Press Releases – Page 6 – Doctors for Life

High Court Blunders into Dagga Minefield

April 3, 2017

Media Release Embargo: Immediate release Date : 03 April 2017 Enquiries: Doctors For Life Int. Telephone: 032 4815550/5807 Doctors For Life International (DFL) is deeply concerned by the judgment of the Western Cape High Court that allows, subject to legislation to be passed in the next 24 months, the private growing and use of Cannabis Sativa. The court has rushed into an area they should only tread into after reviewing systematic, evidence-based research. This, the Pretoria High Court was set to do in August of 2017. What people do with Cannabis in the privacy of their homes is relevant to the whole of society. Firstly because of the semi-long-term effects of Cannabis that last up to 21 days after ingestion. These include poor coordination and slowed reaction time etc. which can lead to fatal traffic and work place accidents. Secondly, the decision has disastrous consequences for the youth. It will be virtually impossible to prevent children from being exposed to the smoking of cannabis and its detrimental health consequences such as impaired verbal IQ, memory, reduced decision making and an increased prevalence of psychosis later in life. The drop in IQ has been thoroughly researched: IQ drop was demonstrated if used and quit before 18 years of age. IQ drop is highest when used before age 18 and still addicted at age 38. IQ drop is associated with the length of time addiction. During the teenage years the brain is especially vulnerable because it prunes unneeded connections, grows in size, wires cortical dopamine circuits, strengthens connections and reorganizes brain function as a whole. Furthermore, the US state of Colorado’s experience clearly shows an increase in emergency admissions to hospitals due to small children ingesting cannabis by mistake due to the reckless behaviour of parents. There is no doubt that any cultivation of Cannabis Sativa, even for research purposes, can have serious public health consequences and that it should be properly regulated by legislation.

Doctors for Life International represents 1531 medical doctors and specialists of which three-quarters practice in South Africa. Since 1991 DFL has been actively promoting sound science in the medical profession and health care that is safe and efficient for all South Africans. For more information visit: https://doctorsforlife.co.za

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Conflating marijuana plants with isolated cannabinoids to confuse the public

February 23, 2017

Embargo: Immediate release Date: 23 February 2017 Enquiries: Doctors For Life Int. Telephone: 032 4815550

