[SWAF-Potluck] Vancouver group ready to challenge new prostitution law in court

[Andy Sorfleet]

http://metronews.ca/news/vancouver/
METRO NEWS VANCOUVER
Wednesday, June 4, 2014

Nick Wells



Vancouver group ready to challenge new prostitution law in court

[photo caption]
Justice Minister Peter MacKay leaves a news conference on Parliament
Hill in Ottawa on Wednesday, June 4, 2014.
photo: Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press

Pivot Legal Society says it will seek to constitutionally challenge
the federal government's new legislation on Canada's sex trade.

Justice Minister Peter MacKay tabled the "Protection of Communities
and Exploited Persons Act" in the House of Commons on Wednesday
afternoon.

The act criminalizes purchasing sex, communicating for the purpose of
selling sex, living off the avails of prostitution and the advertising
of sexual services. Sex-trade workers who look to sell services in the
vicinity of children also face being arrested.

"An unbelievable step backwards, absolute tragic day for sex workers
across Canada," said Kerry Porth, Pivot chair and a former sex trade
worker.

The issue of selling sexual services around children remains
especially murky as it becomes hard to determine where kids can be
reasonably be expected, Porth says. If a sex-trade worker had
children, then they would not be able to operate out of their home,
forcing them in to more secluded areas.

"Sex workers will experience violence, exploitation and will die,"
Porth continued. "More sex workers will die in the three to five years
it takes to bring this to the Supreme Court."

Pivot joined the B.C. Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS, the Gender
and Sexual Health Initiative and Sex Workers United Against Violence
to present research on Tuesday, which showed criminalizing the client
but not sex-trade workers has a negligible effect on sex workers'
safety.

Dr. Kate Shannon, who helped conduct the research, echoed Porth's comments.

"This on the heels of our evidence yesterday definitely seems like a
slam to evidence as well as human rights," she said.

By criminalizing clients, Shannon says sex-trade workers will go to
greater lengths to conceal their clients and go away from high traffic
areas.

The federal government defended its move in a press conference.

"We are going after the individuals who are exploiting [sex trade
workers] and forcing them to be reliant on this trade," said MacKay.

The Vancouver Rape Relief Shelter was tepid in their praise of the
legislation and remains worried not enough will be done to protect
women.

"We're very cautious. We do think it is useful to have a law that
explicitly prohibits purchasing of sex," said Hilla Kerner, a
spokesperson for the shelter.

Kerner said she was concerned not enough men would face charges for
trying to purchase sexual services, with only a few being made an
example of.