Dublin MEP leads calls to change sex laws

A SUBMISSION by Dublin MEP Emer Costello calling for those who buy sex to be criminalised is one of hundreds of proposals being heard in the Dáil this week as part of a major Government review of Irish prostitution law.

A public consultation process launched last June by Justice Minister Alan Shatter has resulted in over 1,000 submissions from individuals and groups recommending changes to the 1993 Criminal Law Sexual Offences Act.

The Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice is this week debating the submissions to decide whether the law needs updating to address the modern-day sex trade.

Speaking to Northside People, Ms Costello said the only way to deal with prostitution was to tackle demand by making it illegal to purchase sex.

She also commended efforts by gardaí in the Dublin 7 area to crack down on prostitution as part of Operation Kerb – a largely successful drive to clean up streets around the Arbour Hill area carried out in 2011.

Under the initiative, female gardaí dressed as prostitutes targeted kerb-crawlers and managed to arrest at least 64 people who were charged with soliciting and other related offences.

“It was very successful; they managed to stem a lot of prostitution activity around Montpelier Hill, Arbour Hill and Dublin 7,

? said Ms Costello.

“When I started in politics in 2003, the guards used to target the women. Judges used to put exclusion orders on them and tell them they couldn’t go back on the Hill. The men used to get off with very small fines, and even then they would plea-bargain before going to court so that they wouldn’t be named and shamed.

?

However, the Labour MEP said while the guards are doing all they can, the only lasting solution would be to follow the example set by countries like Sweden, where buying sex was criminalised in 1999.

EU figures show that one in every 15 Irish men have reported as having paid for sex, and that 61 per cent of these men were either married or in a committed relationship.

It’s estimated that 500,000 women are trafficked into Europe every year, and 11 per cent of those trafficked into Ireland for sex are under the age of 18.

Ms Costello is lobbying actively at EU level to protect people from sex trafficking and last month helped to launch the

‘Brussels Call’, a document signed by 150 EU groups calling for a Europe free from prostitution.

The Dublin MEP is also a strong supporter of the

‘Turn Off the Red Light’ campaign which is seeking new laws targeting the buyers of sex. The campaign is also backed by Ruhama, which supports women affected by prostitution, and by the Immigrant Council of Ireland.

CEO of the Immigrant Council of Ireland, Denise Charlton, urged Dubliners to show their support by contacting their local TD at www.turnofftheredlight.ie/action

“Dublin remains one of the strongest areas of support for our campaign; we’ve been joined by nurses, doctors, public servants, postal workers, survivors of prostitution, telecommunications workers and journalists,

? she said.

“People from all walks of life are demanding a change in the law to end the misery for women and girls and to remove organised crime from their own communities.

?

Mr Charlton said the campaign had now reached a crucial point as it was

“time for Ireland to decide if it was going to allow organised crime, pimps and traffickers continue human rights abuses in apartment complexes, hotel rooms and brothels in every part of Dublin

?.