[Sexworkersandfriends..potluck..] Petition to stop the forced HIV testing of sex workers in Greece...

[Andy Sorfleet]

Thierry Schaffauser (president of the GMB sex workers union in the UK
and the Europe representative of the Network of Sex Work Projects is
pleading that sex workers, allies, advocates and activists please sign
this on-line petition to the Prime Minister of Greece to stop the
government mandatory HIV testing and arrest of sex sex workers.
International sex workers' rights charters consistently list the
mandatory or non-voluntary HIV and STD testing of sex workers to be a
violation of labour and human rights.

Petition at Change.org:
http://www.change.org/petitions/to-the-prime-minister-of-greece-stop-the-forced-testing-and-outing-of-sex-workers


Sex Workers Rights Manifesto (Brussels 2005)
http://walnet.org/csis/groups/icrse/brussels-2005/SWRights-Highlights.pdf

World Charter for Prostitutes' Rights (Amsterdam 1985)
http://walnet.org/csis/groups/icpr_charter.html

For more information on the situation in Greece, please read below:

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http://www.huffingtonpost.com/
HUFFINGTON POST
Thursday, May 3, 2012

Derek Gatopoulos



Greece Prostitutes Arrested, 17 HIV-positive Women In Brothels

ATHENS, Greece -- Greek authorities announced the arrest Wednesday of
17 HIV-positive women who allegedly worked illegally as prostitutes,
accusing them of intentionally causing serious bodily harm.

The names and photographs of 12 of the women were published on the
Greek Police's website, angering human rights advocates who said it
was unclear whether the women were aware they had HIV.

"This is an appalling violation of human rights and medical
confidentiality ... an unprecedented action stigmatization," Positive
Voice, a group that helps people with HIV, said in a statement.

The arrests come amid a crackdown on hundreds of unlicensed brothels
around Greece, which recently toughened AIDS testing laws for
prostitution in response to a sharp rise in AIDS cases last year.
Prostitution is legal in Greece, with regular health checks for sex
workers required. But authorities say only a fraction of brothels are
operating with a license.

Health Minister Andreas Loverdos warned of a rise in cases of
customers having sex without a condom for an additional fee.

"This is an exploded bomb," he said. "It is a problem that should have
been limited but it now involves Greek society. It's a problem that we
cannot erase but only try to contain."

The women were among 130 women screened for the AIDS virus by the
state-run Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Hundreds more
women are likely to be screened in the next few weeks.

The agency said it had received more than 1,500 calls from men
inquiring about brothel safety and AIDS tests since the crackdown
began over the weekend. It was unclear if anyone had been infected by
the 17 women from Greece, Russia and Bulgaria who authorities said
were arrested over the past four days.

According to the disease control center, 954 new HIV infections were
reported in 2011, a 57 percent increase from the previous year. The
spread of the virus between gay men remained the most common form of
transmission, but the number of cases involving drug users increased
15-fold in 2011 to 241. Authorities say they are concerned about the
overlap between drug use and illegal prostitution.


Greece will hold a general election Sunday, and Loverdos said he would
call on the next government to criminalize unprotected sex at
brothels.

"Let's make this a crime. It's not all the fault of the illegally
procured woman, it's 50 percent her fault and 50 percent that of the
client, perhaps more because he is paying the money," he said.

The Athens city government said at least 315 brothels are currently
operating illegally in the Greek capital. The city renewed its call on
the government to relax strict licensing rules.

Greece is the busiest transit point for illegal immigration in the
European Union -- and for human traffickers bringing women from
Eastern European countries.