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Should prostitution be legalised in Nigeria? · Stakeholders examine pros and cons of the proposal KAYODE KETEFE Prostitutes abound everywhere in various parts of the country. In Lagos State for instance, these ladies of easy virtue are seen lining up the highways of Western Avenue, Ojuelegba, Mobolaji Bank-Anthony way, Ikeja and Ozumba Mbadiwe road, Victoria Island at night. In the Federal Capital Territory (FTC) Abuja, they are common sight on the routes leading to the major motor parks, Wuse Zone Six, Garki Area, and the roads linking Apo legislators quarters among others. In Port Harcourt, Rivers State, they often lined up on Aba-Port Harcourt road and hang around Garrison junction. Prostitution, otherwise called transactional sexual relationship consists of the practice by girls and women of making their bodies available for sexual pleasure by fun seekers in exchange for monetary gains. It has been described as the oldest profession in the world because its practice and prevalence predates written history. Today, many women rights activists insist on usage of expression Commercial Sex Work and Commercial Sex Workers to denote prostitution and prostitutes respectively, in order to remove the stigma which hangs on the words. Even barmaids prefer to be called Customer Relations Officer instead of the more down-to -earth hotel/ brothel barmaids. In countries where prostitution is legalised, sex workers are often required by law to have regular check-ups for sexually transmitted diseases and at least quarterly HIV tests! This, the proponents of the legalisation claim, would help to curtail the spread of STD. In Nigeria, almost all major cities brim with brothels euphemistically called pleasures centres or sexual sanctuaries while many streets habour night crawlers in the form of prostitutes soliciting for customers. Poverty has been cited as the number one factor responsible for this, although commercial sex workers also exist in many prosperous countries, the proliferation of the practice in poverty-ridden countries of Africa and other places is in many folds as youngsters do not only practice it within the countries but also fall victims to human trafficking rackets. Under the Nigerian law prostitution is not directly criminalised. What the Criminal Code, for instance does is seeking to punish persons who trade in prostitution, that is those who keep brothels and also allows girls under 16 to be in brothels-a practice CC calls offence against morality The Penal Code also criminalises importation of a girl under the age of 21 from a foreign country into Northern Nigeria for the purpose of prostitution. Thus it is those people that profit from the earnings on prostitution and generally the aiding and abetting of prostitution that our law frowns at. Section 223 of the Criminal Code, for instance provides, Any person who- (1) procures a girl or woman who is under the age of eighteen years to have unlawful carnal connection with any other person or persons, either in Nigeria or elsewhere; or (11) procures a woman or girl to become a common prostitute, either in Nigeria, or elsewhere; or - (111) procures a woman or girl to leave Nigeria with intent that she may become an inmate of a brothel elsewhere; or (1V) procures a. woman or girl to leave her usual place of abode in Nigeria, with intent that she may, for the purposes of prostitution, become an inmate of a brothel, either in Nigeria or elsewhere; is guilty of a misdemeanour, and is liable to imprisonment for two years. The issue of prostitution was recently thrown into public discourse in Nigeria as a result of a statement credited to the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu. The lawmaker, during the Senate Review of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons Act, was quoted to have said. We need to regulate prostitution in this country so that if anyone wants to indulge in prostitution, the person should be registered and issued with a license. If we say we want to stop it, it would be difficult. It is done in other countries; let us regulate it by issuing licence. The statement generated sustained public outcry and furore as it was construed to be a call for national endorsement for immorality. However, there are some people who feel more advantages would be reaped from legalising the practice. Ekweremadu himself however denied the report that he was sponsoring a bill for the legalisation of prostitution in Nigeria. He said there was even no such bill currently pending before the National Assembly, adding that people had misunderstood him. Be that as it may, the hornet's nest that had been stirred by the report is yet to settle down and many stakeholders are already examining the issue of legalisation of prostitution and its implication on the Nigerian socio-cultural values. Some high profile personalities have also recently spoken on this proposal, these included Archbishop of Lagos, Anthony Cardinal Olubunmi Okogie, and the wife of the Lagos State Governor, Mrs. Abimbola Fashola. In his own view, Okogie said "If prostitution is legalised, then where are we heading to? There are more important issues needed to be tackled than thinking of legalising prostitution. Mrs. If any citizen wishes to ruin her life, the National Assembly should not encourage it by legalising the illicit trade. "Those who engage in prostitution are women who do not want to use their God- given talent. We will pray against it. We'll do our best to ensure that our country does not degenerate into legalising prostitution." In the days leading to the Rugby World Cup in New Zealand, (which ended yesterday) some licensed agents in that country were busy doing something special- recruiting more prostitutes into many licensed brothels in the hosting city of Auckland. These sex workers would cater to the needs of thousands of people, sportsmen and fans that thronged the country for the World Cup. New Zealand is one of the countries in the world that have legalised prostitution. Apart from New Zealand, which legalised prostitution eight years ago, other countries where the practice of prostitution is both protected and regulated by law include