<p>The Supreme Court’s ruling that “prostitution is a profession and sex workers are entitled to dignity and equal protection under the law” is important because it is a call to put an end to prevalent attitudes and to frame policies that would give sex workers respect and dignity. The police as a rule ill-treat them and raid them for various reasons, including to extort money. Protection money is collected from them by a variety of people, including policemen. The women are shamed and ridiculed in public and in the media. Prostitution cannot happen without men being a part of it, but it is the women who are harassed and humiliated. Their children are snatched from them and given away and they are subjected to all kinds of harassment. Many of them are no better off than bonded labourers. </p>.<p>The court’s judgement is the first time it is recognising prostitution as a profession. It has exercised its powers under Article 142 to issue some directions based on recommendations made by a panel set up by it in 2011 on the rehabilitation of workers. It has ordered that governments should comply with these directions till the time a legislation is enacted which would enable sex workers to live with dignity. The court has been pursuing the matter for a long time. It directed state governments and UTs in 2020 to provide dry rations to sex workers identified by the National Aids Control Organisation (NACO) without insisting on proof of identity. Early this year, it also told the governments to complete the process of issuing ration cards and voter cards to all sex workers. The latest ruling improves on them. </p>.<p>The directives include sensitisation of the police to ensure that sex workers are treated with dignity and are not verbally and physically abused, guidelines to the media not to publish their identities, and provision of medical assistance in cases of sexual assault. The government told the court that it has reservations on some recommendations of the court, like taking no criminal action against consenting adult sex workers and giving them a role in framing policies about sex work. The ruling is a major step forward in defining and underlining the rights of sex workers and the court’s support will give a major boost to them. The government should bring forward a law that will give effect to the court’s directions and ensure that sex workers get all rights that other citizens do. The issue is not just legal but social too, but the law can make a beginning and lead society. </p>
<p>The Supreme Court’s ruling that “prostitution is a profession and sex workers are entitled to dignity and equal protection under the law” is important because it is a call to put an end to prevalent attitudes and to frame policies that would give sex workers respect and dignity. The police as a rule ill-treat them and raid them for various reasons, including to extort money. Protection money is collected from them by a variety of people, including policemen. The women are shamed and ridiculed in public and in the media. Prostitution cannot happen without men being a part of it, but it is the women who are harassed and humiliated. Their children are snatched from them and given away and they are subjected to all kinds of harassment. Many of them are no better off than bonded labourers. </p>.<p>The court’s judgement is the first time it is recognising prostitution as a profession. It has exercised its powers under Article 142 to issue some directions based on recommendations made by a panel set up by it in 2011 on the rehabilitation of workers. It has ordered that governments should comply with these directions till the time a legislation is enacted which would enable sex workers to live with dignity. The court has been pursuing the matter for a long time. It directed state governments and UTs in 2020 to provide dry rations to sex workers identified by the National Aids Control Organisation (NACO) without insisting on proof of identity. Early this year, it also told the governments to complete the process of issuing ration cards and voter cards to all sex workers. The latest ruling improves on them. </p>.<p>The directives include sensitisation of the police to ensure that sex workers are treated with dignity and are not verbally and physically abused, guidelines to the media not to publish their identities, and provision of medical assistance in cases of sexual assault. The government told the court that it has reservations on some recommendations of the court, like taking no criminal action against consenting adult sex workers and giving them a role in framing policies about sex work. The ruling is a major step forward in defining and underlining the rights of sex workers and the court’s support will give a major boost to them. The government should bring forward a law that will give effect to the court’s directions and ensure that sex workers get all rights that other citizens do. The issue is not just legal but social too, but the law can make a beginning and lead society. </p>