Quite surprisingly, a UN human rights expert has issued a report advocating the abolition of prostitution. In addition, she calls for countries to abolish pornography and criminalize its possession and production. Reem Alsalem, the special rapporteur on the causes and consequences of violence against women and girls, said that prostitution is a system of exploitation and abuse that “reduces women and girls to mere commodities” and “hinders their ability to achieve true equality.” She explicitly refuses to use the term “sex work,” as it “wrongly depicts prostitution as an activity as worthy and dignified as any other work.” Similarly, she referred to “victims” and “prostituted women and girls” rather than “sex workers” “in recognition of the scale of the harm experienced.” The report endorses what has been called the “Nordic model,” where prostituted persons themselves are decriminalized, but buyers of sex acts and pimps face penalties. Critics will say that legalizing prostitution even in this way, only makes matters worse. Noting the linkages between prostitution and pornography, Alsalem called on countries to work toward the abolition of pornography, and “and other forms of prostitution facilitated by digital platforms.” Pending its abolition, Alsalem urged countries to use strict age verification and rigorous moderation for online platforms where pornography can be accessed. She emphasized the importance of support services to help women and girls exit prostitution including “single-sex spaces.” “Sexual rights” organizations, including the UN’s Women Deliver, criticized the report during the interactive dialogue with Alsalem where the report was launched. The International Planned Parenthood Federation issued a scathing press release: “We denounce in the strongest terms the content of this report and the ideologically driven process that led to it,” they write. “There is no feminism without sex workers.”

More From C-FAM: