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We decriminalized sex work in Belgium – it's the first country in Europe to do so
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Last week, Belgium decriminalized sex work. It's now OK to sell sex, pay for it and/or work with sex workers. The country also reformed other parts of its sexual criminal law (that was based on a code from 1867), basically writing the principles of safe, sane and consensual sex in law.
Why this matters: Belgium is the first European country to decriminalize sex work. "It ensures that sex workers are no longer stigmatised, exploited and made dependent on others." said Belgium's Federal Justice Minister Vincent Van Quickenborn.
I thought prostitution was already legal in some European countries.
Yes and no. Yes, a number of European countries have legalized prostitution. No, it's only allowed under very, very specific circumstances; it's still a crime outside these parameters.
What about in Belgium?
Before, the rules around sex work in Belgium were confusing, restrictive, and varied by area. As a result, people working in the sex industry were/are less likely to be well off and more likely to be labeled as 'criminals.'
What do you mean?
Well, since sex work was not officially recognized as a profession, Belgian sex workers couldn't use it as proof of employment in order to get a loan or apply for social welfare benefits.
Plus, "third parties involved with sex workers are committing a crime," explains Maïthé Chini in The Brussels Times. "This brings many problems, as anyone who works with sex workers – such as an accountant or a driver – also becomes part of criminal practices."
What do sex workers say?
They're over-the-moon happy, of course. "This reform is the culmination of a fight that we, sex workers, have been waging for 30 years in our country," said the sex worker rights union UTSOPI in a statement. If people really want to help, "give us rights," the group said. (I paraphrase) 'And follow Belgium's example.'
- Good to know: For decades, scientists, public health experts, and researchers have been like, 'decriminalizing sex work makes sense, read here, here and here.'
- Recommended Twitter thread by @sammajammaz with examples from Ireland, New Zealand and Norway. "Why are sex workers calling for the full decriminalization of sex work, and not a partial criminalization model such as the Nordic Model?"
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We are putting three Black refugees from Africa on trial in Malta – because they refused to be push-backed to Libya
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- Refresher: Three young men from Guinea and Ivory Coast have been on trial in Malta since 2019. The list of charges is long but includes terrorism, violence and hijacking of a cargo ship called the El Hiblu. Ever since, the three men are also known as the El Hiblu 3; they have an own campaign site and a Twitter account, too.
Who are the three men?
Amara Kromah, Abdul Kader and Abdalla Bari. They are 18, 19 and 22 years old; meaning, they were just teenagers when they arrived in Malta three years ago and were detained. Get to know them better in this Times of Malta long-read.
Why this matters: Every human being deserves a right to asylum. (Black and brown) Migrants are not criminals.
What's the trial about exactly?
In March 2019, the three men and 105 other people were rescued by a cargo ship named El Hiblu in the Mediterranean while they were almost drowning.
Then, an aircraft of the European military operation EUNAVFOR Med instructed the El Hiblu to return the people to Libya (a country where migrants live in horrible conditions). However, the migrants protested their return and convinced the crew of El Hiblu 1 to steer north, to Malta. During the protest nobody was hurt and nothing was damaged.
Yet the three African teenagers were arrested upon arrival and detained for seven months.
Since the trial began, Amara, Kader and Abdalla have been allowed to live and work and pay taxes in Malta, but as Kader told Amnesty International last week, "we are between life and death. They are playing with our lives. We have no power. I used to be a happy man. Now I can feel myself withdrawing. I try to be strong but it’s eating me up – I just work and sleep. I don’t feel free."
What now?
Last week, on the third anniversary of their migration to Europe, the El Hiblu 3 are still facing serious charges of terrorism and could, if convicted, spend 30 years in prison.
Recommended read: The 'Free El Hiblu 3' campaign published a 63-page essay book online, available here.
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We are in a 'state of emergency' in El Salvador after 76 people were murdered – it's the most violent day since the end of the civil war in 1992
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The parliament in El Salvador declared a state of emergency after 76 people were murdered in different cities on the weekend.
