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“In Barcelona, Spain, an association of sex workers offers an introductory course for beginners.
“In Italy, prostitutes publicly demand the right to pay tax because the tax code still does not recognise their perfectly legal profession.
‘These are just some of the indicators of normalisation of sexuality and the sex industry in Europe today.
The above statements are part of a report published today by the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), urging Nigeria and other countries to “adapt to current realities” and do the needful. What’s the needful? Legalise prostitution!
The report, called Supply and Desire: Sexuality and the Sex Industry in the 21st Century, was conducted by sociologist Dr Catherine Hakim.
According to the study, men need sex twice as much as women and it can’t be eliminated.
The report also rode on the fact that demand for commercial and sexual entertainment is growing across the globe, with men using prostitutes to meet their ‘sexual deficit’.
So, according to the IEA report, men’s inability to fulfill their sexual desires is due to increase, resulting in a rise in commercial sex.
The report also stated that prostitution and adult entertainment could ‘help to reduce sexual crime rates’.
It read: “All the available evidence points in the direction of prostitution and erotic entertainments having no noxious psychological or social effects, and they may even help to reduce sexual crime rates.
“Countries such as Japan, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand, where the sex industry flourishes (even when technically illegal) have exceptionally low rates for rape and sexual assault.
“Within Europe, Spain, where prostitution is legal, also has exceptionally low rates of rape.
“In many countries, including Britain, it is perfectly legal to sell sexual services, however, any third-party involvement is illegal.
“The aim is to prevent exploitation by pimps or madams. The effect is to criminalise the industry and brothels, to prevent girls working together in a flat for their mutual protection, to prevent anyone from lawfully supplying services to a sex worker or even rent a flat to them.
“There have been cases of boyfriends with their own job and income, and even the children of prostitutes being prosecuted for pimping.
“By February 2014, the EU Parliament passed a non-binding Resolution stating that prostitution “violates human dignity and human rights whether it is forced or voluntary” and recommending the Swedish policy of criminalising clients instead of prostitutes, in the hope that this might eliminate demand.
“This is the exact opposite of evidence-based policy-making, and it completely ignores the demands, and interests of women in the sex sector”.
The End Violence Against Women campaign has however slammed the report, saying that the findings were ‘wrong-headed’ and selective in its evidence.