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Ireland to
Propose EU-Wide Ban on Paying for Sex
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Ireland, current president of the European Union, said on Monday it would propose a ban on paying for sex throughout the EU but held out little hope of agreement among the 15-nation bloc. "(It) has not been discussed in any meaningful way at European level yet, but certainly it is something which will have to be considered during the Irish presidency," Willie O'Dea, minister of state at the Irish Department of Justice, told reporters. "I will see to it that it is put on the agenda for consideration," he said. O'Dea was responding to questions from reporters about a report on the multi-billion dollar sex industry drawn up by Swedish European Parliament member Marianne Eriksson, which suggested a ban on paying for sex. Sweden is the only EU state where it is illegal to pay for sex. |
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"I would envisage that it
is one of those controversial proposals where it will be difficult to find
common ground, but I certainly think it should be put up for discussion,"
O'Dea said. |
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Eriksson's report, prepared
for debate in the European assembly, urged a crackdown on the sex industry
in the EU by removing from stock exchanges firms peddling pornography and
by restricting obscene e-mails. |
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The report said the
Internet had become an outlet for violent images of rape, child
molestation, bestiality and necrophilia. |
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Of the $450 million
European Internet users spent on the Web in 2001, 70 percent went to
various porn sites, the report said. |
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"We are faced with a very
wealthy and powerful industry, one of the richest in the world, which is
quoted on several stock exchanges," Eriksson said.
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ACCOUNTABLE
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She recommended that the EU
should ban companies such as German sex shop chain Beate Uhse Ag and
Sweden's Private Media Group Inc, from being listed.
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Reacting to the report, a
spokeswoman for Private Media Group said being listed meant it was more
accountable and regulators had greater control of the company.
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"Banning or trying to build
barriers won't necessarily enable a greater control over the industry.
There is an enhanced risk of pushing it underground," said spokeswoman
Alex Moore. |
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Eriksson wanted more action
to stop unsolicited e-mails and television advertising selling sex, and
backed studies into men's behavior to establish sex education programs.
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Eriksson's report coincided
with a hearing in Brussels on the sex industry involving European
lawmakers, experts and women's rights groups. |
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Professor Janice Raymond
from the University of Massachusetts, told the hearing how the industry
had gained mainstream acceptance. |
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"Pornography is called
'erotica', prostitution is renamed as 'sex work'...and lap dancing or sex
clubs are called 'gentlemen's entertainment,"' said Raymond, co-executive
director of the Coalition Against Trafficking in Women.
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Raymond criticized EU
states for failing to impose bans on buying sex from prostitutes.
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She gave as an example the
Netherlands where she said legalizing prostitution had led to a 25 percent
increase of the local sex industry. |
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©
Copyright Reuters Ltd. All rights reserved. The information contained In
this news report may not be published, broadcast or otherwise distributed
without the prior written authority of Reuters Ltd.
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01/19/2004 17:14 RTR |
Charles Mims
Behind an able man there are always other able men. - Chinese Proverb
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