Danish Social Democrats back Swedish model

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Danish Social Democrats back Swedish model

Postby StuartM » Sun Oct 11, 2009 9:40 am

I've just came across the news from a few weeks ago that the Danish Social Democrats, who are the largest opposition party to the current right-wing government, have voted to support the Swedish model of criminalising men who pay for the sex. The other main opposition party, the Socialist People's Party, also strongly support such a law and have been leading the campaign in support of it for quite a while. So if the left win the next election I think there is a real chance that Denmark could go down the same route as Sweden, Norway and Iceland. That said there's generally a lot less sympathy for radical feminism in Denmark than in its Nordic neighbours and at the moment there doesn't seem to be much public support in favour of criminalisation. But you have to start somewhere and I think it's really positive that the Social Democrats have now also came on board.

My attempt to translate an article from the newspaper Information (http://www. information.dk/telegram/205205):

Social Democrats will prohibit purchase of sex

Social Democrat Mette Frederiksen received, after hot debate, her party's support for a ban on the purchase of sexual services. The party leadership is divided and most Danes are opposed.

The Social Democrats have taken a significant political step and will now work to make it forbidden for Danes to visit prostitutes.

This places the party up against a majority in parliament, majority public opinion and especially against strong party members who oppose a ban.

During a heated debate in Aalborg supporters of the ban compared the issue with the final showdown over the revselsesretten (law allowing parents to use physical force against their children) in 1997 where the Social Democrats took the lead [in campaigning for its abolition]. Supporters want the party to do this again.

"The vast majority of Danes actually don't seem to care about the young women from Africa, Asia and South America trafficked here against their will to serve Danish men within a sex market has gone completely out of control" said the social chairperson Mette Frederiksen.

Several supporters of the ban came on the rostrum with emotional reports about the underside of society.

"It's so dirty, it's so rough, it is driven by gangsters, why should it be allowed?" thundered transport chairperson Magnus Heunicke.

Mayor of Aarhus, Nicolai Wammen, said he has met with prostitutes, looked into their eyes, and therefore must do something. Yildiz Akdogan believes that it simply about "humanity".

"Is it ok that women should be able to be bought? I think not" she said.

It is primarily Mette Frederiksen, who in six years has pushed to change attitudes internally at the Social Democrats.

Party leader Helle Thorning-Schmidt volunteered to come out a week ago in support of a ban. At that time it became clear that a majority of party activists supported Mette Frederiksen.

Her colleague on the board, Morten Bødskov warned the party members against historic legal political steps without knowing the consequences.

"In the places that have introduced it, the experience has been far from clear. Many prostitutes indeed disappear from the street, but they move into the more raw and brutal environments where there are even more violent pimps" said Morten Bødskov who expresses safety concerns.

"You require a huge burden of proof and the Police Federation have came out to say it will be very difficult. And if they are to enforce it it will require enormous resource transfers to the police" says Morten Bødskov.

The former legal affairs spokesperson estimates that the cost to hunt buyers of sex is in the hundreds of millions that he believes it would be better spent on preventing prostitution.

He received the support of culture spokesman Mogens Jensen.

"It is a wrong decision because it does not stop prostitution" he said.

A poll in Jyllands-Posten found that a clear majority of Danes last week did not support a ban. Only 26% supported the Social Democrats' new policy.
StuartM
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Joined: Fri Aug 31, 2007 9:18 pm
Location: Lund, Sweden

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