Political 'sex worker football' screws with the Australian HIV/AIDS policy
Sydney sex workers accuse local political 'football players' of screwing around with the Australian HIV/AIDS policy. Sex workers feel bound by duty to the Public Health to respond to the way NSW Planning Minister Dr Refshauge, has gutlessly handled the Labour Marrickville Council backflip on their sex worker home occupation policy...
(PRWEB) March 1, 2003
27/02/03
Political 'football players' screw with the Australian HIV/AIDS policy
The Private Worker Alliance, a sex worker organisation dedicated to the urgent implementation of the Australian HIV Prevention Strategy for the Sex Industry, is today calling on politicians to stop playing games with the public health.
Sex work is not illegal in NSW, having been decriminalised through the Disorderly Houses Amendment Act in 1995. Australia and NSW in particular have been internationally recognised as leaders in reforming sex industry laws and maintaining one of the lowest HIV rates of any sex industry in the world.
That the NSW Government endorsed a Sydney local council's decision to discriminate against home based sex workers, shows that despite our international leadership not all is well on the home front.
"It is now time that the State Government and its Ministers for Health and Planning took responsibility in this area and provided the leadership based on evidence and best practice, which is required under the National Strategies which their government has already endorsed. Perhaps we will find principles and spines there - looking for them in Marrickville is a dead loss," Chris Puplick, the chair of the Australian National Council on AIDS and Related Diseases said today in response.
The recent decision of Marrickville council to continue with a requirement for home based sex workers to apply for development consent is ignoring National HIV/AIDS strategy and the findings of the Ministerial Taskforce on brothel report, which states that:
"The identification of individual sex workers through the development application process is also contrary to the recommendations of the Legal Working Party of the Intergovernmental Committee on AIDS, and the policies of the Australian Federation AIDS Organisations (AFAO) and the AIDS Council Of New South Wales (ACON). Such requirements are also counter to the United Nations Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS 2001."
Since the famous Australian "Grim Reaper" Ad from years ago, the Government has not invested resources to educate the heterosexual community about HIV/AIDS. Sex workers in NSW have taken on the responsibility of educating their clients on safer sex, which flows on into clients private lives. Sex workers play a significant role in prevention of Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI's) and education aimed at heterosexuals in NSW, which has maintained the low infection rate in the wider community.
"I am deeply disappointed that Dr Refshauge has endorsed Marrickville councils backflip, because as a Doctor and former Health Minister he should know better. Instead of patting us on the back for keeping the heterosexual community safe from HIV and STIÂ’s, he has stabbed us in the back," Erica Red a spokesperson for the Private Worker Alliance said.
Contact for the Private Worker Alliance, Sydney Australia
Saul on 61 2 9517 4979 - Ph and Fax line
