Tuesday, June 08, 2010

SWEAT calls for moratorium on all arrests of sex workers

By Khanyisa Tabata
08 June 2010


The Sex Worker’s Education & Advocacy Taskforce has accused government for ignoring calls to halt harassment of sex workers.

SWEAT spokesperson Tarryn Rinkwest says with only days to go to the World Cup, calls for the Government to place a moratorium on all arrests of sex workers for the duration of the tournament and beyond continue to go unheard.

“We anticipate the already high levels of violence against sex workers to continue during the World Cup and believe that the unlawful arrests and sexual harassment by police will definitely increase as they try to keep the streets ‘clean’”, said Rinkwest.

She added SWEAT and SANAC Women’s Sector have sent letters to the Ministries of Police and Justice requesting them to develop and implement a plan but all have gone unacknowledged and unanswered.

“On the 20th of April 2009 the Cape Town High Court granted SWEAT an interdict instructing the police to stop arresting sex workers unlawfully. And only last week the Labour Appeal Court in the Kylie case granted sex workers the right to protection of the Labour Relations Act.

“It is no secret that sex workers are vulnerable to police violence and bribery of a sexual nature,” said Rinkwest.

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