—Eden Farber, Human Rights Lawyer, Task Force against Human Trafficking & Prostitution, Israel
Feminism is often measured by manifestations of gender representation in positions of power, or ensuring that women have freedom to study, work or otherwise occupy the public space. Other common checkpoints are reproductive rights, and in recent years, awareness has also grown regarding gender-based violence. However, one aspect that is crucial for gender equality everywhere, but discussed much less in the mainstream dialogue, is prostitution. The sex industry is made up of significantly more women than men, and moreover, almost all consumers of prostitution are men. In that way, it is in and of itself a physical manifestation of gender-based power dynamics.
Despite this, States view prostitution in different ways – some using gender lenses and some do not – and recently, the legislative conversation has resurfaced in several countries. In this post I review the different models and recent changes in the discourse, noting three states that have recently re-opened the dialogue on this subject – Germany, France and Israel. I argue that the way in which a State regulates prostitution should be used as a touchstone for the way it views – and protects, or exploits – women; in the face of rising populism and polarization, I suggest that a State’s discourse on prostitution could predict the direction gender rights will follow.
Normative Frameworks for Prostitution
There are three main legal approaches to prostitution: criminalization, legalization and the ‘equality model’.
The criminalization model sees prostitution as socially unacceptable and seeks to prohibit the behavior by criminalizing anyone in the prostitution cycle – from the consumption to the sale of sexual services. This approach is often attributed to a puritan perspective that opposes the existence of the sex industry in the public sphere, and does not view it through a gender lens. This is the predominant model around the world, applied in over 100 States in the Middle East, Africa, Asia; 48 out of 50 of the United States of America and one European State (Belarus).
The legalization model takes the opposite approach, acknowledging that there is a danger of exploitation and abuse in prostitution and attempting to protect people involved in prostitution by taking it out of the dark alleys and recognizing it. Within this framework, people in prostitution are called sex workers; they have rights and should feel comfortable reporting abuse. This is the model followed in Germany, the Netherlands and several other European countries. Despite the rhetoric, is important to note that the model has not had any proven success in minimizing the violence associated with prostitution, and has been linked to major spikes in human trafficking.
Finally, the equality model, also called the Nordic model, as it was first adopted in Sweden, argues that the State’s role is to address the root of the problem – the circumstances under which people, mostly women and girls, enter the cycle of prostitution, facing inequality and abuse – and to punish only those who profit from prostitution. Accordingly, the sale of sexual services is not considered a criminal offense, but someone who gains benefits on the backs of prostituted people, as well as someone who acquires the “right” to use someone else’s body for their pleasure, are culpable. This model was adopted by 11 States, including France, and – temporarily – Israel.
Legalization is not Gender-Sensitive
While the criminalization model seeks to combat the industry at large, the latter two models both identify an inherent problem within the industry: exploitation. Both the legalization and the equality model lean on rhetoric that fights abuse. Legalizing prostitution is said to minimize exploitation because people would not be afraid to report abuse; the equality model claims to minimize exploitation because it combats demand through criminal sanctions while offering more support to people in prostitution.
Over the years, many have studied and theorized the following questions: which model has the greatest success in minimizing violence associated with prostitution and sexual violence at large? Which model is more likely to lead to the detection and mitigation of sex-trafficking? Which model truly empowers women?
One key difference is that the legalization model only looks at the exploitation that occurs within the cycle of prostitution and seeks to minimize the attendant damage, whereas the equality model looks at the entry into prostitution through a gender lens. It views prostitution as part of the spectrum of gender-based sexual violence and seeks to support those who are vulnerable to exploitation.
Data indeed shows that the entry into the cycle of prostitution is typically at a very young age, far before the age of consent – 12 or 13. Moreover, studies indicate that entry is often predicated on sexual abuse in childhood. Finally, even in States which legalize prostitution, the rates of reported physical and sexual violence perpetrated by sex-purchasers, an overwhelmingly male demographic, are high, alongside devastating rates of PTSD and early mortality of those involved in prostitution. Therefore, aiming to combat the exploitation of young women by legalizing prostitution is essentially regulating the unequal gender dynamics that make up the sex industry.
