JUST Committee Report

Supplementary Report

New Democratic Party of Canada

New Democrats voted in favour of the Justice Committee Report “Preventing Harm in the Canadian Sex Industry: A Review of the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act” as the report acknowledges that the existing Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act is harmful to sex workers in that it makes their work more dangerous.  The Report goes on to recommend repeal of the most harmful sections of the Criminal Code and the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations.  We are attaching this supplemental report as we continue to support full decriminalization of sex work in Canada and repeal of PECEPA as the best way to ensure safety and dignity of sex workers.

New Democrats wish to thank all those who participated in the review the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act.  We are pleased to see that this review of PECEPA though much delayed has finally been completed as required by the Act itself.  We would like to extend a special thank you to the witness who appeared and shared their personal lived experiences of the impacts that this legislation has had on their lives.

The aim of this review was to look at the impacts that the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act has had since its implementation in 2015.  Regrettably testimony before the committee often veered off into discussions of the issues of trafficking and exploitation which were not the subject of this review. Clearly we must all remain concerned about instances of trafficking and exploitation but New Democrats reject the idea that all sex work is exploitative and a form of trafficking. 

As many witnesses pointed out, conflating sex work with violence, exploitation and trafficking risks missing the real instances of violence, exploitation, and trafficking which can and should be addressed through other existing laws.  The Committee heard from many witnesses that attempting to address exploitation and trafficking by targeting those involved in consensual sex work not only fails to stop exploitation and human trafficking from happening, it causes harm by making sex work more dangerous.  On too many occasions testimony before the committee became rooted in people’s own moral judgements or personal opinions about sex work rather than the impacts that this legislation has on the lives of people involved in sex work.

From the start New Democrats opposed the adoption the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act due to concerns about its potential for harm to sex workers and because of its contradictory goals.  PECEPA is based on the premise that all sex work is exploitation and aimed to eliminate all sex work while at the same time promising to protect sex workers.  It is clear that no legislation can successfully protect sex workers while at the same time also attempting to eliminate sex work.   

From the testimony we have heard it is clear that the effect of PECEPA’s criminalizing those who purchase sexual services, inherently makes sex work more dangerous by pushing clients to hide their identities.  When clients hide their identity this inevitably puts the provider of the services at an elevated risk of harm.  As well, and in contrast to the so-called Nordic model, PECEPA retains criminal sanctions against sex workers themselves and not just their clients.  This point is recognized by both the Canadian Alliance of Sex Work Reform and The Centre for Gender Advocacy in the written briefs provided to the committee.

Witnesses with firsthand experience in the sex trade testified to the many ways PECEPA makes sex work more dangerous.  In addition to encouraging clients to hide their identities, PECEPA’s prohibition of communicating about sex work in a public place drives sex workers at the street level into hurried conversations with clients that make setting of boundaries and conditions difficult and drive sex workers into increasingly isolated locations in the community.  Prohibitions on advertising in effect prevent using online based ways of contacting clients where setting of boundaries and conditions can be established.   PECEP also explicitly prohibits sex workers paying for services such as drivers, bodyguards, or safe spaces for conducting their work by criminalizing those third parties.    

New Democrats are pleased that the Justice Committee recognize that the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act is in fact harmful to those involved in sex work.  We support the Committee’s recommendations that sections 213 (communicating in a public place), and 286.4 (prohibiting advertising) as these provisions are the most detrimental to the safety of sex workers.   We also support repeal of the provisions of the Immigration Act Regulations act which provide for deportation for those without permanent status in Canada who engage in sex work.  This section effectively denies police protection against violence and exploitation for those without status as reporting incidents to the police risks being penalized themselves with deportation

However, testimony from those with firsthand experience in sex work most often called for the complete repeal of PECEPA and a change of direction that would ensure the protection of people who are exploited or experience violence by using already existing sections of the Criminal Code of Canada. Most argued that there is no part of the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act that is worth keeping.  It is clear that the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act also contributes to stigma faced by sex workers. We have heard that this can impact all aspects of a sex worker’s life, particularly in terms of access to housing, employment, health services, social assistance programs and justice.

Ultimately New Democrats want to ensure that the voices of those most impacted by the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act are at the forefront of this discussion. We heard that this Act is harmful to sex workers, without doing anything to prevent exploitation, trafficking, or violence.  We hope that the Liberal government will proceed with the recommendations contained in the report as the findings of the review are clearly that PECEPA as it exists is harmful.   New Democrats hope that we will make further progress toward recognizing sex work as work and taking the necessary actions to make it safer and to remove stigma. 

The recommendation of the New Democratic Party are:

• 1.   That the Government of Canada fully decriminalize sex work and repeal Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act and the provisions of the Immigration regulations that prohibit sex work.
• 2.   That in the absence of full decriminalization, the Government of Canada at minimum take steps to reduce the harm caused by the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act, by repealing sections 213, 286.1, 286.2, 286.3, 286.4 and 286.5 of the Criminal Code, as well as legislation to repeal sections 183 (1)(b.1). 196.1(a). 200(3)(g.1) and 203(2)(a) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act Regulations.
• 3.   That the Government of Canada take action to address issues of violence, exploitation, and trafficking experienced by sex workers and those who sell or trade sex by using provisions already existing in the Canadian Criminal Code.