Prostitution in Europe

Prostitution is a controversial subject to say the least and one that almost everyone has an opinion on. Ask a group of people whether they think that prostitution should be legal or not, and most often you will get a colorful and impassioned mix of views. It seems that the same is true when you take this debate to an international level, and the rules and regulations regarding prostitution around the world vary greatly.

There are many countries in Europe where prostitution is legal for instance, and it might just surprise you where. For instance, contrary to popular belief the UK actually is one of the countries in Europe where prostitution is legal. Many people think that prostitution in the UK is illegal, but actually the act of exchanging sexual services for money is not a crime in itself. Rather it is the range of associated activities that are illegal in the UK – such as curb crawling, running a brothel, pimping, pandering and soliciting in public areas. In other words it is the institution of prostitution that is illegal, not the act.

There are many other countries in Europe where prostitution is legal in this sense. For instance it is legal in France, in Italy, in Poland and in Portugal to name a few. However in Germany and most famously Holland, prostitution is not only legal but so is the whole institution including the brothels and pimps. These are the countries in Europe where prostitution is legal in every sense, and this allows it to be properly governed. Many people travel to Holland specifically for this purpose in fact which is known as ‘sex tourism’.

However while there are many countries in Europe where prostitution is legal, there are of course also many countries in Europe where it is completely illegal in all forms. These countries include: Poland, Russia, Serbia, Croatia, Slovakia and others in the East.

Whether countries in Europe where prostitution is legal are a good thing or not depends on your point of view. On the one hand there is the argument that such countries are able to better monitor sexual activities and thereby ensure that there is a minimal occurrence of STIs and forced sex etc. There is no obvious victim in prostitution as long as all parties are willing and fully informed – and so it’s questionable whether it should be considered a crime. It may even prevent sexual crimes by providing an outlet. At the same time though, others will argue that such systems will always be abused and shouldn’t be encouraged, and will object to paid sex on religious or moral grounds. What do you think?

European Prostitution

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