The ancient profession

LALITHA Kumaramangalam, Chairperson of the National Commission for Women has advocated the legalization of prostitution. It is a welcome move though many may consider such legislation unnecessary. Sex workers in red light areas are looked upon as a safety valve for promiscuous men with a perverse sex drive. The police keep these women under surveillance but wink at the offence unless they solicit customers in public. Indian cinema also takes a tolerant view of sex workers. But such legislation will have some beneficial effect. It would help fight trafficking of women and improve the condition of commercial sex workers. The NDA government has already made a move to scrap archaic laws. Prohibition has been ounterproductive everywhere and so will clamping down upon sex work. An overly moralistic attitude to commercial sex will not only encourage trafficking in women but also lead to a rise in the number of rapes which have already become rampant in certain parts of India. Child prostitution is another matter. There are an estimated 1.2 million children involved in such activity. If prostitution is legalized, children of sex workers will not necessarily be driven to get into the same rut. A large number of them may be enabled to come out of the pit and even receive education. Sex workers lack access to medical facilities. That leads to the spread of HIV/AIDS and other venereal diseases. There are other benefits from the proposed legislation. The coercion of pimps will stop and traffickers as well as brothel owners will be prevented from brutalizing the women over whom they exercise a sort of proprietorship. There is only one snag. If rape continues and the victims of rape are socially ostracized they will be forced to take to the profession. While we don’t hold a brief for commercial sex work there should be some light in the area of darkness.