United Nations Security Council Resolution on Sexual Violence in Conflict: Inadequate Progress Made

Published on Friday, 26 April 2019 09:23

The Scelles Foundation, on the same footing as French diplomatic policy, has been calling to step up efforts to tackle sexual violence against women in armed conflict zones. The United Nations Security Council’s adoption of Resolution 2467 marks a key step forward, particularly in its focus on the survivors of sexual violence. But it still fails to do enough to help women victims access their rights. As a result, those who perpetrate this violence are still betting on impunity.  

The abolition of prostitution, a French reality: a 3-year assessment of the 2016-444 Law

Published on Friday, 12 April 2019 13:50

An increasing number of countries are adopting the Nordic Model or are considering doing so. Furthermore, the 3^rd World Congress against sexual exploitation is spreading its abolitionist message throughout Germany. While this is occurring, today, France is celebrating the 3^rd anniversary of the implementation of its law reinforcing the fight against the prostitutional system. Thus, this prevents an opportunity for us to assess the profound revolution that the law has allowed.

Sources: International Observatory for Sexual Exploitation Press Review/Collection of Academic Proceedings ©FondationScelles

Three years after its adoption, the implementation of the 2016-444 law “aimed at reinforcing the fight against the prostitutional system and to aid prostituted persons” of April 2016 has accelerated significantly. These past few months, marked by criticism and violent attacks, have not been easy. However, the rejection of the QPC, calling into question the principle of penalizing sex buyers of prostitution by the Constitutional Council in January of 2019 allowed for the law to be reaffirmed, thus it emerged strengthened by this controversy.

1ère Marche mondiale des survivantes de la prostitution : Strasbourg – Mainz du 25 mars au 2 avril 2019

Published on Monday, 25 March 2019 09:52

A 10h ce lundi 25 mars, Rosen Hicher prendra le départ pour une nouvelle marche des survivantes de la prostitution et traite des êtres humains jusqu’à Mainz où se tiendra les 3 - 4 avril prochains le 3e Congrès international pour l'abolition de la prostitution. Rosen Hicher a survécu à 22 ans de prostitution et milite aujourd'hui pour l'abolition du système prostitueur. En 2014, elle a parcouru 700 km de Saintes à Paris pour réclamer l'examen au Sénat de la proposition de loi contre le système prostitutionnel. Pour lancer la marche, Rosen Hicher sera rejointe sur la passerelle du Jardin des 2 Rives entre Strasbourg et Kehl par Maria Noichl et Edouard Martin, eurodéputés des représentants des Villes de Strasbourg et Kehl des survivantes allemandes pour poursuivre la marche vers Mainz

Entre Strasbourg et Mainz, Rosen Hicher et des survivantes feront des étapes devant différents bordels pour dénoncer cet esclavage moderne qui entretient la traite des êtres humains à travers l'Europe.

Deux événements importants sont programmés à Stuttgart et Karlsruhe les 27 et 28 mars.

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Condamnation de Jürgen Rudloff : la fin du Paradis !

Speech by Yves Charpenel on Violence & torture against women & girls in trafficking & prostitution: Educating service providers

Published on Thursday, 14 March 2019 15:31

Dear friends,

I’m here to give you some encouraging information in the fight in my country against the serious violence suffered by the victims of the prosperous system of sexual exploitation.

you know that France adopted in April 2016 a law that makes people involved in the sexual trafficking system victims in their own right.

Two years after its adoption the law begins to produce promising effects around four objectives

the first concerns the situation of victims through a system that facilitates protection , access to social housing and reintegration actions, provided they have left prostitution

the second reinforces the severity of punishment against the exploiters whose penalty is aggravated in case of tortures or serious violence, regarding nearly 500 offenders condemned per year

the third is to penalize the buyers of sexual services that thus create the demand and maintain the violence suffered by thousands of victims of which 95% women

several thousand clients, men exclusively, were thus arrested and had to choose between a fine or an internship inspired by those planned for domestic violence

the fourth aims to sensitize public actors as well as NGOs and public opinion to the intrinsic violence generated by sexual exploitation

in this context I want to share with you three good news:

• the 25^th January the largest congress of francophone specialists of brain sciences gathered in Paris has decided to launch studies on the PTSD of victims of trafficking of human beings. this will better assess and repair the immediate and lasting consequences of the violence suffered
• The first February, at a conference held at the French Supreme Court, the presidents of the two highest European courts reaffirmed their opposition to all forms of merchandising the human body.
• the same day, the constitutional council validated the conformity of the penalization of the customers with the constitutional principles of our Republic.
  
  The law was accused of violating the principle of protection of privacy (of clients) and the freedom of enterprise of sex sellers.
  
  The legislator considered that the vast majority of people who engage in prostitution are victims of procuring and trafficking and that these offenses are made possible by the existence of a demand for prized sexual relations.

By making the choice to penalize the sex-buyers, the legislator intended to ensure the safeguarding of the dignity of the human person against these forms of enslavement and pursued the objective of constitutional value of safeguarding public order and crime prevention.

the way is thus clearer for the effective recognition, by all the actors in our societies, of the reality of this violence, always excessive and sometimes extreme, inflicted on the most vulnerable

the SCELLES Foundation, which has played its part in the progress just mentioned, calls on all organizations represented here not to release their vigilance and their efforts in this struggle, which is essential to a true gender equality.

Yves Charpenel, President of the Fondation Scelles, First Honorary state prosecutor of the Supreme Court in France

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