Tread carefully on prostitution and the law

The decision by the ANC at its 54th national conference to decriminalise prostitution — euphemistically referred to as “sex work”, and the poor souls who find themselves trapped in this dismal industry as “sex workers” — was a surprise. As recently as July, the same ANC rejected a proposal to decriminalise sex work and decided against it being legalised. In going against the legalising route, the ANC followed the lead of the South African Law Reform Commission, which spent about 20 years coming up with a report that decided against decriminalisation.

According to Masefele Morutoa, chairwoman of parliament’s multiparty women’s caucus, it was disappointing that the report’s authors concluded that changing the existing legislative framework could create an “extremely dangerous cultural shift juxtaposed against the high numbers of sexual crimes already committed”.

Instead, the report outlined two scenarios. The first is to retain a totally criminalised legal framework, which was the commission’s preferred option.

The second favoured the partial criminalisation of adult prostitution, criminalising all role-players except the person providing the sexual service. This option could, however, lead to exploited women being subjected to further violence and harm. According to Morutoa, the commission report turned a deaf ear to the “vociferous voice of sex workers . . . and is thus not linked to evidence”.

Now, the ANC has taken the plunge on the issue, after years of procrastination and posturing. Sex workers’ advocacy groups have given the decision a cautious welcome.

There has probably been little point all along in criminalising prostitution, given that, alongside politics, it is one of the world’s oldest professions. However, this should not mean that women who find themselves in this demeaning trade should continue to suffer even after a law that is designed to benefit them has been passed.

There is now a heavy responsibility on the government to continue to prosecute cases of sex trafficking and the prostitution of minors. And in devising the new laws, care should be taken to cater as much for the women as for the men who buy their services.