LGBT prostitutes
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Gay prostitutes are marginalized in Argentina.[ vague ] [22] [23]
Prostitution in Argentina (exchanging sex for money) is legal under Federal law. Article 19 of the constitution states: "The private actions of people that do not offend in any way the public order and morality, nor damage a third person, are only reserved to God, and are exempt from the authority of the magistrates." [1] Organised prostitution (brothels, prostitution rings and pimping) is illegal. [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] In addition, individual provinces may place further restriction on the trade. [7] For example, in San Juan, publicly offering sex services for money is punishable by up to 20 days in jail. [7] In 2012, newspapers were banned from carrying classified-ads offering sexual services. [7] UNAIDS estimated there to be about 75,000 prostitutes in the country in 2016. [8]
Sex workers and the 2016 Human Rights Report of the US Department of State, report corruption, abuse and violence towards sex workers by the police. [7] [9] AMMAR report that between July 1996 and November 2001, 41 of their members have been murdered. Only 3 of these have been solved. [7]
Traffickers from across Argentina bypass regulations that ban brothels by establishing “mobile brothels” in vans and trucks, making raids more difficult; this practice is particularly prevalent in the northern area of the country. [10]
From independence in 1853, Argentina attracted immigrants from Europe which included prostitutes. Prostitution was not a criminal offence, and in 1875 it was legalised and regulated in Buenos Aires. [11] Brothels were established, prostitutes were registered and taxed, and were given regular medical examinations. [11] In 1889, the first year statistics are available for, the number of new registrations of prostitutes in Buenos Aires was 2007, [2] and a hospital, the Dispensario de salubridad, specialising in venereal disease amongst prostitutes was opened at a cost of 100,000 pesos. [2]
Between 1870 and World War I the country developed a reputation as "the port of missing women" as a result of Jewish white slavers and pimps who took advantage of poverty, unemployment and pogroms in Eastern Europe to recruit young Jewish women into prostitution in South America with false promises of marriage. [11] One of the criminal organisations involved, the Zwi Migdal, had 30,000 women in 2,000 brothels. [12] At the same time, Jewish religious organisations in Argentina worked to prevent prostitution among Jewish women in the country. Most of the prostitutes in Argentina in this period were non-immigrant Catholics, but antisemitism fuelled concerns about Jewish involvement in prostitution. [13] In 2013, filmmaker Gabriela Böhm released a documentary film In Raquel’s Footsteps investigating Jewish participation in the sex industry in Argentina in the early 20th century. [14]
The system of regulated prostitution in Buenos Aires was abolished in 1934. [11] In 1954, Juan Perón reintroduced the regularity system. Local authorities could license brothels in "suitable places*. The following year Buenos Aires announced a $6,516,000 scheme to build a street of 34 brothels. [15] After the military coup on 16 September 1955, Peron was deposed and his regulation decree rescinded. The new red-light district in Buenos Aires was never built. In 2003, the Telefe channel made a television comedy series called Disputas expressing the horror and filth of the common Argentine prostitute, it starred the actresses Mirta Busnelli, Belén Blanco, Dolores Fonzi, Julieta Ortega and Florencia Peña.
