WUNRN
LITUANIA ADOPTS NORDIC MODEL ON CRIMINAL LIABILITY FOR
PURCHASE OF SEXUAL SERVICES – AFTER SWEDEN, NORWAY, ICELAND, IRELAND, CANADA,
FRANCE, EU
SEIMAS
OF THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA
RESOLUTION
ON CRIMINAL LIABILITY FOR THE PURCHASE OF SEXUAL SERVICES
16
December 2014 No XII-1464 – Vilnius, Lithuania
The
Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania,
Having
regard to: Articles 18, 19, 20 and 21 of the Constitution of the Republic of
Lithuania;
Articles
4 and 5 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights;
The
United Nations Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of
the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others;
Article
6 of the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination against Women;
The
Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially
Women and Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against
Transnational Organized Crime;
Strategic
Objective D.3 of the Platform for Action and the Beijing Declaration;
The
Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings;
Articles
2 and 13 of the Treaty on European Union;
Council
Framework Decision 2002/629/JHA of 19 July 2002 on combating trafficking in
human beings;
European
Parliament resolution of 2014 on sexual exploitation and prostitution and its
impact on gender equality;
Reports
of the Lithuanian and foreign experts on 19 June 2014 at the international Stop
Traffick! Conference 'Deconstructing the Demand for Sexual Services: Prevention
of Exploitation through Prostitution and Sex Trafficking';
Having
examined the proposals of non-governmental organizations working in the field
of combating trafficking in human beings, sexual exploitation for prostitution
and the use of violence against a person, and the conclusions of the
round-table discussion 'Ways to Reduce Demand for Sexual Services', held on
19-20 June 2014;
Having
regard to the fact that the use of prostitution services is related to sexual
objectification of a person, commodification of the person’s body as well as
his stigmatisation and traumatisation;
Being
aware that the states, which support the purchase of sexual services,
prostitution and trafficking in human beings for sexual exploitation or
organization of criminal activities, encounter the violation of human rights
and the increase in crime and social exclusion;
Taking
into consideration the experience of applying the Nordic Model and
criminalizing the purchase of sexual services in France;
Taking
into account the fact that more and more young people, among whom alarmingly
many are minors, as well as persons with mental disability, dependent on
narcotic and psychotropic substances and alcohol are forced into prostitution
and that their mortality rate is higher than that of an average population;
Evaluating
the fact that the media create a negative portrait of women selling sex,
maintaining stereotyped gendered thinking, sexist attitude towards the role of
women in society, which contributes greatly to sustaining violence against
women and forming a varied approach to prostitution,
Proposes
to the Government of the Republic of Lithuania:
1) To
submit to the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania for ratification the United
Nations Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the
Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others;
2)To
submit amendments to the Criminal Code of the Republic of Lithuania criminalizing
the purchase of services of prostitution, pornography or other forms of sexual
exploitation;
3) To
submit amendments to Article 1821 of the Code of Administrative Offences of the
Republic of Lithuania regarding the abolishment of administrative
liability for engagement in prostitution;
4) To
create an interdepartmental working group to prepare a program for
re-socialization, rehabilitation and reintegration of sex workers.
SPEAKER
OF THE SEIMAS
LORETA
GRAŨINIENË