to violence, violations of rights and unsafe working conditions, life risks associated with the war, stigma and discrimination against SWs.

Most SWs do not seek help from psychologists due to lack of trust, lack of funds for psychological services and lack of information about available services, lack of psychologists in remote villages or small towns.

To create comfortable conditions for receiving psychological assistance, in 2024, CO ‘Legalife-Ukraine’ provided opportunities for SWs to receive psychological consultations online, by phone, in person or during group psychological therapy groups.

Also, SWs in Ukraine need legal services and psychological support, as well as referrals to friendly services due to the stigma that leads to violence, violations of their rights and discrimination.

‘I was treated with prejudice and disgust because I am a drug addict and a sex worker,’ - a quote from a female sex worker.

Most often, SWs encounter violations in the following areas:

• Education and Employment - 12 per cent of SWs;
• Administrative Services and Social Protection - 27 per cent of SWs;
• Law Enforcement and Justice - 30 per cent of SWs;
• Healthcare - 46 per cent of SWs.

As in previous years, the highest rate of violations of the rights of SWs is recorded by medical workers (46% of respondents) and representatives of law enforcement agencies (30% of respondents).

Regarding the types of violations of rights reported by SWs, the following remain in the first place:

Statements and negative attitude from medical workers, law enforcement officers and other state institutions that degrade human dignity;

• Refusal to provide medical care, social services, benefits;
• Illegal detention, blackmail, extortion by the police;
• Disclosure of medical secrets/confidential information.

"Dismissive attitude as an inferior, leprous being. When they saw information about drug addiction, status, and criminal record in my documents, they refused to work with me immediately. This prevented me from finding a job, I was rejected everywhere. Because of this, I now have mental disorders and could not join society. I live with a sense of guilt." - quote from a SW.

SWs also reported that due to suspicions about their involvement in sex work, appearance, behaviour, etc., state employees change their attitude for the worse, they start showing unhealthy interest in their personal lives, and ask irrelevant questions:

"Dismissive attitude because the official suspected that I was a sex worker. They ask a lot of personal and unnecessary questions that are not related to the case" - quote from a female sex worker.

"They asked me unnecessary questions about why I had such a short work experience. When I told them that I was working in another sphere unofficially, the attitude deteriorated dramatically, they answered my questions reluctantly, with contempt." - quote from a SW.

Often, SWs are forced to hide their sex work in order to avoid discrimination and humiliation. Such intolerant attitudes often lead to a failure to seek help or to follow through, and have negative consequences for their mental health and self-perception.

In cases of violence, the main reasons for contacting our Hotline are to receive psychological support or referrals to friendly medical services.

According to our research, one in two (55%) of SWs have experienced gender-based and/or domestic violence. Of these, 66% did not seek help for victims of violence due to the fear that third-party intervention would only worsen their situation and give them unwanted publicity.

When contacting our Hotline, the respondents told us that when they tried to get help and protection, they often faced accusations of what had happened, humiliation, refusal to record the crime by the police and service personnel, as well as disclosure of personal information.

Specific manifestations of stigma and discrimination in accessing services for survivors of gender-based violence include:

• attempts by service personnel to blame the survivor for what happened, to impose the idea that the survivor is exaggerating or making up what happened,
• humiliation, insults and refusal to record a crime/conduct investigative actions, expertise when contacting the police,
• disclosure of personal information, case details. by police or service personnel.

They often face violence, harassment, prejudice in their daily lives. This is especially true for transgender women and SWs with drug addiction.

Transgender SWs complain of frequent cases of harassment, insults, and persecution by men in public spaces: ‘They often insult me on the street, deliberately address me as a man’.

SWs who do not yet have documents that match their gender face ridicule, inadequate reactions from employees of various services, as well as problems with employment and renting housing.

And with the intensification of mobilisation measures, these women are afraid to even go out on the streets, because they often face accusations of evading mobilization.

Drug addicts in eastern Ukraine also suffer from various forms of harassment and violations of their rights, including violence from radicalised citizens and illegal searches and seizure of substitution therapy drugs by police.

We are grateful to our partners for their support of sex workers in Ukraine: ActionAid, Global Fund for Women, SWAN, NSWP, CO ‘100 PERCENT LIFE’ and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

Team of CO “Legalife-Ukraine”