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Liberal coercion? Prostitution, human trafficking and policy

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  • Seo-Young Cho

    (Philipps-University of Marburg)

Abstract

Liberal prostitution policy aims at improving labor conditions for prostitutes and protecting victims of forced prostitution. Given its policy mandates, legalized prostitution should be linked to better protection policies for trafficking victims and stronger anti-trafficking measures. In this paper, I investigate empirically whether or not legalized prostitution improves protection policies for victims, as it is presumed. The results of my analysis—using data from 149 countries for the period of 2001–2011—suggest that a liberal prostitution policy does not lead to better protection and, in some cases, legalized prostitution can be detrimental to protecting victims of human trafficking.

Suggested Citation

  • Seo-Young Cho, 2016. "Liberal coercion? Prostitution, human trafficking and policy," European Journal of Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 41(2), pages 321-348, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:ejlwec:v:41:y:2016:i:2:d:10.1007_s10657-015-9519-7
    DOI: 10.1007/s10657-015-9519-7
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    Cited by:

    1. Niklas Potrafke, 2016. "Policies against human trafficking: the role of religion and political institutions," Economics of Governance, Springer, vol. 17(4), pages 353-386, November.
    2. Sienna Nordquist, 2023. "How does public policy impact trafficking victimization?: An exact matching study in the EU," European Journal of Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 56(1), pages 23-68, August.
    3. Philippe Adair & Oksana Nezhyvenko, 2019. "Assessing Key Figures of Prostitution in France and the European Union," Erudite Working Paper 2019-03, Erudite.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Prostitution; Victim protection; Human trafficking;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • K14 - Law and Economics - - Basic Areas of Law - - - Criminal Law
    • K37 - Law and Economics - - Other Substantive Areas of Law - - - Immigration Law

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