Pâquis: Sex workers find themselves homeless – World News: Coronavirus

The Aspasie association, which defends the interests of sex workers, has not been idle since the announcement a week ago of the closure of all non-essential businesses and establishments and the prohibition of prostitution . “Overnight, many women found themselves completely destitute, the salons, now closed, being not only their place of work, but also, for many of them, their place of life”, explains Isabelle Boillat , coordinator within Aspasie.

Homeless and homeless, many sex workers flocked to the premises of the association, which remained open at the start of last week in search of help. “We answered about seventy women in two days, we had to manage a lot of things, up to the sanitary distances in the room. Above all, we have to provide them with food, find makeshift accommodation, negotiate with salon owners so that they can stay there, even without working. “A small emergency fund made it possible to deal with the most urgent, but that is obviously insufficient.”

As a reminder, registered sex workers have the status of self-employed. The recent aid measures put in place by the Canton and the Confederation should, on paper, be made available to them. This is the case for those, well established, who work at home and on the internet. But the reality of the street is a little different; in fact, we are often dealing with a population with very precarious status, and therefore today over-weakened: “Most of the women who work in the street are foreigners with 90-day permits, they sail from one country to the other. other in Europe. This status does not necessarily entitle them to social assistance, “continues the Aspasie coordinator.

“They have nowhere to go, don’t know where to go for help. Many want to leave. However, border closings concern them first and foremost. A bus that had left for Hungary with several women on board had to turn around last week, and everyone ended up at the starting point in Geneva. And the canceled flights to Cointrin obviously don’t help. “

The fear of Aspasia is to see the prostitution community evolve towards much more hidden practices, and therefore less accessible for those who provide them with support. Because who says prohibition says risk of clandestine activities, especially if there is no social safety net. “Hence the importance of specific and rapid aid for this population which can no longer work. Because if the situation persists, we risk very quickly finding ourselves with the same problems as the abolitionist countries, ”concludes Isabelle Boillat.

To avoid any concentration on its premises, Aspasie has now set up an emergency number (022 732 68 28). The calls, according to the association, continue to arrive in numbers.

Created: 26.03.2020, 07:25

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