Decriminalisation of sex work in New Zealand: Review shows no evidence of predicted social harms

Opponents of the decriminalisation of sex work initially hailed the review of the first five years, published on May 23, as a vindication of their position that New Zealand's Prostitution Reform Act has been a failure in terms of its objectives and that sex work should be eradicated because decriminalisation has little impact on violence in sex work. This is disingenuous at best, but is likely to be something we will continue to hear about.

The argument, which for instance is being made in the current court challenge in Canada, is that violence is inherent in sex work, and has nothing to do with its legal status. It is more likely that violence is a product of social stigmatisation that is reinforced by criminalisation. It has been argued by Katrina Pacey, Sylvia Law and others that decriminalisation is a necessary but not sufficient condition to protecting the mental and physical health and human rights of sex workers. Centuries of marginalisation and the presence of very socially vulnerable subgroups within the sex work sector are unlikely to be reversed overnight. Paradoxically it is those self-styled abolitionists who seek to ‘rescue’ sex workers that reinforce prejudice and stigma through moral panic, a position that the media are likely to uncritically reinforce.

It is worth noting that it took at least twenty years following the decriminalisation of homosexuality for there to be appreciable changes in discrimination and prejudice, and that this required pro-active human rights legislation.

On the positive side, none of the evils that moral crusaders predicted has eventuated. There is no evidence of an expansion of the sector, or an increase in under age sex work, trafficking, organized crime, exploitation or drugs. In general sex workers now feel more empowered and are more likely to report adverse events. There has however been little change in working conditions, which will require better monitoring and provision of safe ways for sex workers to air grievances. The role of government in zoning remains problematic in relation to the promotion of health and safety. Street work will continue to have its own specific problems, and for those in survival sex, cultural and social factors will play a more important role in shaping the quality of life than legal considerations. These include the specific problems of those with substance use issues. Both substance use and street conditions are however amenable to harm reduction interventions such as safe injection sites, and Safe Houses, as utilized in New South Wales and attempted in Vancouver.

Further research will be required into issues such as violence, social and economic predeterminants, particularly of high risk groups, and working conditions. A similar review should be undertaken in the future.

This has been a bold social experiment, and the report and the valuable empiric research undertaken to inform the review, a model many other countries could and should emulate. The report will be a key element in the global public policy debates around sex work for many years to come.

Further information on this and on sex work in New Zealand in general