Sex workers' rights defenders seek government protection

Sex worker defenders now want the government and security state agencies to launch an independent complaints and investigation mechanism for them.

This will give capacity and assist police to investigate attacks against sex worker rights defenders, with guarantees that the identities of complainants will be kept confidential to prevent reprisals against them.

The defenders have also recommended a stop to arbitrary arrests, detention and police brutality against sex workers .

“Coercing sex workers in police custody to sign “admission of guilt” paperwork without fully explaining the content should also stop,” reads the report in part.

This has been highlighted in the Global Report on Sex Workers Rights Defenders that was launched on Thursday in Nairobi.

Erin Kilbride, the report author, reveals that the report was to be launched earlier but delayed due to Covid-19 .

“When the Covid-19 pandemic began, sex worker rights defenders were among those hardest hit and report launch plans were delayed out of respect for the capacity of our partners," she said.

The report features case studies, testimonies, security analysis, and protection requests from human rights defenders, documented on collaborative research trips conducted by Front Line Defenders researchers.

 Between 2017 and 2020, Front Line Defenders interviewed more than 350 sex worker rights defenders and sex worker community members in more than 12 countries.

Still targeting the police, defenders want targeted, discriminatory raids and arrests at the offices, shelters, and community centres of sex worker rights organisations to end.

“ The government should ensure defenders who report attacks and threats to local police are not further physically, verbally, or sexually assaulted by police officers, and are able to file complete incident reports without fear of retaliation or abuse,” reads the report.

To establish good rapport , the defenders want partnerships between police and sex worker-led organisations developed and conduct police trainings led collaboratively by sex worker rights defenders.

Going further , the sex workers defenders wants the Ministry of Health to allocate financial and other resources to ensure sex worker rights defenders are able to attend and engage fully with these processes.

“The ministry should also acknowledge and actively work against stigma and discrimination of sex worker rights defenders in health policy spaces, including through the establishment and financial backing of whistle blower and anti-discrimination reporting mechanisms,” reads the report.

In addition to that, MOH has also been urged to examine and take concrete measures to rectify the exclusion of sex worker communities from state support during Covid -19 ,this including the distribution of food and medical supplies.

Last July, Amnesty International urged governments to take targeted action to address the disparate impact of Covid-19 on sex workers and to protect their health and other human rights, including through tackling the key issues of concern that sex workers have raised since the outbreak of the pandemic.

They noted that sex workers have not only been seriously impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic, but also by governments’ emergency responses that, in many contexts, have been punitive or discriminatory.

Andrew Anderson, Front line Defenders Executive Director has revealed that Sex workers rights defenders are at risk because they are defending the basic human rights of communities that are amongst the most marginalised in every society. And that means they must be an integral part of our core work.

“Sex workers, like many marginalised and stigmatised groups, experience extremely high rates of human rights violation , including of their rights to health , justice , to leave free from violence and torture, to housing among others,” he noted.