Submission on proposed changes to South Australia's prostitution laws

Men's violence, not stigma, is the cause of harm to prostituted women

On Monday December 6, Movement Director Melinda Tankard Reist will appear before the South Australian parliamentary Select Committee. MTR will give evidence related to our submission on SA's Statutes Amendment (Repeal Of Sex Work Offences) Bill 2020, made earlier this year.

In our submission we highlighted

• the sex industry's inherent violence, abuse and harm of women and girls, pointing to evidence which shows that a legalised (or decriminalised) sex industry leads to greater risks and poorer conditions for women.
• the intersection of a legalised sex industry and human trafficking, as women and girls are trafficked into prostitution to meet increased demand
• Increased vulnerabilities of and harms to women during COVID lockdowns
• the 'Asianisation' of Australia's sex industry
• health risks and substance abuse issues experienced by women in the industry
• how legalisation/decriminalisation of the sex industry violates Australia's human rights obligations 
• the need and case for Nordic (Equality) Model, which decriminalises women who are solicited for sex and offers exiting services to women wanting to leave the industry, while criminalising pimps, traffickers and buyers   

Click on the image below to read our full submission.

A full list of submissions to the Select Committee can be found here.

See also

Submission to the Department of Justice and Community and Safety: Decriminalising sex work in Victoria August 2021

16 Days of Activism 2021: Re-writing problematic media narratives about the sex industry to combat gender-based violence

When the lobbyist makes the laws: Victoria and the sex industry

See more Collective Shout submissions here