EP shows the red card to forced prostitution
To mark International Women’s Day Wednesday, the European Parliament’s Committee on Women’s Rights has invited representatives from NGOs, sports and politics to a seminar aiming to raise awareness and discuss strategies to tackle forced prostitution on the fringes of major international sports events. Next week the full House will debate the issue in plenary. MEPs Záborská, Breyer and Prets give us their views on the importance of tackling this modern form of slavery.
Big events such as sports events and fairs are said to provoke a sharp increase in the demand for sexual services including an increase in forced prostitution. Chairwoman, Slovak Christian Democrat Anna Záborská, and two members of the Women’s Rights Committee, German Green Hiltrud Breyer and Austrian Socialist Christa Prets, tell us why they believe it is high time to turn the spotlight on forced prostitution in the framework of world sports events.
100,000 women victims of human trafficking in Europe
Ms Prets, who drafted a report on strategies to prevent trafficking in women and children for sexual purposes, adopted by the Parliament earlier this year, explains that “every year around 100,000 women are victims of human trafficking in Europe. Several thousand girls and women are going to be forced into sexual exploitation in Germany for the World Cup (9 June-9 July)”. Ms Breyer, who is behind the idea to raise awareness about this topic on International Women’s Day, says "it is essential to focus more attention on the fate and misery of women trafficked for sexual exploitation. Fair play in sport also goes with the refusal of forced prostitution!” Ms Záborská sees the initiative as an important opportunity to launch a universal message about respect of women's dignity and human rights, while providing a venue to exchange views about best practices to combat forced prostitution.
A problem without borders
Ms Záborská hopes this is only the start of a campaign against forced prostitution, which she underlines requires action at European and national level. According to Ms Breyer the seminar aims to be the “kick-off event in the EU-wide combat against forced prostitution”, putting trafficking on the agenda more strongly. She is clear that actions to combat human trafficking must put the emphasis on both the prevention and protection of victims. Forced prostitution “violates human rights and infringes EU-law," notes Ms Prets, who hopes the seminar will raise consciousness that trafficking is “not a national but an international concern”, which calls for common measures within the EU. The 8 March seminar will be followed up during the 13-16 March Parliamentary plenary session by discussion of a resolution for a European-wide campaign to inform and educate the general public about forced prostitution during world sports events.
The European Parliament has been active for many years in campaigns to prevent trafficking of human beings and violence against women. A recent example is Ms Prets' report. This resolution caused “the most important debate in media and different organisations and helped to free us from taboos of this topic”, says Ms Prets. According to Ms Breyer, by adopting the resolution the Parliament made it clear “that trafficking in women ought to be combated more comprehensively… The EU must show the red card to this prospering lucrative criminal business!”
