Drafters should be aware that while sex trafficking laws do not typically include criminal penalties for buyers, such penalties must be present in the existing criminal code in order to address the demand for the sale of women and girls for sex, which fuels sex trafficking. Penalties should be sufficiently severe so as to deter repeat offences. The Nordic countries, particularly Sweden and Norway, have taken strong stances on punishing those who purchase sexual services. The penal codes of the two countries criminalize the purchase of sex, but not the sale of sex recognizing that prostitution is a form of violence against women, sexual exploitation, and gender inequality. While official statistics detailing the impact of the Swedish statutes are not yet available, researchers from Human Rights Without Frontiers have reported that the number of men purchasing sexual services in Sweden has declined. Government officials in Norway have also reported a decrease in the purchase of sexual services. (See:  Sweden’s Demand-Focused Policy, 2009; Contra Bonos Mores and the Sex Purchase Ban in Norway, 2010)

CASE STUDY: A 2009 report written by Charlotta Holmström and May-Len Skilbrei and published by the Nordic Council of Ministers and the Nordic Council, provides an important comparative analysis of the scope and prevalence as well as the legislative responses to prostitution and human trafficking in the countries of Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, and Iceland. The differences in legislation in each of the countries may have had an effect on the scope and prevalence of prostitution. Every Nordic country prohibits the trafficking of individuals for sexual purposes. At the same time, each of the countries has attempted to address the market for sex trafficking by adapting its prostitution laws. 

In Sweden, the scope and prevalence of prostitution has declined to about 600 women in street and internet prostitution. Since 1999, Sweden has prohibited the purchase, but not the sale of sexual services. In Norway, more than 2,654 women are selling sex on the streets and elsewhere. A ban on the purchase of sexual services was adopted by Norway in 2009. 

In Denmark, prostitution is increasing both on the internet and the streets with an estimated 5,567 persons in prostitution. Since 1999, earning a living through prostitution was no longer prohibited in Denmark. In Finland and Iceland, there have also been increases and more visible prostitution. Finland has prohibited buying and selling sex in public places since 1999, but has been considering an amendment to the criminal law to punish the purchase of sexual services in general since 2005. Iceland prohibits earning a permanent living from selling sexual services.

The decreasing numbers of women in prostitution and the decrease in the demand in Sweden have been linked to the changes in the Swedish law. Norway has also experienced a decrease in the number of men purchasing sex since their law took effect. 

(See:  Prostitution in the Nordic Countries, Nordic Council of Ministers, 2009)

In some countries, prosecutors and the criminal justice system require that a convicted buyer attends a “john school” as a condition of their sentence. The purpose of such programs is to reduce the demand for the sale of human beings for sexual acts and to educate offenders about the harm to victims and the community. Such schools exist in the United States and elsewhere. For example, in the Republic of Korea 39 “John schools” educated 17,956 first-time male “clients” of prostitution. (See: U.S. State Department 2009 Trafficking in Persons Report, 178, 2009)

CASE STUDY: In the Republic of Korea, the government has begun to recognize the importance of punishing those who buy or procure sex from others.  Such recognition is important both as it relates to holding those who buy other human beings for sex accountable and to addressing the demand. In 2004, the Act on the Punishment of Procuring Prostitution and Associated Acts and the Act on the Prevention of Prostitution and Protection of Victims were enacted. 

According to the Korea Women’s Associations United (KWAU), both a fire in a brothel in 2000 and an active campaign by women’s organizations prompted the government to enact these laws. The KWAU regards the laws as a significant step toward the promotion and protection of the human rights of prostituted women. As of January 2007, the association credited the laws with results such as increased rates of arrest for those buying sex and a reduction in crimes such as forced confinement. According to a 2006 report by End Child Prostitution and Trafficking (ECPAT), red-light districts were “reduced by more than 30 per cent, and a survey conducted by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family showed that, of 1181 respondents, 86 per cent of male respondents indicated that they bought sex services less frequently after the acts were enforced.” (See: Global Monitoring Report on the Status of Action Against Commercial Exploitation of Children: South Korea, ECPAT International, 20, 2006)

In addition, the Juvenile Protection Law Against Sexual Exploitation (2000) punishes those who buy sex from youth.  According to various non-governmental organizations, approximately 100,000 runaways are at risk for sexual exploitation in the country.  In fact, one NGO estimated that 43 per cent of youth runaways they surveyed had been approached to engage in the sex trade.  According ECPAT, prostituted women and children are treated as crime victims under the Act on the Punishment of Procuring Prostitution and Associated Acts, but not under the Prevention of Prostitution and Protection of Victims law.

Both KWAU and ECPAT reported that the passage of the laws mentioned here has generated increased public awareness that prostitution is a form of violence and sexual exploitation and that “trafficking in human beings for sexual purposes was not an issue involving perpetrators and victims only, but a human rights issue affecting the nation as a whole.” (See: Global Monitoring Report on the Status of Action Against Commercial Exploitation of Children:  South Korea, ECPAT International, 2006)

See:  Statement by the Minister of Gender Equality and Family, The 39^th Session of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Violence Against Women, 5-6, 2007; The Korean Shadow Report, Korean Women’s Associations United, 38-42, 2007; Global Monitoring Report on the Status of Action Against Commercial Exploitation of Children:  South Korea, ECPAT International, 2006.

Human rights practitioners suggest additional research on strategies to reduce the demand is needed because prevention efforts that focus on education, communication, and information alone have not led to a significant decline in the numbers of sex trafficking victims. An approach which shifts the focus to countries where men consume the sexual services of trafficked women is needed. (See: Trafficking in Human Beings and Sexual Exploitation: Preliminary Research on the Reduction of Demand, Human Rights without Frontiers, 2010)