Gal-On: End promotion of sex services
צילום: חיים צח
Proposed bill: Harsher penalties for promoting sex services
New bill proposed by MK Zahava Gal-On to impose 3-year jail term on anyone advertising sexual services. Bill also includes ads that were hitherto legal, like flyers for escort services left on car windshields
Ever found a business card for an escort service on your car’s windshield? A new bill proposed by MK Zahava Gal-On, chairwoman of the Meretz faction, is set to make this a rare occurrence by banning all promotion of escort and sex services in Israel , as well as making distribution of ads for such services illegal.
According to this proposed bill, also endorsed by other MKs from both the coalition and opposition, anyone advertising sex services will be subject to a jail sentence of up to three years. If the sexual services in question involve minors or trade in women, than the expected prison term can extend up to seven years.
Israel’s current penal code allows a prison term of only six months for adults promoting sex services. This legislation ultimately put an end to advertisements for escort services in Israeli newspapers. Current legislation, however, does not apply to ads for sexual services that are set apart from other commercial advertisements, or ones that clearly designate the services that they promote.
Current law legitimizes prostitution
Gal-On’s new bill completely bans all promotion of sexual services, thereby making it impossible for such services to operate. “This bill strictly prohibits all promotion of sexual services, including placement of newspapers ads as well as distribution of business cards,” explains Gal-On.
“Current legislation makes it perfectly legitimate to advertise sexual services,” says Gal-On, “and promoting such escort services goes hand in hand with trafficking in women. Trade in women is an industry worth roughly a quarter billion dollars in Israel.”
Referring to various euphemisms used to disguise ads for sex services, Gal-On stated that “this new bill will not allow the use of euphemisms such as ‘massage parlor ‘ or ‘escort service’ to allow for covert promotion of sexual services”. The MK also noted that perpetrators who promote sexual services will be subject to monetary fines on top of the proposed prison sentence.
