The imagery used in the media can be a starting point that helps shift the narrative about sex work, LGBTIQ and human rights activist Ruth Baldacchino told The Malta Independent.

“Almost all articles about sex work involve more or less the same image, faceless people wearing short skirts and very often standing next to a car or against a wall,” Baldacchino said, while highlighting the need to humanise sex workers.

The prostitution and anti-trafficking reform has seen a debate on whether clients should be penalised for buying services from a sex worker or whether to decriminalise prostitution altogether. 40 NGOs are arguing against the decriminalisation of sex work in Malta, saying that it will turn the island into a mecca for sex tourism, arguing instead that a model that criminalises buying sex, but not the sex worker, should be adopted. Yet, a number of NGOs and human rights groups are calling for the decriminalisation of sex work altogether in Malta.

Baldacchino highlights that the media plays a vital role in the way we view sex workers.

“Stigmatising images of sex workers serves to control sex workers by keeping them in a disadvantaged position and limits their autonomy,” Baldacchino explained.

Baldacchino highlighted the importance of portraying sex workers with a face in the media, to remind the public that the discussion is about human beings. “We need to see sex workers in different contexts, in their homes, or during the day, with their families or protesting. We need to humanise sex workers.”

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Baldacchino spoke to The Malta Independent regarding decriminalisation and why keeping the industry illegal will only increase the danger to sex workers. The prostitution and anti-trafficking reform is currently a hot topic, being debated amongst different NGOs, human rights activists and women’s groups, in an effort to determine the best way forward for Malta.

Ruth Baldacchino has almost 20 years of experience in community organising, international LGBTIQ activism and research. The activist’s human rights work started with the Malta LGBTIQ Rights Movement (MGRM), where Baldacchino served on the executive committee for several years. Currently, Ruth is senior program officer of the Intersex Human Rights Fund at the Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice in New York.

Do you believe that Malta needs a wider discussion on sexual and reproductive health/rights? Does the lack of conversation on sex education affect the way we view prostitution and sex work?

When you see the reactions we had in relation to the introduction of the ‘morning-after pill’ or around IVF-related services, it is clear that we lack spaces to discuss issues and concerns related to sexual and reproductive health, let alone the rights that are attached to it. The lack of open and respectful conversation on sex and sexuality continues to reinforce the stigma we attach to sex. It is important to treat ‘sex education’ as lifelong learning and not simply a school subject for school-aged children. Remember, that many in Malta, especially those who are 40 years and older, never had any form of sex education in school.

Addressing the stigma and myths about sex, sexual relationships and sex practices may dispel some of the myths about sex work but it is only one way to start addressing issues related to sex work. We need to recognise that sex work is a complex social phenomenon that has been shrouded in taboo for way too long.

On full decriminalisation: Some people believe that decriminalisation will degrade women, further victimise them and open Malta to sex tourism. What is your opinion on this?

Instead of arguing in favour or against different legal frameworks, I believe we should be addressing what the most pressing needs and issues, including sex workers’ welfare and well-being, their protection from violence and abuse, safer working environments, inclusive healthcare services and other support services.

Decriminalisation involves the repeal of all laws against sex work, a removal of provisions that criminalised all aspects of sex work. A clear distinction is made between voluntary sex work and work that involves either force and coercion or child prostitution, which remains a criminal offence. Currently, there is only one country that has full decriminalisation, New Zealand, which previously had almost the exact law that we have.

Decriminalising prostitution will provide and treat sex work/ prostitution as a social issue and not a criminal one, while also providing a holistic framework built on social justice principles. Decriminalisation will safeguard the human rights of sex workers, protect them from exploitation and promote the welfare and occupational health and safety of sex workers. Decriminalisation also prohibits prostitution of persons less than 18 years of age.

Decriminalisation of sex work and safer work environments has also been linked to reducing STIs and HIV infections among sex workers and the general population. Since 2009, these agencies like the WHO and medical professionals have repeatedly voiced their concerns about sex workers’ vulnerabilities to HIV and pointed to the criminalisation of sex work, repressive sex work policies, and the stigma, violence, and discrimination faced by sex workers as the main factors contributing to increased risks of HIV infections among sex worker communities.

Nordic Model: Criminalising the buyer. Do you believe that this helps the sex worker or exposes them to more issues?

