Women's Equality Coalition applauds sex-work ruling, calls on Ottawa to do more

Jennifer Dunn, London Abused Women's Centre (LAWC), speaks during a press conference on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, on Thursday, Oct. 5, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Spencer Colby

OTTAWA — A coalition of women's groups that support Canada's laws criminalizing some aspects of prostitution are calling on the federal government to do more to support and protect vulnerable people in the sex trade.

Last week, the Ontario Superior Court dismissed a Charter challenge to prostitution-related criminal offences brought in by the former Conservative government of prime minister Stephen Harper in 2014.

The Canadian Alliance for Sex Work Law Reform, which launched the challenge, had argued the laws, which prohibit paying for sexual services, violated the rights of sex workers by fostering stigma and preventing them from obtaining meaningful consent before engaging with clients.

The Women's Equality Coalition had been an intervener in the case, arguing that sex work is a form of violence by men against women and that the Charter of Rights and Freedoms should not be there to protect it.

That coalition is welcoming the ruling by Justice Robert Goldstein that upheld the laws, which he said balance the prohibition of "the most exploitative aspects of the sex trade" with protecting sex workers from legal prosecution.

Hilla Kerner from the Vancouver Rape Relief and Women's Shelter, one of the organizations in the coalition, says if women are provided with alternatives and financial stability, they won't have to work in the industry.

The coalition wants to see more federal support for drug detox and long-term recovery programs, safe and affordable housing, child care, education and a livable income.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 5, 2023.