The Sex Purchase Act: A Framework for Combating Prostitution

Abstract

The Swedish Sex Purchase Act was enacted in 1996, and the Swedish Government imposed a ban on the sale of sexual services in Sweden. This law is aimed at combating prostitution. The article aims to offer policy makers and scholars a comprehensive presentation of the evidence and a discussion of the methodological, political and theoretical challenges arising from this. The review is scope-oriented, aiming at mapping key concepts, main sources and types of evidence available within this research field. We identified peer-reviewed articles that addressed and contextualised Swedish prostitution policy, but very few present empirical data on the effects, consequences or impact of the prohibition on the purchase of sexual service in Sweden, and also to draw conclusions concerning the research activity within this field. The evaluation concludes that the negative effects of the law on the lives of people who sell sex should be considered positive, as the goal of the legislation is to combat prostitution — the intent of which builds on a conception of prostitution as an expression of gendered power that victimises women. While there is great support in the population for criminali-sation as a tool to fight prostitution, the intended message behind the law does not seem to resonate. Research is particu-larly needed to investigate how the relationship between social and legal norms is imagined and practiced; how wider developments to do with technology, globalisation and gentrification interact with law, and how stigma and discrimi-nation are produced and impact on individuals' lives.