Wait, what? Who is responsible for the murders?
Four leaders of the Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) gang (one of the most known gangs in the country) have been arrested. It's not yet clear what happened though.
Is it always like this in El Salvador?
Yes and no. President Nayib Bukele (the millennial bitcoin-crazy president who was elected in 2019) is like, (I paraphrase) 'we really thought we had this under control.' For a while, he seemed to be right; from an average of 18 murders a day in 2015, the country was down to just three.
- Good to know: El Salvador is home to the world’s most infamous gangs, the MS-13 and 18th Street. There are an estimated 70,000 gang members in El Salvador. They are responsible for homicides, extortion and drug-trafficking.
Why this matters: This is most violent 24-hour period since the end of the civil war in 1992. Not many people live here (only around 6,5 million) but it is one of the most dangerous places in the world.
- Quick history lesson: The Salvadoran Civil War took the lives of around 80,000 soldiers and civilians in El Salvador? It lasted from 1979 to 1992. Throughout the war, nearly half of the country's population fled from violence and poverty. This conflict ended with the Chapultepec Peace Accords, but the violence in El Salvador has not stopped since.
What's a 'state of emergency' like?
For the next 30 days, the right to gather is restricted, it is allowed to arrest people without a warrant and communications are monitored. People like Juan Pappier from Human Rights Watch are like, (I paraphrase) 'eh guys this is super worrying. El Salvador isn't a real democracy to begin with...' Ursula Indacochea from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights agrees.
Zoom out: The violence in El Salvador (and elsewhere in Central America) is one of the bigger reasons people want to emigrate, specifically to the United States. In a 2015 survey, Doctors Without Borders found that nearly 40 percent of migrants from El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala left after they were assaulted, threatened or forced to become a gang member. Another reason is their economic situation, as of 2020.
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OTHER NEWS YOU MIGHT FIND INTERESTING
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First, the bad news
Ethiopia: Human Rights Watch (HRW) called on the Ethiopian government to investigate an airstrike on a school being used as an IDP camp in Dedebit, which killed at least 57 people. HRW describes the bombing as a war crime.
Somalia: Two suicide bombers blew themselves up targeting a car carrying politician Amina Mohamed Abdi in Beledweyne, killing her and 47 more people. At least 105 more are injured.
Nicaragua: Two Nicaraguans have died while crossing the Rio Bravo at the Mexico-U.S. border within 24 hours this past week.
The neutral
Turkey: The 1915 Çanakkale Bridge opened. It's the first bridge over the Dardanelles and the world's longest suspension bridge.
Africa: Netflix released its first African reality show. Young, Famous & African, which follows the lives of some of the biggest celebrities on the continent to show the rest of the world a different side of Africa. Carlos Mureithi from Quartz explores the significance of the series for the continent and for Netflix.
And now, the good news
Egypt: Five Ancient Egyptian tombs are discovered.
Honduras: The rape of two female first-year university students at Zamorano University sparked a feminist march on campus (Spanish). The crimes were condemned on social media, where people demanded the perpetrator to be arrested and tried. Later in the day, the police detained and arrested Byron Zamora (Spanish), accused of raping the underage students.
Belize: The country is currently talking about a posthumous pardon for Nora Parham, the only woman executed in the history of Belize. The 36-year old mother of eight and victim of domestic violence was condemned to death by hanging after an unfair trial for allegedly killing her husband in 1963.
Health: The World Health Organization announces that a polio vaccination campaign is set to begin in Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, and Zambia.
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The Badminton World Federation is punishing four Chinese badminton players for failing to try their best to win a doubles match in the Fuzhou Open quarterfinals in China in November 2018. They are now on probation for two years.
What now?
They were each given three-month bans, suspended for two years from Jan. 25. They also had to forfeit their Fuzhou Open prize money, US$12,250 for He and Tan, and US$2,187.50 for Li and Liu.
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That's it from me for this week. If you want to stay connected on social media, follow me on Twitter or on Instagram.
Bye,
Sham
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