A petition is to be handed into the Dutch parliament demanding that visiting a prostitute be made illegal.
Some 42,000 young people have added their signatures, which means the issue will be debated by politicians in a country that has some of the most relaxed laws around paying for sex after a social media-led campaign by the name “Ik ben onbetaalbaar” (I am priceless).
The young activists argue more should be done to protect vulnerable women.
According to the “I am priceless” petition, the Netherlands’ facilitation of the sex industry is outdated and exploitative.
Activists want buyers to be penalised, under what is known as the Nordic model. In the Netherlands, buying and selling sex is legal as long as it involves “sex between consenting adults”.
Under the Nordic model, adopted by Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Northern Ireland and France, buyers are penalised.
They say countries in which the model has been introduced have seen:
- Fewer people going to buy sex.
- The country becoming less attractive for human traffickers.
- Fewer people being exploited by prostitution.
But any drastic overturn of the Netherlands’ current liberal laws will face opposition from those in politics and society who see prostitution as a symbol of freedom rather than repression.
