PARIS: French sex workers failed Friday in their bid to overturn a law that bans paying for sex, as the country’s Constitutional Council ruled that it does not breach the constitution. A law introduced in 2016 made it illegal to buy sex in France but not to sell it, shifting the criminal responsibility to clients who can be fined if caught.
The Swedish-inspired law has sharply divided French feminists and reopened a debate on whether women should be allowed to sell their bodies. Some groups say the law helps protect women from trafficking and exploitation by discouraging prostitution. But many active sex workers say it has made their jobs more dangerous and deprived them of income.
Nine campaign groups had joined forces with around 30 sex workers to launch a constitutional challenge, arguing that the law breached fundamental rights to sexual liberty and to do business. But the Constitutional Council ruled Friday that the law helped protect women "by depriving pimps of their profits". The law "fights against this activity and against the sexual exploitation of human beings, criminal activities founded on coercion and enslavement." The groups who brought the case immediately blasted the ruling as "a bad decision, dangerous for the health and rights of sex workers".
