In 2005, a Brazilian mother was convicted of trafficking and imprisoned for three years for running a working flat where other immigrant women worked. In court the judge said “none of these women were, in fact, coerced by you into acting as a prostitute . . . you treated them in a kindly and hospitable […]
Despite acknowledgement that at least 60 prostitute women have been murdered in the last 10 years, the government is today announcing that it is abandoning its consultation and proposed review of the prostitution laws in favour of increased enforcement. This goes against all the evidence which shows that criminalization and crackdowns make sex workers more […]
IT IS THE POSITION OF THE SAN FRANCISCO YOUTH COMMISSION to support Resolution #001564 passed in September 2000, and to recognize of its sponsors, Supervisors Ammiano and former Supervisor Bierman. We join the Supervisors, along with the community, in urging the San Francisco Police Department and Office of the District Attorney to prioritize the rigorous […]
On 6 October 2005, over 40 police and immigration officers raided 55 flats in the Baker Street area of central London. 70 sex workers were held and questioned, some for up to five hours. Women working as ‘maids’ for the working girls were forced to sign cautions under threat that otherwise the flat would be […]
Letters to the Editor The inquiry into ‘Camden Ripper’ Anthony Hardy, held in private, which exonerated the psychiatrists, did not go far enough into Hardy’s previous violence or the authorities’ responsibility for not prosecuting him earlier. Yet he was known to hate women, particularly prostitute women, had a history of extreme violence and hospital staff […]
Street Sheet, (San Francisco) June 2005, p7 You need look no further than the case of serial rapist Jack Bokin to know why the SF Board of Supervisors (BOS) resolution 1564, Mitigating Violence Against Prostitutes should be immediately implemented. Bokin had attacked and violently raped at least three women when Judge Perker Meeks let him […]
In February 2001, we organized an emergency picket to protest against police and immigration raids against 60 immigrant women in Soho, London. The protest got widespread sympathetic media coverage and as a result the raids were publicly condemned and their legality challenged by women’s groups, prominent lawyers, MPs and church people. Many deportations were stopped […]
Anti-social behaviour orders are increasingly being used against prostitutes as a “quick fix” way of clearing women off the streets, campaigners warn.Probation officers and those who work with prostitutes say the orders have effectively brought back jail sentences for offences such as loitering and soliciting, which have been non-imprisonable for more than 10 years. Breaching […]
Evidence shows that criminalization makes sex workers more vulnerable to violence. Prostitute women facing rape, sexual assault and murder are afraid to report for fear of arrest – especially if they have outstanding warrants – or deportation.In one case, a woman who wanted to press charges against a violent rapist was not allowed to do […]
Women working in the sex industry around the world will debate proposed changes to the UK prostitution laws at a conference on Saturday. The event in London is in response to the government’s consultation paper on prostitution, published in July. It launched the UK’s first re-think in decades of how to deal with the issue. […]