Germany, Netherland or Austria, Canada, Philippines, Brazil and Cote dIvoire in Africa. In Germany and Netherlands for instance, there are many areas called red light districts where a person can safely seek sexual services of call girls without official disapproval or sanctioning. In Brazil, the Ministry of Labor in 2002 added sex worker to an official list of occupation. Furthermore, prostitutes are allowed to contribute to the official government pension fund and receive benefits upon retirement from the trade. Thus, legal status of prostitution varies from country to country. An American public speaker and social commentator, Dr. Jocelyn Elders, had said: ÒWe say that hookers (prostitute) are selling their bodies, but how is that different from athletes? They are selling their bodies. Models? They are selling their bodies. Actors? They are selling their bodies. Worldwide, there are three popular methods of governments reaction to prostitution, the government may decide to ban it, it may decide to recognise and regulate it or it may make its practice difficult for its practitioners. The example of the last method may consist of government criminalising the buying of sexual services rather the selling of it that is it is the male clients that would be arrested. The rationale behind this reverse method is that if there are no people ready to buy, the seller would be out of business. This is example of methodology being used in Sweden and some other Scandinavian countries. Should there be legal backing for prostitution in Nigeria? This writer sought the views of some stakeholders on the vexed issue. A United Nations Nations Special Rapporteur on Trafficking in Persons and Founding Director of Women Aid Collective, Dr. Joy Ngozi Ezeilo, who teaches law at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, opined thus, "Peoples are of different minds on this issue and the method applied on the practice differs from country to country. "Some countries have adopted legislation that criminalises the buying or soliciting of sexual services. This, it is claimed, has led to a significant reduction in the number of people who indulge in prostitution. Conversely some states have also legalised it and still reports that it curbs sex trafficking. The strategy to be employed depends on the each country. "As for me, I believe that rather than canvassing for the legalisation of prostitution or commercial sexuality, it would be more reasonable and dignifying to legislate on laws that will create business and jobs for Nigerians. "Let us face the underlying root cause of this social and moral malaise. ÒLet there be creation of employment and social provisioning to reduce poverty. "Government should formulate policies and programmes to close the gender gap. If we focus on policies of social insurance and make life more comfortable for the masses, a lot of this problem will take of themselves." Also, the Executive Director of Gender and Development Action, Mrs. Ada Aginia-Ude, said "The best way to drive any business underground it to make it illegal. "Things would just get worse, but if you allow it in the open and regulate it, you would be helping the matter. "We are easily morally outraged by issue of prostitution because of our religious inclinations, that we are Anglican, we are Methodist or Catholic and we donÕt want to hear anything like prostitution, but outside our sentiments, we know that this thing happen all the time our society and ignoring it would not bring the solution. Why should we be pretending? "I think it would better if the law regulates the practice, for example, it should be criminal for any-under age people to engage in it why it may not be so for two consenting adults if no other law is broken in the process. "This is not saying anybody is encouraging immorality; it is just about bringing some level of sanity into an existing underground business which has been conducted all along." The Head of the Penal Reforms Unit of the Civil Liberties Organisation, Mr. Princewill Akpakpan, said I dont think the issue of prostitution, strictly speaking is a legal issue. It is more of a moral issue than legal. "Every society has its own values, norms and mores; we should not be making law to override our collective values. Legalising the prostitution is tantamount to endorsement of a practice. The law itself, if made would like legitimacy, for it would not reflect what the people want. But the Director of Gender and Legal Aids of a Lagos-based non-governmental organisation, Women Advocate Research and Documentation Centre, Ms Grace Otor, disagreed with the above. She said "The mere fact that something appears to offend our sense of what is right and wrong does not mean we should always dismiss it since merely ignoring it would not make it go away. Prostitution is prevalent in our society and because it is deemed illegal, it is practiced outside the precincts of the law which make it more dangerous. "If it is legalised, the law itself will prescribed the limits. Remember this is not just about the law creating the prostitution; it is existing outside the law. "Regulating it would no harm, it is the hypocrisy and pretences that would do more harm." This writer also sought the views of some commercial sex workers for their views on the issue. One of them, Beatrice, who plied her trade in one of the brothels in Oshodi area of Lagos State, said "I want the government to legalise Ashewo work because the police are just using us to make money. "They would just come and raid us anytime they like. If they carry away 12 girls for instance, they would demand N5000 from each, after a lot of begging, they may take N2, 000 from each girl. "We understand they dont give this money to government; they only pocket it for themselves." Another sex worker of the same Oshodi axis, Helen, said "Legalise what? I dont want the government to legalise anything, I am not happy doing this work at all, But I have to survive. "If government really wants to help, they should just give us small loans to establish business. If I have something like N100, 000, I will quit this job forever, and I will repay the loan, I promised" |
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