Media Release

Help sex slaves escape – adopt the Nordic model

The Australian Christian Lobby has long asserted that legalising brothels rolls out the red carpet for sex traffickers. Preventing trafficking is best achieved by the pro-women Nordic model of prostitution law reform.

By contrast, a legalised or ‘decriminalised’ regime, as in Victoria, leads to the oppression of women as demonstrated by fresh revelations of sex slavery. However, brothel operators in South Australia continue to promote decriminalisation reform bills.

AFP Detective Superintendent Jayne Crossling said recently, “There are brothels that we are aware of that they are physically locked in. They are not allowed to leave. Or if they are allowed to leave, they have to be escorted at all times by somebody that is an employee. That is a reasonably common scenario.” Det. Supt. Crossling also said that many women were held in “debt bondage” situations and had their passports seized by brothel operators.

“The ACL calls upon the South Australian Parliament to adopt the Nordic Model of prostitution law reform,” ACL SA director Christopher Brohier said. He explained that “the Model decriminalises selling sex, but criminalises buying sex and provides real exit strategies for prostituted people.”

“This provides a major power shift away from the pimps (brothel operators) and johns (the buyers) and empowers prostituted people, who are mainly women, to get out of prostitution,” Mr Brohier added. He concluded, “the right thing to do, the pro-women thing to do, is to do all we can to help prostituted people and reduce this oppressive avenue to sexual violence and slavery.

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