Question 45013 — gender equality and parity

Summary

Mrs Albane Gaillot questions the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs on the promotion of France's position on prostitution at the European level. France is one of the pioneering countries of the European Union in terms of abolitionist legislation on prostitution. The law of April 13, 2016 recognizes prostitution as violence against people who are its victims, the vast majority of whom are girls and women. The law pursues the dual objective of supporting victims in leaving prostitution and making responsible the “clients” who fuel the demand and allow the prostitution system to perpetrate. When applied, this law produces its effects. Despite very broad support among the population for this law, certain protests continue: recently, several associations attacked the law before the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) following the recognition by the Constitutional Council of the constitutionality of the law, in 2019. Recognition by the ECHR of the conformity of French law with the European Convention on Human Rights would reinforce the abolitionist model and would accelerate the dissemination of this model across the continent. In France, 85% of people in a situation of prostitution are girls and women and 80% are foreigners. Prostitution is a particularly cruel form of violence committed against girls and women. It is incompatible with a society of equality between women and men, as recognized by the UN in its Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others. The CEDEF committee also condemns “the exploitation of prostitution of women” in its recommendation 38. The European Convention on Human Rights condemns torture (article 3) as well as discrimination based on sex (article 14). However, the prostitution system serves as a framework for serious sexual violence akin to torture. In addition, this system perpetuates stereotypes which obstruct real equality between women and men. The sanction by France and by all Member States, “clients” of prostitution who perpetuate this system of sexist and sexual violence cannot be contrary to the text or the spirit of the Convention. As such, France has a responsibility to defend its abolitionist policy at the European level, in order to protect the dignity and lives of victims of human trafficking, who are mainly girls and women and all forms of exploitation of prostitution. For these reasons, she questions the minister on the actions he has undertaken and intends to undertake in order to defend the French abolitionist position at European level before the ECHR and more broadly to promote this model in Europe and internationally.

Machine translation from French. The official text remains authoritative.

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