China is to end a punishment system for prostitution that allowed police to hold sex workers and their clients in custody for up to two years at so-called education centres.<\/p>\n
Detainees were forced to work, allegedly making toys and household goods.<\/p>\n
The detention system will come to an end on 29 December. Those still in custody will be released, according to Xinhua, China’s state media.<\/p>\n
Prostitution remains illegal in China.<\/p>\n
It carries punishments of up to 15 days in detention and fines of up to 5,000 yuan (\u00a3546).<\/p>\n
China’s state media claims the “custody and education” system has helped to maintain a “good social atmosphere and public order” since it was introduced more than 20 years ago.<\/p>\n
It added that over time, the system has become less and less appropriate.<\/p>\n
A study by NGO Asia Catalyst in 2013 questioned whether this scheme was effective.<\/p>\n
The report included interviews with 30 female sex workers from two cities.<\/p>\n
It claimed detainees were unable to learn new skills during detention that could help them after their release. The report added that the detainees typically undertake manual labour.<\/p>\n
It said: “All of the sex workers we interviewed returned to the sex trade immediately after release.”<\/p>\n
A 2013 report by Human Rights Watch interviewed 140 sex workers, clients, police and specialists and found that many sex workers were beaten by police in an attempt to coerce confessions.<\/p>\n
One worker claimed she had been deceived into signing a confession.<\/p>\n
“The police told me it was fine, all I needed to do was sign my name and they would release me after four or five days,” she said.<\/p>\n
“Instead, I was locked up in [a] Custody and Education centre for six month”<\/p>\n
Shen Tingting, director of Asia Catalyst, said the move to abolish forced labour detention centres is positive but only a small step towards safeguarding the rights of sex workers.<\/p>\n
“Chinese law and policies focus on prohibition and cracking down on sex work, rather than providing a framework to ensure the health and safety of sex work as a profession,” she said.<\/p>\n
In 2013, China announced it had abolished its system of “re-education through labour camps” for petty criminals.<\/p>\n
That decision came after several high-profile miscarriages of justice, including a case where a mother was sent to a labour camp after demanding justice for her daughter who had been raped.<\/p>\n
However, the abolition did not extend to the “custody and education” system affecting sex workers and their clients.<\/p>\n
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