PD leader says sex workers should be legalised
Thursday May 22 2008
AN organisation which provides help to women involved in prostitution last night said the new leader of the Progressive Democrats was "misguided" over his call for prostitution to be legalised.
Senator Ciaran Cannon, who became the new party leader last month, said in one of his first major interviews that he thought prostitution should be legalised.
"It's the oldest profession in the world," he told 'Hot Press' magazine in its issue published today. "It will always be there and we should take the responsible approach and legalise it and bring women involved in it into a safe environment."
Explaining his comments last night, the 42-year-old PD leader said he was concerned about the fate of women who were involved prostitution.
"Many of them I believe are victims of circumstance," he told the Irish Independent. "The last thing I would want is for them to be criminalised."
"If a woman sets up in her own home and sells sexual favours, it is not against the law. I believe women in that situation should not be criminalised. However, I would like to see greater involvement of the State in looking after women involved in the sex industry."
Protection
Mr Cannon said he believed there should be an overall audit of all current laws pertaining to women in prostitution to see if they were being afforded the best possible protection.
He did not want to give increased access to the prostitution industry but said his remarks were made in the context of women involved in it who were the victims of circumstance. The State should offer them the best possible protection under the law as possible and to protect them from exploitation.
Slaves
If the whole operation was driven further underground by criminalising it, there would be no access to women who had suffer rape or sexual violence or who were shipped into Ireland as sex slaves.
Ruhama, which provides support services to women involved in prostitution, said it welcomed Mr Cannon's call for an audit of the laws and would be happy to brief him on the current reality of the sex industry in Ireland.
However, the organisation said it felt his comments on the legalisation of prostitution were misguided.
"Legalising prostitution only helps the pimps and traffickers by making them legitimate businessmen while the women still experience exploitation and abuse," it said.
- Fergus Black
