THIS PETITION WAS CREATED IN A PAPER FORMAT BY ELIZABETH MAY, MP (Green Party).

ELIZABETH'S MAYS PDF WAS REPRODUCED ONLINE BY A SEX TRADE WORKER SPEAKING UP FOR THE INDUSTRY.

We, the undersigned Citizens of Canada draw to the attention of the House the following: 

WHEREAS The Supreme Court of Canada ruled, in Canada (Attorney General) v. Bedford, that the restrictions surrounding prostitution in the Criminal Code impose “dangerous conditions on prostitution” and are therefore unconstitutional;

WHEREAS: Numerous peer-reviewed studies on the safety of sex workers in countries that have criminalized the purchase of sex have shown that sex workers face the dangers of being displaced from a safe neighbourhood, an inability to screen clients and negotiate the terms of transaction, and an inability to access police protection; 

WHEREAS research conducted by the University of British Columbia, Department of Medicine, the BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS, and Pivot Legal Society (Krusi et al.) shows that Vancouver’s experiment with targeting the purchase of sex has produced the same results; 

WHEREAS The Criminal Code already prohibits human trafficking, sexual exploitation, and child prostitution; 

WHEREAS Advocates for the human rights of sex workers such as Pivot Legal Society, Sex Workers United Against Violence, POWER, and the Gender and Sexual Health Initiative have warned that Bill C-36 will perpetuate the same dangerous conditions for sex workers that the Supreme Court addressed;

WHEREAS Concerns for health and safety must be paramount in any legislation regarding prostitution; 

WHEREAS The criminalization of the purchase of sex does not alleviate the need of those who enter the sex industry due to extreme economic need; 

THEREFORE, YOUR PETITIONERS Call on the House of Commons to reject all aspects of Bill C-36 that will endanger the lives of sex workers by prohibiting the purchase or sale of sexual services by adults, develop new legislation in cooperation with sex workers, use existing criminal laws to target abuse and exploitation in the sex industry, invest in programs that support the rights of sex workers to health and safety, and invest in programs that alleviate poverty and discrimination.