"This Local Council election is crucial to sex worker rights in NSW.Councillors running on a ‘ban brothels’ platform are working againstthe best interests of sex workers, and are shirking theirresponsibility to community based HIV responses and human rights,"Elena Jeffreys said on behalf of Scarlet Alliance today.
WHAT: Sex Worker Red Umbrella ProtestWHERE: NSW PARLIAMENT HOUSEWHEN : this FRIDAY 07 Sept at 12NOONWHY : Local Council Election Crucial To Sex Workers
Decriminalisation is under under threat.
UN recommendations for sex workers snubbed by local council candidates.
"Sex worker human rights & dignity in NSW is at crunch point withtomorrow’s local council election," said Scarlet Alliancerepresentative Elena Jeffreys.
NSW Guidelines are in place which are worlds best, but only if LocalCouncillors step up and apply them. For years Planning Staff at aLocal Council level have tried to implement good policy. They havefaced hostile Councillors determined to outlaw sex workers inresidential and commercial areas, and in some cases, trying to ban sexwork all together.
Many Local Councillors in NSW believe it is their role to ban sexwork. This, however, is not in the spirit of the 1996 legislation thatfinally fully decriminalised sex work across the whole state.
"It’s overdue that Councils stopped blocking brothel DA’s," ElenaJeffreys concluded today. "Private workers in NSW are permitted towork from Residential areas but only if Local Councils proactivelymake such allowance in their Local Environment Plan. Local Councilsneed to step up."