The politics of prostitution

Editorial Comment
WHEN I read that Zimbabwean prostitutes were being threatened with deportation in Botswana I didn’t know whether to be appalled or mollified.

WHEN I read that Zimbabwean prostitutes were being threatened with deportation in Botswana I didn’t know whether to be appalled or mollified. prostitutes Sukoluhle Nyathi

Is this something that ought to evoke national pride that Zimbabwean women are dominating the cross-border prostitution industry? Or is it something that should provoke utter shame in us that our kith and kin have resorted to earning a living through prostitution?

It is public knowledge that our sisters have been plying their trade from Palapye to Gaborone. Prices for services rendered range from P20 for a “quickie” or P50 for an “all nighter”. Prostitutes claim to rake in anything from P150 to P400 on a busy night.

However, discussions with these women will reveal that they are merely trying to raise money to support families. Some of these women are married and this is a desperate attempt to supplement their husband’s dwindling incomes.

It is a widespread belief that women are forced into prostitution because of poverty. We often tend to overlook the fact that some women enter the profession voluntarily and feel empowered by it.

Just as other women are buying goods for resale these women are merely selling their bodies for financial gain. Motives aside, it is clear that these women are obviously there to provide a service for which there is a demand. This is a clear situation of willing buyer and willing seller.

However, for the most part, it is women who are punished for soliciting and selling services yet it takes two to tango. Why are men not being arrested, detained or fined?

Sweden tried to resolve this issue by criminalising the payment for sex, meaning the client would bear the brunt of the law and not the prostitute.

South Africa followed suit in 2007 by making it illegal to purchase sex. In all but 22 countries, prostitution remains illegal yet it is still prevalent in many countries with varying success in enforcement and policing of prostitution.

In Asia on the surface, it would appear that prostitution is illegal yet Thailand has earned its reputation as a major destination for sex tourism with rampant child prostitution. Prostitution arguably remains the oldest profession in the world.

Though some debunk the idea of it being likened to a profession. Rahab is probably the most renowned prostitute in the Bible, yet there were many others. When the Lord first spoke to Hosea he commanded him to “take a wife of harlotry”, Gomer.

Prostitution was not the sole preserve of women, “there were male cult prostitutes in the land” (Kings 1:24).

Yet here we are in the 21st Century still battling to eradicate prostitution. I wonder at times if it would not be easier just to legalise and regulate prostitution. If it became an officially recognised profession, women and men could be registered as sex workers.

They could be licensed to operate and in order to renew operating licences they would be subject to HIV tests.

Senegal is one such African country which has legalised and regulated prostitution. Prostitutes have to be 21 years of age, be registered, carry a valid sanitary card at all times and test negative for sexually transmitted diseases.

Some countries have made limited concessions towards prostitution. In Ivory Coast prostitution is legal, but running brothels and other ancillary activities is illegal.

Japan outlaws penetrative sex, but everything else outside of this is permissible. How this is policed behind closed doors remains an enigma to me.

However, in countries where prostitution has been legalised there have been problems. Ethiopia is one such country which has legalised prostitution, but this has been blamed for the high incidence of HIV and the prevalence of child prostitution.

Germany also legalised prostitution in 2001 and prostitutes were given full rights to health insurance, pensions and other benefits.

However, it would appear liberalisation transformed Germany into one giant brothel and like Thailand has become the European destination for sex tourism.

Moreover, it’s been felt that legalised prostitution has expanded the market for sex work and has led to greater human trafficking.

Yet in the countries where prostitution is illegal it has just driven the market underground and made it more lucrative. So once again, we are caught in a catch 22 situation in the never ending politics of prostitution. To legalise or not to legalise? I will leave it to you to decide.

Sukoluhle Nyathi is the author of the novel The Polygamist” You can follow her on Twitter @SueNyathi