Dutch prostitution alliance fights against stigma
A prostitute's place in Amsterdam, Holland. Photo ANP, Robin Utrecht
Western Europe
A new alliance of 22 Dutch organisations is committed to combat the stigma of sex work. The Sex Work Alliance Destigmatization (SWAD) will be founded on Wednesday on the International Day of the Sex Worker, the Dutch daily Reformatorisch Dagblad reports.
Sex workers are often seen as victims, the alliance states. Policymakers would pay particular attention to the link between sex work and human trafficking. The initiators complain that this leads to a “one-sided approach and stigmatisation” of people who offer so-called “sexual service”.
In the view of the initiators, increasing regulations worsen the position of sex workers: “For sex workers, it leads to reduced access to care and police, exclusion from essential services such as mortgages or bank accounts, negative treatment by family and friends, psychological complaints and more violence.”
Behind SWAD are 22 organisations and initiatives that work together to reduce the stigma on prostitution. The alliance includes fourteen sex work organisations, five organisations for care and social work from the four major cities (Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht) in the Netherlands and the municipality of Tilburg.
The organisations want to focus on raising awareness among government agencies.
