A six-point plan to protect prostitutes and the community - Canada

[AmyStrange]

A six-point plan to protect prostitutes and the community - Canada
Saturday, September 18, 2004
Vancouver Sun

FROM: (mirror copy) http://NEWS.OneMissingPerson.org/CANADA-BC-SEP-18-2004-A-six-point-plan-to-protect-prostitutes-and-the-community.html
With about 100 prostitutes murdered in B.C. alone in the past 15
years, prostitution law reform is long overdue. Last year, at the
behest of Vancouver NDP MP Libby Davies, the federal government
struck a committee to consider reform, but the committee was
dissolved before it was able to make any recommendations.

Davies has said she intends to get the committee up and running
again, and we applaud her efforts. But law reform must occur sooner
rather than later. We propose a six-point plan that could begin
immediately.

The elimination of all prostitution is a worthy long-term goal, but
any plan must recognize that it's not a goal that will be achieved
tomorrow, nor is it one the law can accomplish by itself. Putting an
end to prostitution will require a committed and concerted effort to
eliminate factors that push people into a life on the street, and
will have to involve medical and social service workers, politicians, police, the public and prostitutes themselves.

In the short term, we need to protect prostitutes from harm, and
that's a project for which the law is particularly well-suited. Since the street is the most dangerous place for a prostitute, the law must be directed toward getting prostitutes indoors. However, since the most desperate prostitutes will remain on the street, the law must also include measures to ensure their safety.

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© The Vancouver Sun 2004