'The Limits of Regulation: How European sex work policies may restrict Sex workers' rights'
European sex work policies balance anti-trafficking aims with sex workers’ rights, highlighting contrasting approaches in the Netherlands, Germany, and Belgium.
Elisabeth Maria (Lisa) Hoekman – PhD candidate at the University of Groningen
Sex work policies in Europe form a complex landscape, particularly when balancing anti-trafficking measures with sex workers’ fundamental human rights. This presentation explores the divergent policy approaches of the Netherlands, Germany, and Belgium. While the Netherlands and Germany continue to rely on strict regulatory systems, Belgium recently shifted toward a full decriminalization model, following the example of New Zealand.
Viewed through a human rights lens, this talk analyzes how current regulatory frameworks in the Netherlands and Germany impact, restrict, or even violate the rights of sex workers, and contrasts this with the new Belgian approach. By zooming in on three concrete anti-trafficking measures in the Netherlands—mandatory registration, minimum age requirements, and strict workplace regulations— this presentation outlines the effects of Dutch sex work policies on sex workers. Ultimately, mapping this European landscape highlights the valuable lessons policymakers might still learn from New Zealand's decriminalized framework.
Elisabeth Maria (Lisa) Hoekman is a teacher and PhD-candidate at the University of Groningen specializing in sex work policy and human trafficking. As one of the few legal scholars in the Netherlands dedicated to this field, her doctoral research critically examines how anti-trafficking measures in the Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany impact fundamental rights and freedoms of sex workers. Through comparative legal analysis, complemented by interdisciplinary perspectives, her work aims to formulate human rights-based policy ‘fixes’ for current sex work legislation in the Netherlands.
This seminar will be held ‘in person’.