Follow Up Report on Prostitution Laws in Sweden

In 1999, Sweden became the first country to criminalize the purchase of sexual services, making criminals out of those who seek and buy sexual services, not those who are selling them. On July 2, 2010, the Evaluation of the Ban on Purchase of Sexual Services report was submitted to Minister for Justice Beatrice Ask. The purpose of the report was to evaluate the effect the prohibition of the purchase of sexual services had on commercial sex industry in Sweden. The ban became effective in 1999, and the report examined the findings during the ten years it has been in place, from 1999 to 2008.

Overall, the report shows that the law has been effective in decreasing street prostitution. There are estimates that in Stockholm alone, the number of prostituted women on the streets went from 280 in 1998 down to 180 in 2008. Additionally, there are discussions that the ban discouraged the human trafficking organized criminal activity in the country; therefore, it has been effective in preventing human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation.

The report also indicates that there is a solid support for the ban, both from general public and law enforcement agencies. There are findings that under current law, penalties are not proportionate to the gravity of the crime in several cases. Currently, the maximum penalty for the crime is six months imprisonment; nevertheless, according to Swedish public radio, out of 650 people sentenced to date for purchasing sexual services, none served in prison. Therefore, there are recommendations that the penalties for purchase of sexual services should be increased. The report recommends to increase maximum penalty to one-year imprisonment.

The critics of the ban say that prostituted women went underground, offering themselves through the Internet and other venues where there is a great risk of harm. Additionally, the statistical data shows that prostitution increased in Oslo and Copenhagen during the same time period. However, the report indicated that there are no findings that the ban had a negative effect on sexually exploited people in Sweden. Norway adopted legislation similar to Sweden’s ban in January of 2009, and the effects are yet to be reported.

The evaluation report presented to Minister for Justice of Sweden indicates that the prohibition of the purchase of sexual services has been effective in criminalizing those who are purchasing sexual services, therefore, deterring others from engaging in this activity. As a result, street prostitution decreased all across the country. Also, there are indicators that the ban has been effective in preventing human sex trafficking in the country. In spite of criticism, Sweden’s efforts are commendable and should be considered by other governments in their attempts to fight and prevent trafficking in persons for sexual exploitation. Commercial sex industry is growing because of the demand. Therefore, criminalizing those who create this demand, in other words, those who are seeking to buy and exploit other human beings for sexual purposes, will have a direct effect on the supply chain of human sex trafficking.

Sources Used:

http://www.sweden.gov.se/sb/d/13358/a/149231

http://www.thelocal.se/27580/20100703/