Revisiting the Issue Across Three Countries
Three years after Sweden first implemented the Equality Model, Germany took a drastically different route, legalizing prostitution in 2002. In 2017, Germany added regulations aimed at improving the legal and social situation of its sex workers. Germany has since garnered the reputation of ‘Europe’s biggest brothel’, with an estimated one million men purchasing sex in Germany every day. In March 2025, President of the Bundestag Julia Klöckner publicly and dramatically called for Germany to adopt the Equality Model.
France adopted the Equality Model in 2016, criminalizing the purchase of sex. This added France to an elite list of countries who enacted this model, sixth out of the current nine. While the law is less than a decade old, one politician, MP Jean-Philippe Tanguy, recently made headlines for calling for France to ‘reopen brothels’. Tanguy claimed that the Equality Model has worsened the situation of sex workers and they should instead be empowered to manage their own brothels.
In the meantime, the State of Israel adopted the Equality Model on a temporary basis in 2018. The authorities showed ideological interest in the model, but wanted to assess its effectiveness for five years. In July 2025, in a complex legislative battle, the law was renewed for an additional five years – once again, on a trial basis.
While the steps undertaken in Israel may seem like niche legislative moves, the way in which a State addresses the “sticky floor” of gender inequality informs how safe women are at all levels.
Looking forward – Sex Industry Dialogue as an Indicator for Gender Equality
Prostitution is inherently unequal – it stems from institutional inequality that preys on vulnerable children, primarily girls. A society in which prostitution is legal is a society in which the rights to someone’s body can be bought. Overwhelmingly, this practice has proven dangerous for women and girls. A State’s conversations about the way to view and address, including regulate, prostitution should be viewed as a window into the way it sees girls and women and the role it takes in protecting them and ensuring overall gender equality. When a woman at her most vulnerable can be exploited in prostitution, any woman’s safety and autonomy is in question. A State that allows or regulates this exploitation is only protecting its wealthy, most secure populations; equality for the socio-economically empowered is smoke and mirrors.
With populism on the rise, and many societies experiencing deepened polarization and even threats to democratic regimes, vulnerable populations are at a heightened risk. Immigrants and asylum seekers; impoverished people and people with disabilities; LGTBQ and women. Against this backdrop, it is imperative that scholars and activists have their finger on the pulse of any regime changes that could have wider implications.
In Germany, the call to adopt the Equality Model shows signs of rising gender-awareness, despite the current climate that accommodates prostitution quite comfortably. In the meantime, in France, a stronghold of the Equality Model, voices calling to legalize prostitution raise concerns for a turn away from the protections offered.
Finally, Israel, is caught in between – the law exists, but it is still temporary. While its initial enactment empowered people in prostitution to seek more aid, the second temporary enactment raises the question – why is the Equality Model on a trial basis? In my view, this tension perfectly exemplifies why prostitution should be seen as a touchstone for gender equality. Israel is in great political upheaval after a prolonged war, and while many lawmakers, including the Justice Minister, promoted the law, they failed to anchor it is as permanent. The current government holds conflicting opinions about gender equality – while there are many liberal voices, backed by liberal, democratic laws protecting women’s issues, there is a rise in ultra-right religious and cultural extremism. In the case of the Equality Model, one voice, at a strategic position in Parliament, was enough to derail the Law from permanent to temporary. What does this mean for future Israeli initiatives to advance women? That the ground is shaky, at best.
Israel, France and Germany – each of these legislative conversations, and their media coverage, should raise questions – how does the regime seek to protect women in the face of dramatic changes in global political discourse? The fate of the vulnerable is unknown, but to predict how safe women – all women – will be, it is crucial to follow the discourse on prostitution. How women are treated on the streets, at home, and in positions of power are all interconnected, and a falter, or an advancement, in one field can lead to another.
Suggested citation: Eden Farber, France, Germany and Israel: Prostitution as a Touchstone for Gender Politics, Int’l J. Const. L. Blog, Jan. 9, 2025, at: http://www.iconnectblog.com/france-germany-and-israel-prostitution-as-a-touchstone-for-gender-politics/