Last Sunday
I took part in the Austrian Women’s Run. It was the first time I’ve
participated in a big sporting event and the atmosphere was pretty cool. No, I’ve
not been converted to running but I have taken up Nordic Walking, and did so
for a very good cause. Along with some of my colleagues from TWR, we walked and
ran to raise some money- and some awareness- for Herzwerk. Herzwerk (Heart
Factory in English) is a small organisation of incredible staff and
volunteers who work with women in prostitution in Vienna.
FYI:
prostitution is legal in Austria. A more important FYI: legalised prostitution doesn't bring things out into the open and break the link between prostitution
and trafficking or other forms of criminality.
Instead it gives
it an opaque, black, shiny veneer of respectability, which welcomes the kind of
people running such operations with open arms. It gives women far less rights
and support than you might think- than I might have thought looking at the
situation a few years ago.
A few other
things I've learnt in the last couple of years: virtually all of the women
working in prostitution in Vienna are not Austrian. They’ve ended up here and
in this situation because they've been trafficked, or because they see no other
way to support their children back home in poorer parts of Europe, or their ‘boyfriends’
have told them they need their help to pay the rent.
This is not
a job like any other. However convenient it is to think so.
Another FYI
about prostitution in general: around 85% of women working in prostitution have
suffered sexual abuse in childhood. Repeat the above: this is not a job like
any other.
No, not all
women working in prostitution are victims of human trafficking. Not all of
these women have been physically forced into prostitution. Yet the above
statistic is surely startling enough to make us stop and consider the
connection here. And another point to ponder: for the women who work in
prostitution because they see no other way to be able to provide for their
families- who've been deprived of education and the other basics which give us
access to the labour market- having no choice is not the same as having free
choice.
So that’s my
little rant. Except I hope that it serves as more than a little rant. I love Vienna
and I am so fortunate to be able to live and work here. Yet I’ve also gained a small
insight into a much darker side of this city. And it’s my privilege to support the
Christians who care for the women here. I'm sure their work is a very good
answer to the famous question: What Would
Jesus Do?
- To learn more about Herzwerk go to: http://www.herzwerk-wien.com/en/ You can also support them financially under ‘Sponsorship’
- For a really informative documentary on prostitution globally, watch Nefarious: Merchant of Souls
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