The so-called “Nordic Model” refers to the Swedish Sex Purchase Act of 1999. I believe the best-placed people to tell us if the law in Sweden helped or not are sex workers in Sweden themselves. In 2019, on the occasion of the 20 years since the passing of the law, sex workers in Sweden launched a new report ‘20 Years of Failing Sex Workers’, as part of their 2019 conference, ‘Sex Work, Human Rights and Health: Assessing 20 Years of the Swedish Model’.

The report provides evidence from sex workers on the impact of the law, reflecting the violence against sex workers, the increase in stigma, exclusion and discrimination. That sex workers faced more exploitation and their rights to health was impeded, and those sex workers who are migrant, LGBT and use drugs faced barriers to healthcare.

Aditus and Integra Foundation had said that regardless of which model is chosen, the system will fail for sex workers. What is your opinion on this statement? What is best for Malta?

My understanding of their point was that we need to address existing structural inequalities because laws on their own will not be enough (as we see in other areas), and as we argue in the case of trafficking of persons, there are significant gaps in enforcement and implementation.

I believe what is best for Malta is a human-rights-based approach to tackling sex work as a complex social issue, as opposed to treating and/or reducing sex work as a criminal issue. I also believe that we can learn from the experiences and practices of other countries, including Sweden and New Zealand, and then apply that learning to propose legal reforms adapted to the Maltese context.

In your field, you have worked with sex worker-led organisations and heard their own experiences. Do you believe Malta needs a sex worker-led organisation?

How realistic is it that such an organisation will start up in Malta? We already find ourselves in a situation where most sex workers do not feel comfortable speaking up and a number are trafficked or pimped out.

I hear things like “prostitutes are ashamed of saying they are so,” or “they don’t know how to speak out” or “they are too vulnerable to represent themselves.” Around 20 years ago, there were very few LGBTQ people who were out and visible. Many in our communities spend years, sometimes all their lives, hiding and lying about who they are, their relationships and their lives. This has detrimental effects on one’s life, mental health and wellbeing, and one’s sense of self. Prejudice and stigma lead to feeling ashamed of who you are and what you do.

I believe we need sex workers to organise in Malta - to be the ones who express and share their concerns and make their demands! It is also up to us - allies to the sex workers’ movements, professionals and service providers, etc. to create safe spaces, sex workers-inclusive services, and most importantly allocate resources (including financial) that enable sex workers to come together, share their experience, identify their needs, build community and organise together.

This is why I keep insisting that sex work needs to be addressed and approached as a complex social issue, rather than being treated as a criminal one and reduced to “violence against women”

We speak a lot about female sex workers, but are we tapping into the bigger picture of male and LGBTQI sex workers? Why is it important to also include these groups into the local discussion?

Many sex workers are women - they are heterosexual women, lesbian, bisexual and queer women; cisgender and transgender women; disabled women, migrant women, older and younger women, and more.

Many sex workers are lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer. We have seen significant changes in our laws when it comes to LGBTQ people in Malta. However, we cannot ignore the fact that for very long time workplace discrimination in “regular” jobs and poverty all meant that LGBTQ people were disproportionately over-represented in sex work - and this will take a while to change.

Sex workers are male, female and non-binary, LGBTQ, migrants and workers. Supporting sex workers’ rights means understanding the diversity and complexity of sex workers’ lives, and understanding how their rights intersect with many other social movements.

Not all sex workers are in the industry out of their own will. There are those who are tackling drug addictions or facing poverty. Should the discussion on prostitution also reflect poverty and education? Why are we not discussing these two issues more in depth?

Sex work is a multi-dimensional and intersectional social issue that requires a multi-dimensional and intersectional approach. Likewise, when we are discussing other social issues like poverty, access to education, etc, we need to make sure that these discussions are inclusive of sex workers too. This is why I keep insisting that sex work needs to be addressed and approached as a complex social issue, rather than being treated as a criminal one and reduced to “violence against women”.

It is important that we speak about violence inflicted on sex workers by different actors including clients, people posing as clients, police, intimate partners, family members, and co-workers. We need to understand that sex workers’ vulnerability is caused by both direct and structural violence – a violence that results from and perpetuated by broader historically rooted social structures and relationships, unequal distribution of power, and more.