Despite international advances, in most countries of the region there remains a significant lack of clear legal frameworks to protect sex workers, according to a report released today by the Commissioner for the Rights of Sex Workers of the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States (OAS). This situation not only violates their legal security and access to justice, but also reinforces social stigmas that lead to violence, discrimination and exclusion from the public sphere.
Commissioner Gloria Careaga-Pérez's report, delivered today to the Secretary General, examines the legal and socio-cultural situation faced by sex workers in the Americas, as well as the persistent challenges to the full exercise of their rights.
"The lack of clear legal protection places them in a condition of vulnerability shaded by stigma and stereotypes that reduce their guarantee of safety and access to justice," the report states. It also warns about the harmful effects of hostile discourses that promote the criminalization of sex work, often confused with human trafficking. In addition, she denounces the use of arguments based on stereotypes and moral conceptions that perpetuate a false representation of sex workers as a threat to society.
Among her main recommendations, the Commissioner urges States to:
· Establish clear regulations to legalize sex work that guarantee its development and personal choice;
· Guarantee access to justice and equal rights without discrimination;
· Promote comprehensive education on gender and sexuality;
· Reject social stigmatization and investigate and punish all acts of violence against sex workers;
· Promote research and exchange of knowledge on sex work; and
· Contemplate the participation of sex workers' organizations in public policies on sex work.
"It is essential to listen to and attend to the voices of those who engage in sex work by choice. These voices cry out for the recognition of their human and labor rights, with the aim of emerging from the illegality and marginalization that exposes them to greater risks and contexts of impunity," said Secretary General Luis Almagro. "The lack of clear legal protection deepens these vulnerabilities and perpetuates stigma and stereotypes," he added.
Secretary Almagro encouraged member states "to follow the recommendations contained in this report, aimed at advancing legal recognition of sex work and effective protection of the rights of those who engage in it."
For her part, Commissioner Careaga-Pérez clarified that it is necessary to distinguish sex work from human trafficking. "Sex work is autonomous, voluntary work carried out by individuals. International and intergovernmental bodies have recognized the negative impact of punitive approaches to sex work on the health and human rights of sex workers and have called for the elimination of any provision that punishes sex work," she said.
The Commissioner pointed out that "the full decriminalization of sex work performed voluntarily by adults is proposed from the perspective of human rights, since it is the best way to address the systemic discrimination and violence" suffered by sex workers, "as well as impunity for violations of their rights."
The presentation of the report was also attended by the executive secretary of the Network of Women Sex Workers of Latin America and the Caribbean (RedTraSex), Lucy Esquivel, who described the event as a "historic milestone."
"We celebrate this moment as a conquest of our movement. We also hope that it becomes a tool to make visible our living and working conditions in the region and that it contributes to the construction of commitments on the part of our states to eradicate the gaps and inequalities that still affect our bodies and that seek to annul our autonomy," said Esquivel.
Since 2021, the Secretary General held regular meetings with the LGBTTTI and Sex Workers Coalition, in a process of dialogue and collaboration that was consolidated over time. In June 2023, during the 53rd OAS General Assembly, the Secretary General committed to move towards the appointment of a Commissioner for the Rights of Sex Workers. In September 2024, that commitment materialized with the appointment of Professor Gloria Careaga-Pérez as Commissioner for the remainder of his term.
Reference: E-025/25
