Brussels, 04/12/2012 (Agence Europe) - The total abolition of prostitution throughout Europe is the aim of the 200 European associations that launched their appeal on Tuesday 4 December at the European Parliament. This appeal was supported by the European Women's Lobby (EWL), the Fondation Scelles and the French pressure group “Nid”. It was launched at the premises of Swedish MEP Mikael Gustafsson (GUE/NGL), on the initiative of other MEPs from across the political spectrum and based on a forthcoming report on the subject, expected in 2013, in which the question of abolition, even at a symbolic level, features.
In the meantime, the appeal launched on Tuesday in Brussels by these 200 organisations is focusing on four principles, explained EWL president, Viviane Teitelbaum, on Tuesday. She pointed out that prostitution was both, “a form of violence, an obstacle to equality, a question of human dignity and a violation of fundamental rights”. A number of figures were provided by these associations: in Europe, according to data provided by Eurostat in 2010, 76% of human trafficking was carried out for sexual exploitation purposes, and women and young girls made up 70% of the exploited segment of the population; according to figures published in the United Kingdom, dating from 2004, around 9 out of 10 women would like to escape from prostitution but do not feel sufficiently secure to take this step. Given this observation, these associations have addressed six recommendations to member states, calling on them to stop penalising prostitutes but also to develop genuine social rehabilitation programmes and help them return to work. Prevention must also be massively stepped up to avoid a situation where women are tempted to return to prostitution. This appeal was part of a vast debate organised at the Parliament, where the famous Swedish model was expected to be examined. A 1999 law penalised the purchase of social services and subsequently treated prostitutes as victims and their clients as offenders. The number of women working as street prostitutes has declined by half since then. This model, which is not, however, without criticism, is inspiring increasing numbers of governments, particularly the new French government, which is intending to introduce legislation on the subject. (SP/transl.fl)