In the last twenty to thirty years, the trafficking of young women and children from poor countries to Europe for sexual exploitation has greatly changed the face of prostitution in Europe.
The response of European governments to this presence and to the problem has thus generally been to legalise and introduce state regulation of prostitution.
At national and international forums, prostitution and trafficking have generated discussion and raised different complex issues at various levels, due to the large presence of these young women and children from poor countries, who are forced/induced into prostitution in the West.
As one of the countries at the forefront of the problem of sex trafficking and prostitution, due to the huge influx of trafficking victims into its territory, the Italian Government is searching for an adequate and effective response to these problems.
In such a situation, we believe that it is necessary to reflect on why some men need to buy women’s bodies for sex.
We believe that it is necessary to reflect on the way women in prostitution live the experience.
We believe that it is also necessary to reflect on problems relating to prostitution and trafficking from various points of view, including the social, cultural, economic, medical, psychological and political points of view.
The Italian Government is very much concerned about eliminating and fighting against gender-based violence in all its various forms and is equally keen in its promotion of gender equality.
To this end, it has signed and ratified the various international legal instruments which call for State members to discourage the demand for paid sexual services, in recognition of its contribution to sex trafficking and to other related criminal activities.
For these motives, Associazione IROKO, in collaboration with Unione Donne Italiane of Naples (UDI NAPOLI), Resistenza Femminista and other national and international partners organised an international meeting held in Rome the 20th February 2017, in order to favour an exchange of ideas and experiences on the above stated issues, and to encourage the Nordic Model in Italy as a valid choice for its citizens.
The Conference records are available here.