Media Release

Doctors For Life International (DFL) is concerned about the way news reporting on the Medical Innovations Bill keeps presenting the issue of ‘medical marijuana’ to the public. These reports pose the danger of confusing critical issues in the debate to legalise cannabis for medicinal use. Actually there is no such thing as ‘medical marijuana’; that is, there is not a particular type of marijuana/dagga used for medicinal purposes, let alone for specific medicinal purposes. Conflating marijuana with isolated cannabinoids misunderstands the scientific literature and confuses physicians, policy makers and patients. The medical marijuana movement was created to blur the regulatory and legal boundaries. In most states in the USA with medical marijuana laws, the vast majority (>90{01b0879e117dd7326006b2e84bcaac7e8fa1509c5c67baf2c9eb498fe06caff4}) of those holding registry cards are young males with vague ‘pain’ or sleep problems. Their profile is not representative of a patient in need of compassionate medicine such as at end stage cancer or Aids, as was initially sold to the public. Whereas DFL is not against the use of using herbs in their whole state for medicinal purposes, the case with dagga or Cannabis Sativa is different. We know for a fact that amongst the +/- 700 molecules in the cannabis plant there are some very harmful substances which cause serious, permanent brain damage on their own, or in combination with other substances in the plant. The effects of smoking or ingesting the whole cannabis plant have certain harmful effects on the body as a whole, such as the lungs, reproductive system and brain development in unborn babies etc. Negative effects on the executive functions of the brain can be divided into those experienced during the phase of acute intoxication; those associated with the 21 days following ingestion and those that are considered long term. The negative effects on executive functions that can last up to 21 days after smoking include: poor decision making, poor concept formation and planning deficits. What is of especially grave concern are the long term / permanent impairment in executive functions of the brain. Adolescent long term use is associated with significant reduction in IQ measured at 38 years, reduced motivation and increased prevalence of psychoses and schizophrenia later in life. A recent article by the National Institute of Drug Addiction in the USA voiced concern that the spread of marijuana through the medical or legalisation route, is troublesome in view of the growing evidence of adverse effects of cannabis including: addiction, poor school performance, memory impairment, compromised lifetime achievement, gateway drug effects, plus risks of cancer and motor vehicle accidents. No other prescription drug has this peculiar combination of risk factors. There is strong scientific support for concluding that adequate assurances regarding whether whole plant dagga can be safely used under medical supervision, are lacking. The psychoactive effects of cannabis present a significant ethical obstacle to designing double-blinded clinical trials on the plant as a whole. In addition, the only indications for the medical use of dagga offered by its proponents, have been for chronic conditions which imply long term use, which does the most harm. Added to this is the fact that the THC (delta-9th- tetrahydrocannabinol) levels vary from <1{01b0879e117dd7326006b2e84bcaac7e8fa1509c5c67baf2c9eb498fe06caff4} to >30{01b0879e117dd7326006b2e84bcaac7e8fa1509c5c67baf2c9eb498fe06caff4}. It varies from strain to strain; from plant to plant; is affected by the water supply; the time of the year when harvested; the soil quality; the light quality; microbial environment; mineral content of the soil; fertilizer and pesticides used – and even by how long the plant has lain after harvest before it was processed. In the case of being smoked, it is also influenced by the concentration of Cannabidiol (CBD) and dosages depend on the depth of inhalation and the length of time the smoke is retained in the lungs before exhaling. Physician recommendations for medicinal use of smoked cannabis (obtained in a dispensary) are not grounded on systematic, evidence-based research – which is the hallmark of our health system THC is the most active constituent of cannabis that has been produced synthetically and is available as Dronabinol or Nabilone or Cesamet (a synthetic cannabinoid to THC). Sativex which contains THC and CBD in a 1:1 equal amount combination is currently approved in the UK, plus several European countries and – Canada and is in the fast track false III studies to be registered with the FDA in the USA. A Cannabidiol (CBD) based drug called Epidiolex has recently been developed for childhood epilepsy. In a clinical trial comparing the effects of smoked dagga with Dronabinol (THC alone) under controlled conditions, marijuana and Dronabinol both decreased pain, but Dronabinol produced longer lasting decreases in pain sensitivity – and lower ratings of abuse-related subjective side effects Consequently, Doctors For Life International is of the opinion, with other experts, that if there is any future in dagga as medicine, it lies in its isolated components: the cannabinoids and their synthetic derivatives.

Doctors for Life International represents more than 1500 medical doctors and specialists, three-quarters of whom practice in South Africa. Since 1991 DFL has been actively promoting sound science in the medical profession and health care that is safe and efficient for all South Africans. For more information visit: https://doctorsforlife.co.za

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Bloemfontein Supreme Court of Appeal upholds appeal, rejects active euthanasia

December 7, 2016

Media Release Embargo: Immediate release Date: 07-12-2016 Enquiries: Vaughan Luck Cell: 078 748 9884 Doctors For Life International is delighted with the outcome of this court case which was the culmination of decades of conferences, educating Health Professionals and the public, taking part in debates, and finally this legal battle to prevent legislation that would use the SA public as guinea pigs in a tragic social experiment. Legalising physician assisted suicide would have created a legal precedent that would have led to floods of euthanasia contagion. The judgement will serve to protect the sick, the aged and the vulnerable in SA who are the ones who would be most harmed through such a law. The Supreme Court of Appeal pointed to several flaws in Judge Fabricius’ ruling: One being that Mr Stransham-Ford passed away prior to Fabricius making his judgement. Circumstantial evidence seems to indicate this information may have been deliberately withheld from the court. DFL first testified as a separate party and later as an amicus in support of the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services, the Minister of Health, the National Director of Public Prosecutions and the Health Professionals Council of South Africa who have filed a “Notice of Leave to Appeal” to the Supreme Court of Appeal of South Africa against the whole of the judgement handed down by Judge Fabricius on the 4th of May 2015. But Judge Wallis upheld the appeal on 6 December, overturning the lower court’s decision that approved death of Robin Stransham-Ford by active euthanasia or assisted suicide. During the court case, the Centre for Applied Legal Studies at Wits submitted arguments suggesting that euthanasia and assisted suicide were working well overseas. But DFL and others submitted evidence that proves this is far from the truth. Belgium and Netherlands for example (as with all countries that have legalised it) could not regulate or contain this form of suicide, once legalised it spreads similarly to a contagious disease. Euthanasia was only legalised in Belgium in 2002 and this is how far it has gone;

