International Committee on the Rights of Sex Workers in Europe

The International Committee on the Rights of Sex Workers in Europe (ICRSE), originally formed as the International Committee for Prostitutes' Rights (ICPR) in 1985,^{[citation needed]} is a sex worker-led network for sex workers' rights, representing more than 100 organisations led by or working with sex workers in 35 countries in Europe and Central Asia, as well as 200 individuals.^[1] Since its 2005 relaunch as ICRSE,^{[citation needed]} it is registered as a nonprofit foundation  in Amsterdam, Netherlands.^[2]

History

In the mid-1970s a highly politicised prostitutes' rights movement (later known as the sex workers' rights movement) emerged in Europe.^[3] Starting with the strike by French prostitutes in 1975, which led to the creation of the French Collective of Prostitutes and in turn inspired the formation of groups such as the English Collective of Prostitutes in England (1975), the New York Prostitutes Collective (1979) which later became USPROS, the Australian Prostitutes Collective (1981) which is now known as the Prostitutes Collective of Victoria (PCV), and the Italian Committee for Civil Rights of Prostitutes (1982). The Canadian Organisation for the Rights of Prostitutes (CORP), the Dutch Red Thread and HYDRA in Germany also assumed significant roles in the movement. The International Committee for Prostitutes Rights was formed in 1985.^[4]

The ICPR adopted the World Charter for Prostitutes' Rights in 1985 in response to feminist arguments that all prostitution is forced prostitution. The Charter calls for the decriminalisation of "all aspects of adult prostitution resulting from individual decision".^[5] The Charter also states that prostitutes should be guaranteed "all human rights and civil liberties, including the freedom of speech, travel, immigration, work, marriage, and motherhood and the right to unemployment insurance, health insurance and housing".^[5] The Charter established a human rights-based approach, which has subsequently been further elaborated by the sex workers' rights movement.^[6]

The ICPR was relaunched as the International Committee for the Rights of Sex Workers in Europe (ICRSE) in Amsterdam in 2005, and drew up another charter of rights for sex workers, with a focus on European countries.^{[citation needed]}

See also

• A Vindication of the Rights of Whores
• COYOTE
• International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers
• Margo St. James
• Sex worker rights
• Sex worker

References

Bibliography

• Ditmore, Melissa Hope (2006). Encyclopedia of Prostitution and Sex Work. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 782. ISBN 0-313-32968-0.
• Kempadoo, Kamala; Doezema, Jo (1998). Global Sex Workers: Rights, Resistance, and Redefinition. Routledge. p. 294. ISBN 9780415918299.
• Saunders, Penelope (6 August 2000). "Fifteen Years after the World Charter for Prostitutes' Rights". Human Rights Dialogue (1994–2005). Carnegie Council. 2 (3). Retrieved 11 December 2022.
• Wotton, Rachel (September 2016). "Sex workers who provide services to clients with disability in New South Wales, Australia" (PDF). ses.library.usyd.edu.au. University of Sydney. Retrieved 11 December 2022.

External links

• Official website
• International Committee on the Rights of Sex Workers in Europe (ICRSE) – Global Network of Sex Work Projects

This page was last edited on 14 August 2023, at 19:04