Are “Shitty Customers” and “Exploitative Business Owners” Just Getting More Brazen!? The “Downside” Revealed by “Decriminalization,” Which Does Not Punish Sex Work
Sex Work Around the World and the State, Part 3: Part 2
The Situation in Decriminalized Belgium
Amid ongoing efforts to revise the Anti-Prostitution Law, this is the third installment in a series by Akira Ikoma, a sex industry journalist who has been reporting on the realities of sex trade regulations around the world. In this second part, he addresses criticism of the decriminalization model, often referred to as the “third way.”
In 2022, Belgium became the first country in Europe to adopt the decriminalization model. The Minister of Justice called this a “historic” move and praised the government, stating that it “ensures sex workers are no longer stigmatized, exploited, or made dependent on others.”
In 2024, the country enacted a law allowing sex workers to enter into formal employment contracts, guaranteeing sick leave, maternity leave, and pensions, and ensuring they receive social security benefits equivalent to those of other professions. These benefits include unemployment insurance, health insurance, family allowances, and paid vacation, as well as the right to refuse clients.
Employers are required to have no prior convictions for sexual assault, human trafficking, or fraud; they are obligated to “provide a clean and hygienic work environment” and “install emergency buttons,” and are prohibited from “dismissing employees for refusing clients or refusing to perform sexual acts.”
In this way, Belgium’s new law treats sex workers not as “criminals” but as “workers who can work legally,” granting them full social security benefits and labor rights. This is said to have significantly advanced safety and human rights protection throughout the sex work industry.
However, there is also strong opposition to decriminalization. This is because it means that not only sex work itself, but also the facilitation of sex work, the operation of sex establishments, and the purchase of sex are all decriminalized.Some have pointed out that “this law legalizes and legitimizes sexual exploitation by clients and sex trade operators, and serves to mask a genuine setback for women’s rights.”
Furthermore, it is argued that the possibility is being overlooked that “if sex workers exercise their new rights—such as turning down clients or refusing sexual acts—they may be punished by sex trade operators on the grounds that it reduces revenue.”
Even if, in theory, sex workers can refuse clients or stop sexual acts against their will, in practice, angering a client means angering their boss. It is difficult to imagine sex workers, who are in precarious and vulnerable positions, actually exercising these rights.
Customer demands have become more extreme
As seen in the case of Belgium, the decriminalization model faces severe criticism. There is a strong argument that “decriminalizing the sex trade does not protect sex workers.”
Supporters of decriminalization base their argument on the claim that “it is precisely the criminalization of this industry that makes the sex trade dangerous.” They argue that “removing the criminal stigma should prevent abuse of sex workers and make it easier to dismantle a sex industry that relies on human trafficking and sexual slavery.”
However, in countries where sex work has actually been decriminalized, these expectations have not been met. On the contrary, as sex work has become a for-profit business and competition for services has intensified, safety is no longer a priority, further exacerbating the situation.
Some even argue that “decriminalization not only fails to minimize the harm suffered by sex workers but actually exacerbates it.” They claim that violence in the sex trade has not only persisted but has actually increased, and that the involvement of criminal organizations has become even more serious.
The stigma faced by sex workers has not diminished either. Furthermore, it is said that “as clients have begun to assert their rights, their demands have become more extreme, making it even more difficult to create a safe environment for sex workers.”
In New Zealand, it is said that brothel owners instruct the sex workers they employ never to refuse even the most extreme demands made by clients.Some argue that “decriminalization only encourages and fuels the behavior of sex buyers.” They claim that decriminalization benefits sex buyers and sex industry operators more than it does sex workers.
Sex trade operators as “role models”
Despite these various criticisms, the movement to decriminalize the industry shows no signs of abating.
New Zealand is viewed by some as a success story, and those seeking to promote the sex industry—such as sex establishment owners and pimps—hold it up as a “recommended model.” They argue, “It was a good move to avoid the excessive regulation that caused Germany’s failure.” It is only natural that decriminalization—much like legalization—is criticized for “empowering sex buyers, legitimizing pimps and sex establishment owners, and increasing sex trafficking.”
In 2016, the international human rights organization Amnesty International announced a policy recommending that governments “decriminalize consensual sex work” to protect sex workers from human rights violations and abuse.This was met with a flood of criticism from many organizations and individuals. Women’s groups around the world have strongly opposed this, arguing that “prostitution is sexual abuse and violence.”
Nevertheless, Amnesty continues to support “the decriminalization of consensual sex work.” It states , “Sex workers are among the most marginalized people in the world and constantly face human rights violations such as discrimination and violence,” and concludes that “decriminalization is the best way to protect the human rights of sex workers and reduce the risk of human rights violations they face.”
In 2021, the mayor of New York, pressured by strong public opinion calling for police reform, proposed the decriminalization of sex work. However, the proposal was met with protests from groups such as the Coalition Against Trafficking in Women, which argued that it “promotes legislation that would turn New York into a destination for sex tourism.” Nevertheless, efforts to push for the decriminalization of sex work in New York have not ceased since then.
The Persistent Stigma Surrounding Prostitution
Opinions on regulatory models for the sex trade are sharply divided depending on whether prostitution is viewed as “labor” or “sexual violence.”Within the sex workers’ rights movement, which views prostitution as “labor” or a “profession,” decriminalization is considered the ideal goal—but might this not be unsuitable for Japan as it stands today?In Japan, “prostitution is considered contrary to general sexual morality,” and there is a strong stigma attached to it. For this reason, it is unrealistic to treat it the same as ordinary work such as massage or nursing care.
Furthermore, introducing a decriminalization model to “eliminate regulations specific to the sex industry” would mean abolishing both the Anti-Prostitution Law and the Law Regulating Amusement Businesses. As a result, sex establishments would flood the streets, and conflicts would frequently arise between business operators seeking to open such establishments and nearby residents.
In Belgium, there are red-light districts near major train stations, creating a situation similar to “having a red-light district right in front of Tokyo Station.” In today’s Japan, where the establishment of escort agency offices in apartments in residential neighborhoods has become a major issue, abolishing the special zone system (zoning) is nothing more than a “pipe dream.”
Furthermore, the reason escort services were legalized in 1998 was so that authorities, who were struggling with illegal dispatch-type sex services (hotel-based escort services) whose actual operations were unknown, could bring such establishments under their control. It is unthinkable that we would now abolish the licensing system and return to the days when these businesses were left unregulated.There is no doubt that the government will take a reluctant stance toward decriminalization.
Decriminalization requires a social foundation where “workers’ rights are protected.” However, given the current situation in Japan—where the Labor Standards Act is already applied inconsistently even in other occupations—decriminalization is nothing more than a “theoretical fantasy.” It is even more difficult to achieve than full legalization.
[References]
*Sex Work Studies*, SWASH (eds.), Nihon Hyoronsha, 2018
*An Introduction to *Sexual Self-Determination*,* Shinji Miyadai, Yukiko Hayami, Naohide Yamamoto, Yoshiko Miya, Seiji Fujii, Hiroaki Hirano, Noriko Kanazumi, Yuji Hirano, Kinokuniya Bookstore, 1998
*The Black Hole of the Sex Trade* by Shinpak Ji-nyeong, Korokara, 2022
In addition, I consulted numerous other books and online sources.
Reporting, Text, and Photography： Akira Ikoma