2002 – Euthanasia legalized. 2003 – Euthanasia of children proposed in Belgium. 2004 – Euthanasia kills 1 person per day. 2005 – Belgium pharmacies offer euthanasia kits. 2006 – Euthanasia rates double. 2010 – 30{01b0879e117dd7326006b2e84bcaac7e8fa1509c5c67baf2c9eb498fe06caff4} of cases did not give consent. 2011 – Doctors harvest organs from disabled euthanasia cases. 2012 – Prison euthanasia introduced. 2013 – Euthanasia deaths increase 25{01b0879e117dd7326006b2e84bcaac7e8fa1509c5c67baf2c9eb498fe06caff4}. 2014 – Now legal to euthanize children over 12. 2016 – First child, 17 years, euthanized in Belgium.

Some of the new developments in the Netherlands;

2016 – not only for sick or dying but also for those considering their lives to be complete.

2016 – euthanasia allowed for alcoholics.

Other reasons that emerged in the court’s ruling was that the picture of Mr Stransham-Ford’s final illness as depicted in the legal affidavits, bore little resemblance to reality as found in his medical records. The applicant’s doctor’s medical records indicate he was wavering in his desire for suicide/euthanasia. The estate of Stransham-Ford apparently had refused to release these medical records until a court order was issued for them. Retracting euthanasia requests are not uncommon with those seeking euthanasia, an argument DFL has often made in the past. Judge Wallis also pointed out that the applicant’s affidavit was factually and medically doubtful on many points. Judge Fabricius’ ruling was also decided in haste (in one day) on something that is clearly a matter of national importance, and that DFL believed would have had devastating consequences. This urgency was apparently manufactured on an individual case by the lobby group Dignity SA. In the process the applicant’s attorneys had refused to provide the opposing party and amici of the court, like Doctors For Life International’s legal teams, with information they needed to respond. DFL was represented by Advocate Reg Willis and Adrian De Oliveria and Arno Bosch from Robin Twaddle Attorney’s and are very thankful for their hard work and time devoted to this case.

Doctors For Life International is an association of more than 1600 specialists and medical doctors. Doctors For Life endeavors to promote public health by upholding sound science in the medical profession. For more information, please visit www.doctorsforlife.co.za

