The Minister of Justice, Ronald LAMOLA, tabled a bill on the decriminalization of prostitution, this Friday, December 9, 2022, in South Africa. According to the government, this bill aims to address violence against women in South Africa.
To decriminalize is to remove an offense from its criminal character. That is to say, stop considering certain acts as subject to criminal prosecution. Is it a government will to comply with Article 22 of the Constitution provides that “everyone has the right to freely choose his profession”.
Decriminalization for the good of women
The protection of women is at the center of this bill. It was in a press briefing that Minister of Justice Ronald LAMOLA said the following:
“It is hoped that decriminalization will reduce human rights violations against sex workers. It would also allow better access to care and better protection for sex workers, better working conditions and less discrimination and stigmatization”.
A possible reversal of case law?
In a conservative country like South Africa, the commercialization of sex has always been considered a moral disorder. In ELLEN Jordan v the State, the
The South African Constitutional Court also linked prostitution to violence, drug abuse and child trafficking. And had further admitted this argument of the South African Government, considering the sex trade as illegitimate and unconstitutional.
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What should we see in this bill? Free fall of African values? A war against the decisions of constitutional judges? Or just a thoughtful introduction of European culture into conservative Africa? In any case, the law aims to decriminalize prostitution and not to regulate this profession.
