Movement for the Abolition of Prostitution

What is the Nordic Model?

The Nordic Model (sometimes known as the Sex Buyer Law, or the Swedish, Abolitionist, or Equality Model) is an approach to prostitution that has been adopted in Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Northern Ireland, Canada, France, Ireland and Israel. It has several elements:

1. Decriminalisation of those who are prostituted

Prostitution is inherently violent. Women should not be criminalised for the exploitation and abuse they endure.

2. Buying sex becomes a criminal offence

Buying human beings for sex is harmful, exploitative and can never be safe. We need to reduce the demand that drives sex trafficking.

3. Support and exit services

High quality, non-judgemental services to support those in prostitution and help them build a new life outside it, including: access to safe affordable housing; training and further education; child care; legal, debt and benefit advice; emotional and psychological support.

A holistic approach

A public information campaign; training for police and CPS; tackling the inequality and poverty that drive people into prostitution; effective laws against pimping and sex trafficking, with penalties that reflect the enormous damage they cause. Read more >>

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A critical response to the research entitled ‘The role of adult service websites (AWS) in addressing modern slavery’ from the University of Leicester.

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Transcripts and recordings of Nordic Model Now’s ‘Breaking the Cycle’ conference that was held in central London on 11 November 2023.

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Tackling the harm of Andrew Tate and other “Loverboy” pimps requires tackling the demand for prostitution and challenging its online facilitation and normalisation.

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In this exquisite piece of writing, Huschke Mau describes what she encountered in Chinatown after speaking at the Breaking the Cycle conference.

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Michael Sheath explores the terrifying overlap between mainstream pornography and child sexual exploitation material (CSEM).

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Prostitution survivor and activist, Huschke Mau, explains the 11 ways that legalising the buying of sex changes society for the worse.

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Prostitution Survivors’ Testimony

Prostitution Survivors’ Testimony

Wendy Barnes

Two excerpts from Wendy Barnes’ brilliant book “And Life Continues: Sex Trafficking and My Journey to Freedom”, in which she tells the story of how she became a victim of human trafficking, why she was unable to leave the man who enslaved her for fifteen years, and the obstacles she overcame to heal and rebuild her life after she was rescued. []

Why I defended the sex industry

By Anonymous

If you imagine a situation to be inescapable you do whatever you can to make that situation agreeable. Coming to accommodate misery, in this way, is an insidious process.

Prostitution: Never young enough.

Kylee Gregg, who was a victim of sex trafficking from the age of 10, is interviewed by Francine Sporenda.

Huschke Mau

It was like society telling me: ‘Prostitution is not the problem, that’s all cool. You are the problem.’

This is the text of Huschke Mau’s speech at receiving a prize from the Einkraftstiftung in Mainz, Germany, at the Pfälzer Landtag (parliament) on Thursday 4 April 2019. Translation by Inge Kleine. []

Sick of all the ‘Happy Hooker’ myths?

Want people to know what prostitution is REALLY like?

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