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Aids Conference 2016

July 28, 2016

Media Release Embargo: Immediate release Enquiries: Vaughan Luck Date: 2016-07-28 Cell: 078 748 9884 Email: [email protected] South Africa successfully hosted the latest AIDS International Conference in Durban last week, this time, having a track record of rolling out the largest HIV treatment program in the world. Indeed, we have come a long way from those disastrous days of Government AIDS denialism which severely restricted availability of ARV medication when we hosted the conference 15 years ago. The theme then in 2000 was “Breaking the silence” appropriate for the time when there was a global paradox with HIV in the northern hemisphere benefiting from availability of treatment while the force of the epidemic had moved to sub Saharan Africa where over 70{01b0879e117dd7326006b2e84bcaac7e8fa1509c5c67baf2c9eb498fe06caff4} of the worlds infected suffered mostly untreated. The eyes of the world were opened then to this injustice and social dilemma. With over 18 000 delegates attending from scores of countries the conference brought together scientists, policy makers, researchers, activists, people living with AIDS and many others. There is some hope and optimism as we face the daunting task of addressing the epidemic now with 34 million people living with AIDS globally. While there is no vaccine or cure available yet, we do understand the science a lot better and are making steady progress following some promising leads. As tools we have very efficient treatment available which prolongs lives, maintains viral suppression and also diminishes transmission. Globally 17 million people now have access to treatment due to improved access in developing countries. New developments in Pre Exposure prophylaxis and slow release treatment promises prevention for those at risk of infection and monthly injections rather than daily pills for those on treatment. Having had a few members attending the conference, some were just offended with the, rude and boisterous way with which the decriminalization of prostitution was pushed down the throats of the conference goers; e.g. The prostitutes at one stage grabbed the microphone from the Minister of Health and started shouting their demands. The red umbrella group were protesting daily inside the conference and well-built men with condom suits were serving as waiters. Some of DFL’s members actually mentioned that they would not be interested in attending again because of that. Concerning Judge Cameron calling the prostitutes onto the stage and asking the audience to applaud them, we felt that, while it is appropriate to recognize our common humanity, we could have done it without glamorizing or condoning a life style that is so degrading. With some of our members talking to the prostitutes one was struck by how deeply traumatized many of them were. Surely our answer should be to help them exit this horrible profession and not make them comfortable in their slavery – like providing mattresses and other paraphernalia to slaves in the hulls of ships on their way to be sold at the slave markets. The conference goers were however refreshed by a plain Zulu woman who put up her hand during one session and asked conference goers why they think they can come from other countries and tell us to make prostitutes of our daughters and sons here in SA. She actually challenged our government to send their own children into prostitution first, as an example before expecting the public to do it. Consequently, the red umbrella group left the conference to follow the woman to confront a lively group of young South Africans who were protesting against decriminalization of prostitution. The group included a group of girls whom DFL had assisted to exit prostitution and were getting skills training through one of our programs. Dr. A van Eeden (CEO) Doctors For Life International

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Breaking News: Aids Conference 2016

July 19, 2016

Doctors For Life Media Release Embargo: Immediate release Enquiries: Vaughan Luck Date: 2016-07-19 Cell: 078 748 9884 Email: [email protected] Doctors For Life International would like to applaud the Deputy Minister of Justice on his address to the conference on Tuesday 18 July. In the Deputy Minister’s address, he stated that decriminalization of prostitution is not likely to happen in SA. He listed among other reasons; increase in sex trafficking victims, increase in the number of women drawn into prostitution & increase in foreign women coming to SA for sex work. It is well documented that in countries where prostitution has been decriminalized e.g. Germany and Netherlands. Sex trafficking has gone up, prostitution involving underage girls has increased and the rate of HIV infection has increased despite condoms being made available. The violence, rape and abuse suffered by prostitutes didn’t go away, it just became an occupational hazard. Pimps became managers and human traffickers became recruitment agencies bringing girls to be used as sex slaves. (1) DFL believes the Dept. Minister of Justice has sent a clear message and indication on where the government stands regarding prostitution and believes this is a step in the right direction to abolishing prostitution completely. 1. Human Rights Magazine Vol.37 2010 http://www.americanbar.org/publications/human_rights_magazine_home/human_rights_vol37_2010/spring2010/sex_trafficking_and_hiv_aids_a_deadly_junction_for_women_and_girls.html 9 Country Study – Melissa Farley www.prostitutionresearch.com/pdf/Prostitutionin9Countries.pdf

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Is South Africa promoting Sex Trafficking?

