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RIGHTS OF VULNERABLE SEX WORKERS

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INTRODUCTION

As per the Preamble of the United Nations Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in the persons and the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others, 1949; 2. Sex Workers and International Efforts “Prostitution and the accompanying evils of trafficking of persons for the purpose of prostitution are incompatible with the dignity and worth of the human person and endanger the welfare of the individual, the family, and the community.” Since past to present day, Prostitution or Sex Work has been alive in one or the other form. It has been widespread in all communities and places around the globe in almost all times. It is one of the low standard types of violation of the rights of females and young girls. Although the wicked influence that is connected with sex work, in the recent era of globalism it has considered various facets and consists of numerous kinds of practices that establish the part of sex work. Though there are examples of males carrying out sex work for different types of reasons, the count is similarly not more to that of the females. The word sex worker is a huge word and covers several sexual services. Customary, the sex workers were mentioned by several names in every community such as harlot, whore, prostitute, and more. These words are very disparaging in this world. In 1978, a partisan named Carol Leigh coined the word‘sex worker’. From that time, it became a famous word and obtained currency mentioning to different categorize of services that are existing in the sex industry.

 SEX WORKERS AND GLOBAL ENDEAVOR

Due to the social reform movement of the 19th century around the world, international society chose to take up several international agreements in order to eradicate the illegal acts that were targeting women. These include the International Agreement for the Suppression of the White Slave Traffic in 1910. An International Agreement on Suppression of the White Slave Traffic came into existence in 1904. The United Nations in 1948 amended this agreement in order to cover all categories of the traffic of humans. The League of Nations adopted an International Convention in 1921 for the Suppression of the Traffic in Women and Children. This was approved by the United Nations in the year 1947 through a Protocol. International Convention in 1933 for the Suppression of the Traffic in Women of Full Age. The determined attempt of the international society and the League of Nations led the UN, to take up a convention for the Suppression of Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of Prostitution and Others 1949. The Convention consists of 28 articles. These articles empower the national Governments to execute certain legislation to eradicate the sinful of prostitution and various factors associated with it and proclaim any practice that influences the modesty, dignity, life, and liberty of a person especially that of women and children. Apart from these Conventions, the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women, 1979 the World Conference on Human Rights 1993, and several international forums condemned violence in other ways against women and urged the nation-states to eradicate all the wicked connected with prostitution and other linked facets. These determined attempts of the International Community led numerous nations to execute particular legislation to prohibit trafficking and even to ban sex work in the nations. Some International Organizations, like the Economic and Social Council, International Labor Organization, UNESCO, the International Human Rights Council, etc. are functioning together with the country states and these organizations have chosen to take up a numerous resolution to extirpate all categories of wicked that are linked with sex work and to sustain the rights of vulnerable sex workers.

NATIONAL SCENARIO

In our country India, prostitution has been widespread from past periods. Between the numerous works, the work of Arthashastra of Kautilya all aspects dealt with the place of prostitutes in the ancient periods. In the past, in India for the term prostitute, around 250 synonyms were there. From all the words, the term Ganika obtained widespread identification. In the past country India, Prostitution was identified informal and public way as an economic practice, and these females were paid by the State. In their dotage, they were looked after by the State, and pensions were also rewarded by the State. During the Middle Ages, the occupation was termed after an ethnic name called devadasi (Temple attendant) which was widespread at a particular time in numerous areas of the nation. Throughout the Islam rule, prostitutes were identified as singers and dancers females. The commencement of lawful action to manage sex work and its elimination, throughout the British period, could not bring about the strongly wished outcome. After independence, the Indian Government and the State Governments have taken numerous ways to exterminate prostitution and the wicked connection with it. In the year 1956, the Indian Government executed the Suppression of Immoral Traffic in Women and Girls Act. This Act was extensively amended in 1986 and renamed as the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act 1956 on the basis of the Recommendations of the National Law Commission of India. Though the Act empowers the different systems of the state, especially the cops to check the peril linked with the occupation of prostitution in any way, nowhere the occupation of sex work or prostitution is clearly banned nor officially identified. Except for the above, the Government added the National Commission of Women, 1990 to research the issue referring to females and to put forward the solution to extirpate all the wicked and inimical activities pointing to the modesty of females. The National Human Rights Commission also undertook a number of research and suggested different measures to prohibit prostitution. The Indian Government along with the State Governments constituted numerous committees on the basis of the Judgment of the SC of India in 1997 in Gaurav Jain V Union of India (AIR 1990 SC) to safeguard the prostitutes and their kids. Although with the best-determined attempts to state, prostitution is unbridled in India for different purposes. Different reasons, massive urbanization, poverty, blind faiths in rural areas, bad company, social customs, misuse of science, and technology are some reasons for the widespread increase of the number of females and teenagers going into the flesh trade against their will. In the case of Vishal Jeet V Union of India in 1990, the SC of India laid down a number of stiff norms and directed the Union and the States to submit detailed reports in protecting the rights and the rehabilitation activities employed by the state. In Budhadev Karmskar V State of West Bengal in 2011, it had passed several managements to safeguard the rights of sex workers, involving their rehabilitation.

 CONCLUSION

Although the judicial order, determined attempt of the state and its organization to destroy the wicked connections with the occupation could not yield the strongly wished outcome. The strict vigil and participation of the public alone could augment the rights of these penniless females and kids to exterminate the wicked and the stigma close to them. Accuracy of URLs for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this publication does not guarantee that any content on such websites is or will remain, accurate or appropriate one still needs to research on the above topic for the latest information.

 Author(s) Name: Rachana Phulsundar (P. E. S Modern Law College, Pune)

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Reference(s):

1.https://sherloc.unodc.org/cld/case-law-doc/traffickingpersonscrimetype/ind/1997/gaurav_jain_v._union_of_india_and_others_.html

2.https://sherloc.unodc.org/cld/case-law-doc/traffickingpersonscrimetype/ind/1990/vishal_jeet_v._union_of_india.html?

 3.https://indiankanoon.org/doc/1440465/

 4.https://www.ohchr.org/EN/ProfessionalInterest/Pages/TrafficInPersons.aspx

 5. https://indiankanoon.org/doc/134072838/

 6.https://www.nswp.org/timeline/event/carol-leigh-coins-the-term-sex-work