Decriminalizing sex work

Decriminalization of Sex Work is the removal of criminal penalties for sex work. In most countries, sex work, the consensual provision of sexual services for money or goods, is criminalized. Removing criminal prosecution for sex workers creates a safer and healthier environment and allows them to live with less social exclusion and stigma. In the last decade, organizations such as UNAIDS, WHO, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, UNFPA, and the medical journal The Lancet have called on states to decriminalize sex work in the global effort to tackle the HIV/AIDS epidemic and ensure sex workers' access to health services. New Zealand was the first country to decriminalise sex work.

Criminalization is the prohibition of the act of receiving money or goods in return for or in exchange for sex, being connected with the sex industry, or profiting from the sex industry.

Partial criminalization decriminalizes the selling of sex while the purchasing of sex remains a crime. This is often referred to as the "Nordic model".

Legalization / Regulation is when sex work is made formally legal but still not recognized as a legitimate form of work and therefore heavily regulated. Sex workers must comply with permissible working areas, mandatory health checks, and registration or face criminal sanction. Examples of this model include Senegal and the Netherlands.

Decriminalization is the removal of criminal penalties for sex work, and sex workers receive equal protection and recognition as workers in other industries.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), sex workers are considered one of the key populations at risk for HIV infection, and sex workers who inject drugs are at even more risk due to unprotected sex, syringe sharing, alcohol or drug dependence, and violence. Stigma, poverty, and exclusion from legal social services have increased their vulnerability to HIV infection. Health risks and transmission of HIV as well as other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are increased in incidences where condom usage and accessibility is limited or used to identify and criminalize sex workers. Many sex workers are managed by 'gatekeepers' who may be brothel owners, clients, or law enforcement figures, who often dictate condom usage. In Cambodia, a survey showed that 30% of sex workers who refused to put on condoms were sexually coerced. Fear of law enforcement and incarceration also discourages possession of condoms since they provide evidence for officers to prosecute and arrest. Evidence suggests that HIV risk can be sharply reduced when sex workers are able to negotiate safer sex. Decriminalization of sex work decreases the risk of HIV infection by breaking down stigma and increasing access to health services, reducing the risk of HIV/AIDS and STIs.

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