DECRIM NOW WORLD NEWS DIGEST FOR AUGUST 2023

Addressing violence against women sex workers in Peru

Lima, Peru

Ángela Villón Bustamante has been a sex worker and human rights activist for her community in Peru for almost 25 years. She has experienced first-hand the violence against sex workers. After she was beaten by a policeman in 1996, she began her activism.  

"I don’t want anyone else to end up almost dead like I did. The organization Miluska Vida y Dignidad (Miluska Life and Dignity, in English) is the organisation I created almost 30 years ago to find justice for those of us violated by public forces", recalls Ángela. "It was the first sex workers’ organisation in Peru, and its name is in honour of my dear friend Miluska, who died after being beaten by one of them."

According to the Peruvian Ombudsman’s Office, 95.8% of trans women have been victims of violence, 62.2% are engaged in sex work due to lack of employment opportunities, and only 5.1% have completed secondary education.   

More than 10 cis and transgender sex workers have been murdered since the beginning of this year in Peru – four transgender sex workers in one week alone, by February 1. "This situation spread to other provinces in Peru, and sex workers had to go into hiding for weeks to protect their lives," says Ángela. "We have been unable to work and care for our basic personal and family needs."  

The criminalisation of sex workers prevents them from seeking justice when they are harassed, physically harmed, or otherwise discriminated against. "We often do not report abuse to avoid further mistreatment and because of the stigma attached to our occupation," explains the activist.  

Given the situation of violence against sex workers in Peru, the organisations led by Ángela and Alejandra are among those implementing a plan with the Peruvian Ministry of Women and Vulnerable Populations to address violence against women sex workers in the country.  

More than 100 police officers have already been trained by courses designed and facilitated by cis and transgender sex workers. The training provided knowledge on human rights, stigma, and discrimination, and their essential role as guarantors of justice to contribute to adopting a human rights-based approach in their work throughout the country.  

Besides coordinating and facilitating a working group to fight violence and promote the fundamental rights of sex workers with several local and regional organizations and networks, UNAIDS has also partnered with the Public Defender’s Office of the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights of Peru and with representatives of the sex workers’ community to develop a protocol for the provision of legal assistance and victim advocacy services to sex workers.  

"After so many years, I feel that our voice is now being heard," says Ángela.

Source unaids.org

Gov. Tina Kotek vetoes plans to study decriminalizing sex work

Oregon, USA

4 August 2023

Gov. Tina Kotek on Friday vetoed seven items approved by lawmakers, including plans championed by members of her own party to study the impact of decriminalizing sex work and forming a state bank.

Among the items Kotek vetoed was a plan to spend $600,000 on a pair of studies by the Oregon Criminal Justice Commission and Oregon Health & Science University that would have examined the effects of current law on people in the sex trade, as well as the impacts of decriminalizing the selling of sex. The sex trade includes sex workers as well as people experiencing sexual exploitation, which is a form of sexual violence. Kotek said in her veto notice and a signing letter that she sees the value in the studies, especially as they “relate to understanding disproportionate impacts on communities of color,” but believes they should be privately funded.

Sen. Elizabeth Steiner, D-Portland, who championed the studies, said earlier this week that she expects proponents to regroup and have further discussions about a path forward ahead of next year’s session.

Source oregonlive.com

Survey: 80% of sex workers face physical violence in Bangladesh

Dhaka, Bangladesh

30 August 2023

About 80% of street-based and transgender sex workers have been subjected to physical and sexual abuse by their clients and others, a survey shows.

The Joint UN Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and Bandhu Social Welfare Society (Bandhu) organized an event on Wednesday at hotel Amari Dhaka to disseminate two studies on “Gender-Based Violence against Female Sex Workers and Transgender” and “Online violence and E-services in Bangladesh”. 

The purpose of the event was to discuss the findings of the two studies, reflect on the information revealing the different forms of gender-based violence faced by transgender and female sex workers, and accelerate progress on how to ensure integrated sexual and reproductive services to end gender discrimination and ensure the respect of human rights for each individual.

The workshop provided a platform for different stakeholders, including the government, development partners, civil society and the transgender community, to delve into data, and share results, progress, challenges, and the impact achieved by the country.

Kristine Blokhus, UNFPA country representative, said: “The studies show that female sex workers and transgender people experience violence throughout their lives."