The Association of Women Sex Workers in Argentina in Action for Our Rights (AMMAR) is a major organization fighting for sex workers' rights. [16] [17] It was formed in 1994 by 60 sex workers, and grew to 15,000 members over the next 10 years. [17] In 1995 it joined the Argentine Workers' Central Union (Central de Trabajadores Argentinos), and in 1997 was affiliated into the Network of Sex Workers of Latin America and the Caribbean (RedTraSex). [18]
In January 2004, the head of the Rosario branch, Sandra Cabrera was murdered. [19] Federal policeman Diego Parvlucyk was charged with her murder, although the case never went to trial. [20] As part of the backlash after her murder, Santa Fe's notoriously corrupt Public Morality Police were disbanded. [21]
| | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (June 2021) |
Gay prostitutes are marginalized in Argentina.[ vague ] [22] [23]
The 2016 Trafficking in Persons Report of the US Department of State ranked Argentina is a Tier 2 country, [10] however as a result of key achievements by the government, it was upgraded to Tier 1 in 2018. [24]
Human traffickers exploit domestic and foreign victims in Argentina, and to a more limited extent, Argentine women and children are victims of sex trafficking in other countries. Traffickers exploit victims from other Latin American countries in Argentina, particularly the Dominican Republic, Paraguay, Peru, Bolivia, Uruguay, Venezuela, and Brazil. Transgender Argentines are exploited in sex trafficking within the country and in Western Europe. Traffickers exploit minors participating in domestic youth sports clubs in sex trafficking. Official complicity, mainly at the sub-national levels, continues to hinder the government's efforts to combat trafficking. [25] In 2016, the Municipality of Ushuaia was ordered to pay restitution to a victim after being found complicit of facilitating trafficking by failing to adequately regulate brothels. [24]
According to ECPAT International, in 1999 child prostitution was increasing and the average age of prostituted children was decreasing. Many child prostitutes in Argentina are trafficked to urban centres from rural areas or are trafficked from neighboring countries such as Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Chile, and Uruguay, and other countries such as Colombia, Dominican Republic, Russia, Venezuela, Romania and Haiti. [26] [27] [28] [29] Revelations in 2018 of an active prostitution ring in Argentina's soccer minor league that victimized youth athletes raised concerns about child sex trafficking in domestic sports and athletic clubs. [25]
Child prostitution is prostitution involving a child, and it is a form of commercial sexual exploitation of children. The term normally refers to prostitution of a minor, or person under the legal age of consent. In most jurisdictions, child prostitution is illegal as part of general prohibition on prostitution.
Zwi Migdal was a criminal organisation founded by Jews in Poland in the 19th century, based mainly in Argentina.
Prostitution in Greece is legal at the age of 18, and regulated. It is estimated that fewer than 1,000 women are legally employed as prostitutes and approximately 20,000 women, half of whom are of foreign origin and the other half are Greek, are engaged in illegal prostitution. Many women affected by the economic crisis have turned to prostitution through poverty.
Prostitution in Senegal is legal and regulated. Senegal has the distinction of being one of the few countries in Africa to legalize prostitution, and the only one to legally regulate it. The only condition that it is done discreetly. Prostitution was first legalised in 1966. UNAIDS estimate that there are over 20,000 prostitutes in the country. The average age for a sex worker in Senegal is 28 years old and female.
Prostitution in Ecuador is legal and regulated, as long as the prostitute is over the age of 18, registered, and works from a licensed brothel. Prostitution is widespread throughout the country. Many brothels and prostitutes operate outside the regulatory system and the regulations have been less strictly enforced in recent years. 25,000 prostitutes were registered in the year 2000. In 2007 it was estimated that 70% of the prostitutes in the country were from Colombia. The country attracts Colombian prostitutes as the currency is the US$ rather than the unstable Colombian peso. UNAIDS estimate there to be 35,000 prostitutes in the country.
Prostitution in Colombia is legal, regulated and limited to brothels in designated "tolerance zones". Sex workers are required to have regular health checks. However, the laws are rarely applied and prostitution is widespread, partly due to poverty and internal displacement.
Prostitution in Bolivia is legal and regulated. It is only permitted by registered prostitutes in licensed brothels. Prostitutes must register and must undergo regular health checks for sexually transmitted diseases. The police are allowed to check whether the prostitutes are registered or not, and have attended a clinic during the previous 20 days.
Prostitution in Paraguay is legal for persons over the age of 18, but related activities such as brothel keeping are prohibited. Prostitution is common in the country. Brothels are also common, even some rural villages have a small bar/brothel on the outskirts.