June 29, 2016

Doctors For Life Media Release Embargo: Immediate release Enquiries: Vaughan Luck Date: 29-06-2016 Cell: 078 748 9884 It has come to the attention of Doctors For Life International that the National Department of Health is promoting condoms specifically to be used by women in prostitution without having aggressive strategies, structures and facilities in place to help such women exit the life of sexual exploitation which is a form of modern day slavery. Nothing is done to arrest and punish the male clients, pimps and brothel owners. To make matters worse, this is being done while prostitution is still illegal in South Africa. Indeed, contracting HIV is a major risk for prostitutes. Lowndes et al. report that the prevalence of HIV/AIDS is 10-20 times greater among prostituting women than in the general female population. Unfortunately, as some researchers have observed, the single-minded approach to combating HIV in high-risk groups tends to obscure and gives official sanction to “the structural factors that shape the context wherein high-risk groups are formed and high-risk behaviours occur.” Behind prostitution is the dark world of human trafficking as woman and children are made promises of improving their lifestyles and instead are being trafficked into sexual slavery. There are countless cases recorded by women who escape slavery and tell how they were deceived and then bound to their slave owners or pimps. Focusing on the prevention of HIV/AIDS only, often downplays the other horrors of the prostitutes’ lifestyle which dwarfs the STI’s. These include high levels of violence and harassment, witnessing violence done to others, isolation from family and friends, losing custody of children, the physical and emotional harm of daily sexual activity, feelings of rejection, effects of drug and alcohol abuse, as well as trauma from childhood abuse, are among the factors contributing to emotional and mental health problems among women in the prostitution. The only true answer is to abolish prostitution from society completely. Despite the clear presence of prostituted children or so called “young prostitutes” and sex slaves called “bonded prostitutes” by the sex industry, while condoms are handed out, the existence of sexual slavery is often only referred to in `politically correct’ articles but that’s where it ends. Registering alarm at the presence of children, or suggesting steps for possible intervention in such situations is not mentioned. Due to the decline in the SA economy, a huge influx of young girls from rural areas in human trafficking is being witnessed. Many resort to prostitution in order to finance tuition fees. The whole “Blesser – Blessee” phenomenon is to a certain extent due to that. Human trafficking is referred to as an easier crime to get into, more so than drug dealing and the arms trade. Thus the objective of reducing HIV, while laudable, has eclipsed not only other health issues among prostituting women, but often blinded some HIV prevention efforts to the violence, exploitation, child sexual abuse and slavery rampant within the sex industry. There are however numerous other health risks for women in prostitution. Researchers have observed common medical conditions including tuberculosis, diabetes, cancer, arthritis, malaria, asthma, anaemia, and hepatitis. In addition, in large peer reviewed studies 24{01b0879e117dd7326006b2e84bcaac7e8fa1509c5c67baf2c9eb498fe06caff4} of respondents reported health problems such as uterine infections, menstrual problems, ovarian pain, abortion complications, pregnancy, and infertility. Other types of health problems included (but were not limited to) gastrointestinal symptoms including ulcers, diarrhoea, and colitis, as well as neurological symptoms including migraine headaches, memory loss, numbness, seizures, and dizziness. The harms of prostitution are not restricted to the conditions in which it is carried out, but as existing in the carrying out of prostitution itself which DFL is witnessing. We are concerned about sexual trafficking victims, but also about women in prostitution for any reason (e.g. poverty, lack of job opportunities, etc.). The South African Government has no structures, facilities, strategies in place to help these girls exit prostitution. Human trafficking, pimps who run syndicates as part of organised crime and the objectification of women and children as nothing more than “sex toys” as are the problem. Turning pimps into managers through decriminalization won’t change that. The only thing that will change that is the total abolition of prostitution in society.

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Helping the Prostitute, or Managing the Problem?

