Belgium, the first country in Europe to decriminalize sex work
Belgium became the second country in the world and the first in Europe to decriminalize sex work on Thursday.
“This is a historic reform. It ensures that sex workers are no longer stigmatized, exploited and made dependent on others,” Belgian Justice Minister Vincent Van Quickenborne said.
Belgium is the second country in the world after New Zealand and the first in Europe to decriminalize sex work.
This reform will allow sex workers to be generated as workers like others and thus to obtain a contract, social rights and legal protection.
According to the media “La Libre”, the reform decriminalizes prostitution, but not pimping, which will be punished by imprisonment for one to five years and a fine of 500 to 25,000 euros. Prostitution also remains prohibited for minors.
In early March, a hundred people gathered in downtown Montreal on the occasion of the International Day for the Rights of Sex Workers. The Autonomous Committee for Sex Work (CATS) had called for the decriminalization of the profession in order to combat violence.