Prostitution in Guinea-Bissau

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Prostitution in Guinea-Bissau is common and there are no prostitution laws. [1] In 2016 it was estimated there were 3,138 prostitutes in the country. [2] Often it is associated with other crimes: Many pimps are also reported to be drug dealers. Poverty leads many women to be tempted into prostitution and cocaine addiction. [3]

Contents

Many of the prostitutes in Bissau and other towns in Guinea-Bissau are Manjako women from Caio in the Cacheu Region. [4] [5] They tend to be over 30 and wait in designated rooms in their houses for clients. Occasionally they will go to a local bar in search of clients. [4] Prostitutes from Caio also travel to Ziguinchor in Senegal and Banjul in The Gambia to work. [5]

Younger prostitutes in the cities often work in bars. [3]

There have been reports of child sex tourism on the Bissagos Islands. [6]

HIV

Like other countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, HIV is a problem in the country. [7] Adult prevalence is 3.1% [8]

Condom use amongst sex workers is irregular, [3] which has led to an HIV prevalence amongst sex workers of 39%. [9]

Child prostitution

Child prostitution is a problem in the country. Many children engage in prostitution for survival. The activity mainly takes place in clubs, bars and hotels. The government takes little action, relying on NGOs to try and address the problem. [10]

Around 2000-2004 there have been reports of child sex tourism on the Bissagos Islands. [6]

Sex trafficking

Guinea-Bissau is a source country for children subjected to sex trafficking. The extent to which adults are subjected to forced prostitution is unclear. Bissau-Guinean girls are subjected to child sex trafficking in Guinea and Senegal. [6]

The United States Department of State Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons ranks Guinea-Bissau as a Tier 2 Watch List country. [11]

Related Research Articles

Prostitution in Guatemala is legal but procuring is prohibited. There is an offence of “aggravated procuring” where a minor is involved. Keeping a brothel is not prohibited.

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 Georgia is illegal but widespread, particularly in the capital, Tbilisi. Many NGO's attribute this to the harsh economic conditions according to the US State Department. Prostitution occurs on the streets, in bars, nightclubs, hotels and brothels. UNAIDS estimate there are 6,525 prostitutes in Georgia.

Prostitution in Zambia is legal and common. Related activities such as soliciting and procuring are prohibited. UNAIDS estimate there are 9,285 prostitutes in the capital, Lusaka. Many women turn to prostitution due to poverty. Sex workers report law enforcement is corrupt, inconsistent and often abusive.

Prostitution in Cameroon is illegal but tolerated, especially in urban and tourist areas. In the capital, Yaoundé the main area of prostitution is the neighbourhood of Mini Ferme. UNAIDS estimate there are 112,000 sex workers in the country.

Prostitution in Burkina Faso is not specifically prohibited by the law, but soliciting and pimping are illegal. Burkinabe society only accepts sexual intercourse within marriage. In 2009, Voice of America reported that the number of prostitutes in Burkina Faso had increased as a result of the country's poverty. The increase in prostitution has given rise to fears of an increase in the number of Burkinabés infected with HIV and AIDS. UNAIDS estimate there to be 31,000 prostitutes in the country.

Prostitution in Tanzania is illegal but widespread. UNAIDS estimate there to be 155,450 prostitutes in the country. Many women and young girls are forced into prostitution due to poverty, lack of job opportunities, culture, and the disintegration of the family unit. Many university students have to turn to prostitution for economic reasons.

Prostitution in Africa Overview of the legality and practice of prostitution in Africa

The legal status of prostitution in Africa varies widely. It is frequently common in practice, partially driven by the widespread poverty in many sub-Saharan African countries, and is one of the drivers for the prevalence of AIDS in Africa. Senegal and Côte d'Ivoire permit the operations of brothels. In other countries, prostitution may be legal, but brothels are not allowed to operate. In some countries where prostitution is illegal, the law is rarely enforced.

Prostitution in Eswatini is illegal, the anti-prostitution laws dating back to 1889, when the country Eswatini was a protectorate of South Africa. Law enforcement is inconsistent, particularly near industrial sites and military bases. Police tend to turn a blind eye to prostitution in clubs. There are periodic clamp-downs by the police.

Prostitution in Eritrea is legal and regulated. Official figures state there are around 2,000 prostitutes in the country, who are not allowed to operate near schools, hospitals, and churches. According to the 2009 Human Rights Reports, security forces occasionally follow women engaged in prostitution and arrest those who had spent the night with a foreigner. Some women enter prostitution due to poverty. Prostitutes are known locally as "shermuta" in Arabic, or "mnzerma" and "me'amn" in Tigrinya.

Prostitution in Uzbekistan is illegal, but prostitution has increased within the country since the collapse of the Soviet Union. UNAIDS estimated there to be 22,000 sex workers in the country in 2019. Many of the women have turned to prostitution in Uzbekistan because of poverty.