June 7, 2016

Doctors For Life Media Release

Date: 2016-06-07 Office – 032 481 5550

DFL strongly opposes the viewpoint expressed by SWEAT, that abolishing prostitution will discriminate against prostitutes. SWEAT fails to understand that denouncing systems of injustice is different from reviling the people within that system. When countries in Western world abolished slavery, that action did not indirectly insult former slaves. When governments pass anti-poverty initiatives, we do not conclude that they are condemning and judging the poor. When apartheid was abolished it did not discriminate against people of colour. The vast majority of young girls from rural areas are sucked into this vortex of deception that they think they can earn a good living through prostitution, because of poverty. For any government to create an impression of care by decriminalizing prostitution in order the facilitate the State’s providing condoms is hypocritical. Girls of 12-14 years and older end up being sexually exploited by buyers and addicted to drugs of abuse and controlled my ruthless pimps. They are forced to buy their drugs from the same pimp to whom they must give part of the income they obtain through selling their bodies to be degraded and raped umpteen times a day. The older they get, the less money they make and the more addicted they become. Every day they spend addicted they have less of a chance to get further education to compete with their peers for jobs. In the end they are thrown away by society like dirty, useless rags. DFL recognizes that after such involuntary entry into the sex trade many women adapt to life in the sex trade. However, we identify this process as trauma bonding (e.g. Stockholm syndrome) and strategies aimed at enhancing survival. These adaptations do not negate the individual’s involuntary entry into the sex trade. When organizations in favour of the decriminalisation of prostitution in the USA tried to motivate for the right to use government funds to help finance their cause (a case which they lost), abolitionists concurred that they “are free to have whatever policies and espouse whatever views they wish—that people are purple, that pigs fly, that prostitution is just a job — just not at taxpayer’s expense”. (1) The groups opposing the anti-prostitution assurances claimed that “organizations with the most effective anti-AIDS and anti-trafficking strategies build their efforts on a sophisticated understanding of the social and personal dynamics underlying these issues.” They were told that if a “sophisticated understanding” means winking at human slave markets and consigning trafficking victims to continued torture, degradation, and death from disease and abuse, then we should prefer a “simple understanding” that sees slavery as evil and rescues victims before they are further abused, exploited or killed. (2) 1) Harden White and Lisa Thompson to Mohammad Akhter, September 23, 2005, (unpublished data). 2) Global perspectives on prostitution and sex trafficking Europe, Latin America, North America, and global – edited by Rochelle L. Dalla, Lynda M. Baker, John DeFrain and Celia Williamson

Doctors For Life International is an association of more than 1600 specialists and medical doctors. Doctors For Life endeavours to promote public health by upholding sound science in the medical profession. For more information, please visit… www.doctorsforlife.co.za

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Is it Really a "Blessing"?

May 25, 2016

Embargo: Immediate release Date: 2016-05-25 Enquiries: Vaughan Luck Cell: 078 748 9884 Office: 032 481 5550 Doctors For Life is very concerned about this trend of the “Bless-er” and “Bless-ee“. Two made up words used to glamourize and candy coat a much older well off man taking advantage of minors (some as young as 12-14 years). School children instead of depending on getting good grades are now depending on these “sugar daddies” to provide for their needs. In developmental psychology an adolescent is known as a concrete operator;

They believe themselves unlikely to suffer from the negative consequences of their actions.
They believe that they understand more than what they do.
They are not aware of their own limitations and make judgements that are inappropriate

Hence they take risks which others won’t. All of the above make the South African youth more vulnerable to sexual predators. Being groomed by an older man through the promise of gifts for favours is revolting. It is turning our young girls into sex slaves for child predators that should be locked up and not idolized. Sex exchanged for gifts in any form is prostitution, plain and simply. They are being exploited and confused leading to the inability to think clearly and act responsibly. The more our government departments hint in the media about prostitution being decriminalized the more you will see this type of behaviour starting to become normalized in the minds of the young generation of South Africans who read about it in magazines, follow it on social media and watch it acted out in their favourite TV shows and movies. Paedophilia is being presented as a variant of normal human sexual behaviour, therefore younger and younger boys and girls are likely to become victims of this sort of exploitation. Even more so when they are provided with condoms. Can we really hope to encourage and motivate the youth to stay away from destructive behaviours while at the same time handing out the very “tool” used to encourage those same behaviours? All we are doing is sending out mixed messages.

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Bribery, Corruption and Now Prostitution. Is South Africa a Soft Target?

