News Photos
Search Advanced Sign in / Register fans
 
SOCIETY    
 

Advertisement

Sex workers in Taiwan appeal for abolition of penalties for streetwalkers
Central News Agency
2008-10-31 01:13 AM
+ Enlarge This image
The Collective of Sex Workers and Supporters (COSWAS) members yell slogans during a protest held in front of the Executive Yuan yesterday to urge the government to abolish an article of the Social Order and Maintenance Act, which says that prostitution is illegal.
Taiwan News
A group of streetwalkers and prostitutes' rights activists demonstrated in front of the Executive Yuan building Thursday, appealing for the abolishment of a regulation that punishes streetwalkers but not their clients.

A spokeswoman for the Taipei-based Collective of Sex Workers and Supporters (COSWAS) said the group organized the demonstration to highlight its appeal because a "consensus conference" commissioned by the Executive Yuan will take place in November to discuss whether prostitutes should be exempt from punishment.

Taiwan's legal system only punishes prostitutes, not their patrons, and mainly targets women who walk the streets looking for customers rather than women who work in bars or clubs.

For years, the COSWAS and other prostitutes' rights activists have been pushing for the scrapping of Article 80 of the Social Order Management Act which only mandates punitive measures for the prostitutes, while allowing the men who pay for their services to get off scot-free.

At a time when the world is engulfed in serious financial turmoil and credit crunch, the COSWAS spokeswoman said, domestic jobless rates are skyrocketing, adding to the economic harships for underprivileged families.

Noting that the some 100,000 sex workers in Taiwan face a constant struggle to support themselves and their families, she added that the government should abolish the unfair law and legalize prostitution.

If the sex trade were to be legalized, better management could be introduced to provide better protection for sex workers, most of whom are socially underprivileged, she added.

 
Have Your Say :

We welcome your comments on this and other stories. Comments are submitted for possible publication on the condition that they may be edited. Please provide your full name and suburb/location. We also require a working e-mail address – not for publication, but for verification only.

 
Post your feedback
 
 
 
More Stories
Taiwan baseball stars Chen Chih-yuan and Chang Chih-chia indicted in game-fixing scandal   2010-02-10
Referendum drive against U.S. beef imports enters second phase   2010-02-10
U.K.'s ITV fined over rat-eating reality TV stunt   2010-02-10
Michael Jackson's doctor Murray pleads not guilty   2010-02-10
Fresh avalanche kills one Indian soldier   2010-02-10
Afghan avalanches kill at least 28, strands 1,500   2010-02-10
Representative John Murtha, Iraq war critic, dies at age 77   2010-02-10
Traffic accident jolts cancer vaccine research   2010-02-10
Driving permits will be valid for 3 years   2010-02-10
EPA to probe oil firms over excess pollution fees   2010-02-10
Taiwan distributor to recall 630 cars   2010-02-10
Toyota recalls 437,000 hybrids worldwide   2010-02-10
Toyota’s Taiwan representative to recall 630 cars for free repairs   2010-02-09
New international driving permits will remain valid for three years   2010-02-09
National Health Insurance Bureau probing attack on its Web site   2010-02-09
Traffic accident jolts brain cancer vaccine research   2010-02-09
Taiwan's volunteer movement a valuable asset: president   2010-02-09
United Daily News -- Impact of decriminalizing sex trade   2010-02-09
Tainted milk   2010-02-09
Whaling case   2010-02-09
 
01     02   03   04   05   Next   >
 
To search for articles form the past seven days, Click on ARCHIVES
  7day free
 
 
TOP

©2009 Taiwan News All Rights Reserved.