On April 6, the French Parliament voted on a bill to point the finger of shame on a prostitute's client rather than on the prostitute, herself. After simmering within the parliament chambers for nearly two years, the bill passed 64-12 and a new order is beginning to take its toll.
The bill simply states that although prostitution is legal in France, the paying for service is illegal. Confusing? Perhaps, but it seems to make sense for those who sit in leather chairs and carry themselves with embedded suitcase. The bill was made to stop the payments fueling the sex-trafficking network instead of handling the network first hand.
The bill has received several oppositions and has raised questions on how the bill will be reinforced. As of right now, the bill states that any client in possession of a prostitute will pay a fine of roughly 3,750 Euros equivalent to $4,265 and will have to attend frequent seminars on the struggles women face in the sex-trafficking industry. As if, a quick 30 minute seminar will make them less horny and bring 'new' life and understanding. Wrong.
France is not protecting its daughters. It is not the hero that it poses to be.
The matter is as simple as it sounds; the bill is not going to change anything. If the client has enough money to spend on a quick 30 minute service, the client should have more than enough money to pay a fine. Let's be honest, anyone willing to stretch their wallet for a sexual desire is willing to pay for the consequences.
Le Mouvement du Nid (Movement of Nest) is one of the nesting advocates who seek to abolish prostitution and help prostitutes receive the immediate medical attention they need. The advocates have shown strong defensiveness towards the bill. According to le Mouvemnet de Nid, the burden is now shifted from the victim unto the client and nothing is being done to end the injustice.
The fact is that a quick ticket is not enough. The client is simply paying the government more money for its own leisure. The client is not being penalized; its the victims, roughly 30,00 in France today, who are constantly under the struggles of being stuck in a routine where her own government is not looking to break through.
Several anti-prostitution advocates claim that the government of France has more power than it can imagine. It could have ended the injustice. It could have opened its tiny ears into the realization that prostitution does not happen without the prostitute. Once you take the service away, the client equally vanishes. Hence, the injustice is finished.
Yes, their are some women who chose to be prostitutes by their own free-will. However, their are thousands who do not get a choice and for those, we should stand for, fight for.
The government is hiding the real issue with a little pink slip of paper. Nothing has been resolved except perhaps a good campaign for France 'demolishing' the sex-trafficking world. Expect, France is not fixing anything; it's making it worse.