Prostitution in Tajikistan is legal, but related activities such as soliciting, procuring and brothel keeping are prohibited. Prostitution has increased within the country since the collapse of the Soviet Union. UNAIDS estimate there are 14,100 female sex workers in Tajikistan. Government official figures for 2015 were 1,777 prostitutes and 194 brothels. Prostitution occurs on the streets and in bars, restaurants, nightclubs and saunas, and HIV prevalence is 3.5% amongst sex workers.

Prostitution in Togo is legal and commonplace. Related activities such as solicitation, living off the earnings of prostitution or procuring are prohibited. Punishment is up to 10 years imprisonment if minors or violence is involved.

Prostitution in Madagascar is legal, and common, especially in tourist areas. Related activities such as soliciting, procuring, living off the earnings of prostitution or keeping a brothel are prohibited. Public Order laws are also used against prostitutes. There are recent laws against "consorting with female prostitutes". People caught paying for sex with children under 14 can face criminal penalties of up to 10 years imprisonment. This is strictly enforced against foreign tourists. As well as in the tourist areas, prostitution also occurs around the mining towns of the interior such as Ilakaka and Andilamena. It was estimated that there were 167,443 sex workers in the country in 2014.

Prostitution in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is legal but related activities are prohibited. The Congolese penal code punishes pimping, running a bawdy house or brothel, the exploitation of debauchery or prostitution, as well as forced prostitution. Activities that incite minors or promote the prostitution of others have been criminalised. The government does little to enforce the law. During the colonial era and the years that followed independence, the Ministry of Health issued calling cards identifying professional sex workers and provided them with medical health checks. However, this system was abandoned in the 1980s. Public order laws are sometimes used against sex workers. Street prostitutes report harassment, violence and extortion from the police. UNAIDS estimated there are 2.9 million sex workers in the country.

Prostitution in Niger is illegal but common in the cities, near mines and around military bases. UNAIDS estimate there are 46,630 sex workers in the country. Many have turned to prostitution because of poverty.

Prostitution in Botswana is not illegal, but laws such as public disorder, vagrancy, loitering and state recognised religious provisions are used to prosecute prostitutes. Related activities such as soliciting and brothel keeping are illegal. Botswana has made proposals to make prostitution legal to prevent the spread of AIDS. However, there has been mass opposition to it by the Catholic Church. Prostitution is widespread and takes place on the street, bars, hotels, brothels and the cabs of long-distance trucks.

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 Ivory Coast is legal, but associated activities, such as soliciting, pandering or running brothels, are illegal. Sex workers report law enforcement is sparse and corrupt. Police sometimes harass sex workers and demand bribes or sexual favours. Transgender prostitutes are often targeted by police and soldiers and subjected to violence. It was estimated in 2014 that there were 9,211 prostitutes in the country.

Prostitution in Benin is legal but related activities such as brothel keeping and benefiting from the prostitution of others are illegal. UNAIDS estimates there to be about 15,000 prostitutes in the country. Most of these are migrants from neighbouring countries, mainly Nigeria, Togo and Ghana. Only 15% of the prostitutes are Beninese. Prostitution occurs on the streets, in bars, restaurants, hotels and brothels. With advent of the smartphone, many prostitutes use apps to make arrangements with clients.

References

  1. ↑ "The Legal Status of Prostitution by Country". ChartsBin. Retrieved 7 January 2018.
  2. ↑ "Sex workers: Population size estimate - Number, 2016". www.aidsinfoonline.org. UNAIDS. Archived from the original on 4 June 2019. Retrieved 21 July 2018.
  3. 1 2 3 Marco Vernaschi (30 June 2009). "Guinea Bissau: Crack and prostitution, cocaine's other face". Pulitzer . Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  4. 1 2 Buckner, Margaret (1999). "Village women as town prostitutes: cultural factors relevant to prostitution and HIV epidemiology in Guinea-Bissau" (PDF). Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa. Retrieved 7 January 2018.
  5. 1 2 Ditmore, Melissa Hope (edited by) (2006). Encyclopedia of prostitution and sex work. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press. ISBN   978-0313329685.{{cite book}}: |first1= has generic name (help)
  6. 1 2 3 "Trafficking in Persons Report 2016 - Country Narratives - Guinea-Bissau". US Department of State. 30 June 2016. Retrieved 7 January 2018.PD-icon.svgThis article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  7. ↑ "New cases of HIV / AIDS worry country's health authorities". UNIOGBIS. 16 December 2016. Retrieved 7 January 2018.
  8. ↑ "Guinea-Bissau 2016 Country factsheet". UNAIDS . Retrieved 7 January 2018.
  9. ↑ "HIV prevalence amongst sex workers". www.aidsinfoonline.org. UNAIDS. 2016. Archived from the original on 22 July 2018. Retrieved 22 July 2018.
  10. ↑ "Child Prostitution - Guinea-Bissau". GVNET. Retrieved 7 January 2018. mainly culled from 10-15 year old sources, not verified.
  11. ↑ "Guinea-Bissau 2018 Trafficking in Persons Report". U.S. Department of State. Archived from the original on 29 July 2018. Retrieved 29 July 2018.


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