Prostitution vs Sex Work: A 'What is the Problem Represented to be?' critical policy analysis on the Cyprus Penal Code: Artie 164(a) of the Cyprus Penal Code
Author
Awwad, Michaela
Term
4. term
Publication year
2020
Submitted on
2020-05-28
Pages
44
Abstract
Dette speciale undersøger, hvordan Cyperns straffelov konstruerer problemet i krydsfeltet mellem prostitution eller sexarbejde og menneskehandel med fokus på artikel 164(a) om rufferi, det vil sige at leve af andres prostitution. Med udgangspunkt i feministiske debatter mellem et liberalt eller sexarbejdsorienteret perspektiv og neo-abolitionisme placeres Cypern i en historisk kontekst: den udbredte brug af kunstner- og turistvisa, den skelsættende sag Rantsev mod Cypern og Rusland og afskaffelsen af kunstnervisa i 2009 samt øens fortsatte politiske deling, der skaber håndhævelsesmæssige smuthuller. Studiet anvender Carol Bacchis What is the Problem Represented to be (WPR) som kvalitativ, kritisk policyanalyse og gennemgår relevante bestemmelser i straffeloven, suppleret af forfatterens indblik fra antitrafficking-arbejde og et uformelt interview med lederen af politiets kontor for bekæmpelse af menneskehandel. Analysen spørger, hvad artikel 164(a) fremstiller som problemet, hvilke antagelser der ligger under, hvordan denne problemfremstilling er opstået og vedligeholdes, samt hvilke tavsheder og effekter den skaber. Specialet påpeger, at selv om Cypern har strenge bestemmelser mod menneskehandel og flere relaterede lovovertrædelser som rufferi, bordeller og solicitering, er selve prostitutionen hverken eksplicit lovlig eller ulovlig, hvilket skaber en grå reguleringszone med konsekvenser for kvinders liv og rettigheder. Detaljerede WPR-fund udvikles i det fulde speciale; de fremgår ikke af dette uddrag.
This thesis investigates how the Cyprus Penal Code constructs the problem at the intersection of prostitution or sex work and human trafficking, focusing on article 164(a) on procurement. Framed by feminist debates between liberal or sex-work approaches and neo-abolitionism, the study situates Cyprus historically through the widespread use of artist and tourist visas, the Rantsev v Cyprus and Russia case, and the 2009 cancellation of the artist visa, as well as the island's ongoing political division, which creates enforcement loopholes. Using Carol Bacchi's What is the Problem Represented to be (WPR) framework and a qualitative critical policy analysis, the research analyzes statutory texts related to prostitution, while drawing on the author's exposure to anti-trafficking practice and an informal interview with the head of the police Office for Combating Trafficking. The analysis asks what problem article 164(a) represents, the assumptions that underpin it, how this representation emerged and is sustained, and what silences and effects it produces. The thesis highlights that, despite strict anti-trafficking provisions and offences surrounding prostitution such as procurement, brothels and solicitation, prostitution itself is neither explicitly legal nor illegal in Cyprus, creating a gray regulatory space that shapes how women's lives and rights are affected. Detailed results of the WPR analysis are developed in the full thesis; they are not included in the excerpt.
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