November 26, 2020May 19, 2016

Media Release Embargo: Immediate release Date: 2016-05-19 Enquiries: Vaughan Luck Cell: 078 748 9884 Office: 032 481 5550 Email: [email protected] South Africa seems to be going in the opposite direction to the rest of the world on the issue of decriminalizing prostitution, meanwhile in South Africa it seems to be gaining momentum and the question Doctors For Life International would like to ask is… “Why?” Billboards put up by the Department of Health in Gauteng a few months ago said “I like to give my clients pleasure, not HIV”. This implies that being a prostitute is a joyful, meaningful experience, given by a lady wanting to provide an all-important service to her client. Isn’t prostitution illegal in South Africa? DFL urgently appeals to the government take a more official and visible stance towards the total abolition of prostitution in order to ensure that our teenagers from the most impoverished communities that flock to Durban, Cape Town, Johannesburg and other cities, seeking out a better life don’t see prostitution as a viable option of employment. Why would a government that is supposed to have the best interests of its people at heart want to make it acceptable to sell themselves, for sex, on a street corner or under the control of a ruthless pimp in a brothel; to make sexual exploitation, violence and paid rape legal. DFL recommends that a few MP’s from government put themselves in the prostitute’s shoes before making any decisions on whether it should be an option as a profession. The Deputy President said not so long ago that the government wants to start a program to hand out condoms to prostitutes. There is no “condom” for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Condoms are already freely available. This is not going to protect sex workers from physical violence, rape or mental conditions. Numerous studies have shown that programs to promote safe sex practices are notorious for failing in their objectives; 1. There are many STD’s that are transferred by skin contact not body fluids alone. 2. Poor mental health and self-esteem as well as drug habits may actually undermine their motivation and ability to adopt safer sex behaviours. If you feel worthless why bother to protect and look after yourself. 3. Decriminalizing prostitution creates a buyer’s market rather than a seller’s market. Competition for customer’s increases. Consequently, sex workers desperate for cash would be open to offers of more money for unsafe sex practises. There is a reason why more prostitutes suffer with PTSD than war veterans returning home from war (80{01b0879e117dd7326006b2e84bcaac7e8fa1509c5c67baf2c9eb498fe06caff4} compared to 69{01b0879e117dd7326006b2e84bcaac7e8fa1509c5c67baf2c9eb498fe06caff4}) and it is not because of the “perks of the job” that’s for sure. Buying a slave a mattress so the slave doesn’t have to sleep on the floor does not take away the fact that the slave is still a slave. No wonder people worked so hard for the total abolition of slavery. Prostitution is illegal in over 90{01b0879e117dd7326006b2e84bcaac7e8fa1509c5c67baf2c9eb498fe06caff4} of the world. Those countries where it has been decriminalized are seeing increases in child sex trafficking and HIV rates and are now pushing for the abolishment of prostitution completely. Germany, for example, has over 400 000 sex workers now, more than half of these workers are from other countries and are there illegally. This is a dramatic increase compared to before it was legal. South Africa has over 150 000 adult sex workers and over 38 000 child prostitutes according to the 19th edition of the South African Health Review. France recently made the buying of sex illegal in an effort to abolish the selling/trafficking of women into sexual slavery. It is just one of a list of countries making prostitution illegal. Pro-decriminalization groups see SA as an easy target, due to the lawless perception we are portraying to the rest of the world. Bribery and corruption seem to have become pillars of South African society. In New South Wales (Australia) where prostitution is legal it is reported that about 10{01b0879e117dd7326006b2e84bcaac7e8fa1509c5c67baf2c9eb498fe06caff4} of the total incidences of STI’s was prostitution derived. This is in a state where less than 0.06{01b0879e117dd7326006b2e84bcaac7e8fa1509c5c67baf2c9eb498fe06caff4} of the females were regularly employed as prostitutes and only 4-5{01b0879e117dd7326006b2e84bcaac7e8fa1509c5c67baf2c9eb498fe06caff4} of the male population were regular customers. This indicates a considerable impact. If you translate those figures to SA where prostitution is rife it demonstrates how making prostitution legal will only help in the further spread of HIV and Aids. To say that by decriminalizing prostitution you are helping is a paradox. The violence against women will not stop, rape will not stop, being held as a sex slave by a pimp will not stop, as can be seen in the comprehensive study; “Prostitution and Trafficking in 9 Countries-An update on Violence and PTSD”. All decriminalization does is say that this now becomes part of the job description. There is a big difference to being able to report rape and stopping it from happening all together. The only way to protect our women and children from prostitution is to stop prostitution from becoming acceptable as a career choice, after all none of us would ever want our children to come home and say; Mommy, Daddy I want to be a prostitute when I grow up.

