Larisa, Zhenya, and Sasha, along with some advocacy groups, say the only way for them to work safely is to give prostitution an explicitly legal status, similar to that accorded to any other profession. We have to give money here and there, to pimps. Sometimes the police conduct raids, taking them to police stations even though they cannot be prosecuted. When the women have problems on the street or with clients, they do not turn to the police, they say.
We have no rights. Opponents of legalization in other countries have argued that legalization helps spur sex trafficking and sexually transmitted diseases while giving a boost to the sex industry.
Few people want to talk about it, she says. He says most MPs would oppose a legalization bill. But Sergunina is not giving up. The Public Committee for the Legalization of Prostitution says there are more than 10, Kazakhstan is simply not ready to legalize prostitution, says Marat Ajtamagambetov, a senior investigator with the Karaganda regional office of the Interior Ministry.
They must not offer services to minors. They must have regular physical checkups and pay taxes. They must not offer services in unauthorized places. Our people are legally ignorant. Although Kazakhstan is a secular democratic state, guaranteeing women the same rights as men to work, hold office, join the army, and run businesses, prostitution is another matter.
And their talk about needing to earn money does not justify it. Prostitution is a business for the lazy. It would be more expedient to classify this activity as a grave crime. Then girls would think of the consequences and whether they should be engaged in prostitution. A recent issue of the Karaganda-based Novy Vestnik weekly ran 80 ads offering sex services. Karaganda is a city of , residents. For women only. They note that most Kazakhs are Muslims who condemn prostitution and still view women as inferior to men.
