Candid Commentary:
The problem of
prostitution - a problem
that will not go away.
The recent horrors of
five young women meeting
their deaths in Suffolk
had brought to the
British public's
attention of the problems
posed by and the dangers
faced by prostitutes of
"working girls" as some
euphemistically wish to
call them. Harriet Harman
Q.C. M.P. seeks to tackle
this problem by
criminalising the
"punters" of clients of
prostitutes instead of
the women themselves.
This, superficially is an
attractive and plausible
option - but the dear
lady has clearly not
thought the issue through
- which for a Q.C. is
something that should be
something of a second
nature - which it is
clearly not!!!!!
In Sweden they have made
the act of offering money
to procure sexual
services a criminal
offence. The problem
surrounding this lies in
the variety of the
"punters" the prostitutes
"entertain." These
"punters" range from the
unfaithful husband in a
distant city procuring a
"one night stand" of
conventional and normal
intercourse with a woman
through to individuals
with cravings of an
altogether corrupt and
depraved nature - it is
not necessary to describe
such activities here -
suffice it to say that
several such activities
are not only demeaning to
the women but present a
real and present danger
to the physical health of
all parties - some
activities involve more
than one prostitute and
more than one "punter".
It is a fact of life that
when a particular
activity is criminalised
there will be a varying
degree of compliance by
those directly affected -
i.e.; those who indulged
in this activity prior to
its criminalisation. Some
- indeed many may well
heed the legislation and
cease to indulge in these
activities - for fear of
the consequences.
Therefore the unfaithful
husband may well desist
from his forays to the
red light districts for
he would realise were he
caught he would be
arrested, charged and
convicted of an offence
and end up not only with
a criminal record but
with unwelcome and
unpleasant publicity - he
might well loose his job
- especially if the court
removes his driving
licence. He may well be
facing the loss of his
home should his outraged
wife issue divorce
proceedings - all in all
a set of strong
incentives to desist! So
what you ask is the
problem with Ms. Harman's
suggestion ?
The problem lies not with
the character described
above but with the
altogether deviant
character with depraved
appetites - for these
characters are far less
likely to be discouraged
by the threat of an
appearance before the
magistrates - thus the
women involved in this
activity will find that
their health and safety
be further put in
jeopardy.
Of course, Ms. Harman
will now find herself
hoisted on a petard of
her own making for it is
now politically incorrect
to speak of sexual
perverts. What is needed
is not an Act to
criminalise payment for
sexual services but an
Act making it an offence
to incite someone to
indulge in activities
that deprave and corrupt.
This should include acts. Moreover it
should not be gender
specific applying equally
to both sexes.
COPYRIGHT 2006 - THE DRIVE THE FLAG
CAMPAIGN.
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