"Every person, every human being, has the right to the highest attainable level of sexual and reproductive health and rights, and to be free from any type of violence. On behalf of UNFPA, I am proud to be here to commit us to stand on the side of people who are too often marginalized,” she added. 

Gitanjali Singh, country representative, UN Women, said: “During my visit to Narayanganj, when I met with female sex workers and transgender persons, what came across was pain, anguish, and anger, but also courage and resilience.”  

"The stories of extreme violence, stigma and discrimination shared by some of the very young sex workers and the scars of the physical violence endured were heart-wrenching and deeply disturbing,” she added. 

The highlights of the studies were discussed by participants, who urged for accelerated, concrete actions that can prevent and respond to gender-based violence towards gender-diverse groups and also protect human rights and gender equality.

Source dhakatribune.com

A coalition of LGBTQ+ and sex worker-led organizations has filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission.

Washington, USA

30 August 2023

Sex Workers Say Mastercard’s Adult Content Policy Is Making Their Jobs More Dangerous. A coalition of LGBTQ+ and sex worker-led organizations has filed a complaint urging the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to open an investigation into Mastercard’s adult content policy, alleging that it constitutes an unfair business practice.

In 2021, the payment processing company implemented a policy that severely restricted adult content websites. Under the policy, certain search terms are banned, user-generated content must be pre-approved by their hosting websites, and all content creators are required to submit verification of their age and identity. While the policy was ostensibly developed to guard against the distribution of child sexual abuse material (CSAM), sex workers have spoken out extensively about the harms that the policy has caused.

In 2021, researcher Valerie Webber surveyed 117 sex workers about how MasterCard’s adult content policy was impacting their work. Ninety percent of respondents said that their work suffered after the policy was implemented, reporting payment interruptions, and account flaggings and closures, among other deleterious effects. Additionally, they say such policies fail to actually make the adult industry safer. If anything, as ACLU trans justice campaign manager LaLa B Holston-Zannell wrote in a 2021 blog post for the organization, by restricting sex workers’ ability to do business online, payment processors actually increase the likelihood they will turn to more dangerous methods of making money, such as street-based sex work.

In response, the ACLU, sex worker-led research and advocacy organization Hacking//Hustling, and a number of other organizations officially requested on Wednesday that the FTC investigate MasterCard’s policy. The 46-page complaint alleges that the policy violates the First Amendment because of its vagueness, which “has led to the vast censorship of this entirely lawful category of speech” as adult sites over-censor creators to avoid liability.

“By chilling this particular form of protected free speech, Mastercard has destabilized businesses and, most notably, the lives of thousands of adult content creators,” the complaint reads.

Meanwhile, options for internet-based content creators continue to dwindle. In addition to MasterCard, which is the second largest payment processor in the world, payment services like Venmo and PayPal are widely reported to be discriminating against sex workers as well.

While the ACLU and other organizations have not publicized next steps at this time, a spokesperson for Mastercard told the New York Daily News that the company had not yet reviewed the complaint and “didn’t have a comment at this time.”

Source them.us

European court agrees to hear appeal against French anti-prostitution law

Paris, France

31 August 2023

Sex workers will be able to argue their case against a French law that penalises clients paying for sex before the European Court of Human Rights, which has agreed to hear their appeal.

The court said Thursday it had agreed to rule on an appeal against a 2016 law that made it a crime to pay for sex acts in France.

The case was filed at the end of 2019 by 260 male and female sex workers of different nationalities, who say they practice prostitution legally in France.

The sex workers, supported by several advocacy groups, argue that the law has unjustly affected their livelihoods.

They say it goes counter to several articles of the European Convention of Human Rights, including on the protection of life and against inhumane treatment.

"According to the applicants, who engage lawfully in prostitution, the possibility of criminal proceedings being brought against clients pushes those engaged in prostitution into operating in a clandestine manner and in isolation, exposes them to greater risks for their physical integrity and lives, and affects their freedom to define how they live their private lives," the court said Thursday.

The fact that the court has agreed to hear the case is in itself already a victory for sex workers, given that the court usually rejects more than 90 percent of all appeals.

It has already heard testimony from several sex workers, both French and foreign, about how precarious their lives had become since clients stayed away because of fear of the law.

The court will make its ruling in the coming months.

Source rfi.fr