Brothels in Australia - Where is it legal and where's not?

by monika r. Consultant

Sydney brothels and the its workers has been one of the most hotly debated topics in last couple of years. Australia has one of the more liberal attitudes towards this type of work internationally. But the laws with regards to prostitution in Australia vary from state to state. People say that the fact it's illegal in some jurisdictions and legal in others is very confusing and strange.

 

Sometimes this confusion creates problems for law enforcers, sex workers and the overall public who are often don't know the precise legal status of some aspects of prostitution. In particular what is legal in their state and what's not.

 

How prevalent are brothels in Sydney?

 

The prostitution is legal in Northern Australia, Western Territory and Sydney, but at the same time brothels and street prostitution are not. However, a lot of people think that in case of legalizing these elements it will remove the criminal element in the industry. Especially, the use of underage and trafficked women.

 

All forms of sex trafficking and slavery are illegal under Federal law. To register as a worker and work at Sydney brothel you must have at least 18 years old or older and have no prior criminal record.

 

Sydney is one of the more liberal states with legalized prostitution along with brothels Sydney which stay under local council planning regulations. At the same time street prostitution is allowed on commercial streets but restricted in residential zones.

 

Street prostitution and brothels are illegal in Northern Territory of Australia. But unlike other states, escort agencies are absolutely legal. Escort agencies and escorts must be registered with locale police and the Territory Licensing Committee!

 

Legalizing brothels in Australia.

 

Critics are against legalizing of sex trade work and they say that legalizing brothels and prostitution creates an “environment where illegal sex trafficking can then occur”. They also say that street workers increase spreading of sexually transmitted diseases and are often drugs addicted. However, a study of 247 female workers from Queensland shows us a completely different picture. That these women in appear to have good health and are safer from violence and harassment

 

Australian workers even have a higher standard of sexual health than the general population. The sexually transmissible infections in Australia are amongst the lowest in the world! This happens because of “the consistent use of prophylactics with clients is the norm in the sex industry”.

 

What do we as a community need to do to make sex work safer for all workers in the industry? Pinto, Scandia and Wilson “believe that there is an immediate need for governments to consider reforms of prostitution based on a realistic understanding of the issues involved.”

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Created on Jun 8th 2018 11:12. Viewed 258 times.

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