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Pimps or Politician's?

April 8, 2016

Media Release Embargo: Immediate release Date: 2016-04-08 Enquiries: Vaughan Luck Cell: 078 748 9884 Email: [email protected] Sex work seems to be on everyone’s minds in South Africa. From billboards on the side of the highway, to politicians wanting to supply sex workers with free condoms, as if that would be like waving the magic wand that makes all the problems related to it go away. Doctors For Life International has been working with sex workers for over ten years and knows first-hand what these lady’s go through, from being abused to trafficked into a life of slavery. The drug abuse, violence and the psychological trauma sex workers face should not be looked at lightly or ever made to be “part of the job” if sex work is legalized. France has just made the buying of sex illegal. In France pimping, human trafficking, brothels and buying sex from a minor are all already against the law. Sweden was the first country to criminalise those who pay for sex, introducing the law in 1999. Other countries where buying sex is already illegal are: Norway in 2008, Iceland in 2009, and Northern Ireland in 2014. Earlier this year, the European parliament approved a resolution calling for the law to be adopted throughout the continent. Why is South Africa headed in the opposite direction? We can see that legalizing prostitution doesn’t work and only benefits the pimps and human traffickers who are the ones making the real money, not the ladies on the street corner. Turning criminals into businessmen is not the answer to the problem. Amsterdam is closing down the brothels in the notorious red light district and various government officials have come out and said that legalization doesn’t work. Germany is another country which is about to change its policy and make the buying of sex illegal. Why would these countries change their policy if the legalization of prostitution was working? It’s simple; it does not work. It only increases the chances of women being trafficked for the sole purpose of becoming a sex slave (prostitute/sex worker). Legalized sex work desensitizes society to the abuse of women and makes it acceptable for women to be seen as nothing more than objects to be used for sexual gratification. Politician’s or pimps? DFL wonders whose best interests are being thought of when politicians make these comments and law changes. Maybe they should spend a few months on the street as sex workers first before making rash decisions. Sex work activities are often performed in the following locations: in an apartment, a hotel, a “massage parlour”, car, doorway, hallway, street, bar, public toilet, park, alleyway, on a stage, in a booth etc. Wages are negotiated at each and every transaction. Payments are delivered when the client determines when and if services have been rendered to his satisfaction. Corporate management fees range from 40-60{01b0879e117dd7326006b2e84bcaac7e8fa1509c5c67baf2c9eb498fe06caff4} of wages and pimps reserve the right to impound all monies earned. Benefits are determined at the discretion of management and there will often be non-payment for services rendered. Sexually transmitted diseases or pregnancy are commonplace. Injuries sustained through performance of services include but are not limited to cuts, bruises, lacerations, internal haemorrhaging, broken bones, suffocation, mutilation, disfigurement, dismemberment and death. Accusations of rape are treated as a breach of contract. Who wouldn’t want to be prostitute with those “perks”. There is nothing glamorous about sex work. It is dangerous, degrading and strips the person of any feelings of self-worth. There is a reason why more prostitutes suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) than soldiers returning from war. Doing sex work is like putting oneself in a warzone; it’s a fight to survive on a daily basis often without any hope of going home.

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