Prostitution is legal and regulated in Bangladesh. Prostitutes must register and state an affidavit stating that they are entering prostitution of their own free choice and that they are unable to find any other work. Bangladeshi prostitutes often suffer poor social conditions and are frequently socially degraded.
Prostitution in El Salvador is not prohibited by national law, but may be prohibited by local municipal ordinances. Municipal ordinances may also prohibit the purchase of sexual services. Related activities such as facilitating, promoting or giving incentives to a person to work as a prostitute (pimping) are illegal. The prostitution of children is also illegal. Brothel ownership, however, is legal. There are no specific laws against human trafficking, but any criminal offence that includes ‘commerce in women or children’ requires sentencing to be increased by 30%.
The legality of prostitution in Europe varies by country.
Prostitution in Azerbaijan is illegal but common. Prostitution is an administrative offence and punishable by a fine. Keeping a brothel is a criminal offence and punishable by up to 6 years' imprisonment. In 2017 a draft law proposing to add heavy fines to the punishment for keeping a brothel was before the National Assembly. It has been estimated that there are 25,054 prostitutes in Azerbaijan, some of which are aged 15 to 18.
Prostitution in Armenia is illegal under administrative law. Related activities such as running a brothel and pimping are prohibited by the Criminal Code, although there are known to be brothels in the capital, Yerevan, and in Gyumri. According to UNESCO, since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, prostitution in the country has grown. There are about 5,600 women involved in prostitution in Armenia, roughly 1,500 of them are in Yerevan. However, official police figures are far lower, for example 240 in 2012. Police and other safety forces reportedly tolerate prostitution. Many women turn to prostitution due to unemployment.
Prostitution in Cambodia is illegal, but prevalent. A 2008 Cambodian Law on Suppression of Human Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation has proven controversial, with international concerns regarding human rights abuses resulting from it, such as outlined in the 2010 Human Rights Watch report.
Prostitution in Kyrgyzstan has been legal since 1998, but the operation of brothels, pimping, and recruiting persons into prostitution are illegal, with penalties of up to five years There are estimated to be 7,100 sex workers in the country. Prostitution occurs on the streets, in bars, hotels and brothels.
Prostitution in Angola is illegal and prevalent since the 1990s. Prostitution increased further at the end of the civil war in 2001. Prohibition is not consistently enforced. Many women engage in prostitution due to poverty. It was estimated in 2013 that there were about 33,00 sex workers in the country. Many Namibian women enter the country illegally, often via the border municipality of Curoca, and travel to towns such as Ondjiva, Lubango and Luanda to work as prostitutes.
Prostitution in Libya is illegal, but common. Since the country's Cultural Revolution in 1973, laws based on Sharia law's zina are used against prostitutes; the punishment can be 100 lashes. Exploitation of prostitutes, living off the earnings of prostitution or being involved in the running of brothels is outlawed by Article 417 of the Libyan Penal Code. Buying sexual services isn't prohibited by law, but may contravene Sharia law.
Legality of prostitution in the Americas varies by country. Most countries only legalized prostitution, with the act of exchanging money for sexual services legal. The level of enforcement varies by country. One country, the United States, is unique as legality of prostitution is not the responsibility of the federal government, but rather state, territorial, and federal district's responsibility.
Sandra Cabrera was an Argentine street-based sex worker, trade unionist, and campaigner for sex workers' rights. She was murdered in 2004 in Rosario, Argentina by the police. Cabrera was murdered for speaking against the police, accusing them of being involved in organized crime, sexually exploiting minors, and for her defense of street workers' rights threatened brothel owners.
The Asociación de Mujeres Meretrices de Argentina (AMMAR) is the union of sex workers in Argentina. It is responsible for defending their rights and ensuring the interests of sex workers. It is affiliated with the Central de Trabajadores Argentinos (CTA). In 1997 it became part of the Network of Women Sex Workers from Latin America and the Caribbean (RedTraSex).
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain . This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .