The recent decision by the City of Cape Town to establish a special vice squad will leave real criminals untouched, while further victimizing sex workers — who, far from being criminals are already among the main victims of crime.
In the past months several sex workers have been killed in Cape Town and other parts of South Africa. We know of three murders in Cape Town. Far from sex workers being criminals, they are in fact among the main victims of crime.
Councillor JP Smith confuses cause and effect when he says that sex work is associated with other forms of crime. When sex work is made illegal, it is driven underground and regulated by criminals. On the other hand when sex workers are allowed to operate openly, they have proved, here and in other parts of the world, to play a valuable service assisting the police to fight crime.
Sex workers in one part of Cape Town, for example, created an informal neighborhood watch which, amongst other things, resulted in the arrest of a murder suspect. In New Zealand the relationship between police and sex workers has improved since decriminalisation. But in Cape Town, instead of being applauded for performing a civic duty, the response is to crack down and arrest sex workers.
This measure is a cynical game of smoke and mirrors – it creates the appearance that the city is getting serious about fighting crime. Sex workers are easy targets and they are useful in helping the police raise their arrest figures. But while this is happening attention is diverted from other, far more serious issues – including widespread violence against women. The chief causes of crime in the city remain untouched.
The creation of a vice squad is also totally out of synch with the national debate currently taking place around sex work. It speaks of a show of force, power and crude insensitivity. Under apartheid when the police where exposed of unlawful acts, detention without trial, the response was crude force. More recently – in the past few months – Sweat has taken the police to court for unlawful arrests – this time, of sex workers. History repeats itself, and poverty is criminalized.
Not all police officers act in an unlawful manner. In fact several police officers have come to SWEAT, unofficially, to complain about the behavior of some of their colleagues. Clearly there are some amazing police officers who want to address real crime, and see the potential in working with sex workers to do this.
Sex work will not go away. What will occur with J Councillor JP Smith action is that it will be more difficult for mothers to put food on the table for their children and pay school fees.
