Issuing the draft of an alternative Sex Work Act (SAG):
Law for Equity, Rights and Respect in Sex Work
Statement at the press conference in Berlin on June 02, 2025, the International Sex Workers’ Day, by Antke A. Engel
The document, which was written by sex workers themselves as part of a series of workshops, represents an important milestone in terms of social justice – for sex workers and far beyond.
It is written with the aim of equality (or, rather, equity) for all people. Equality is not only meant in formal legal terms, but also refers to social participation and the power to shape society. And – according to the term “respect” in the title of the law – the reduction of stigmatization and a life free of discrimination.
The text of the law is deliberately intersectional, i.e. it includes sex workers of all sexes and genders, sectors, income levels and, above all, origins and residence permit status – and emphasizes that specific life situations and biographies must be perceived in their particularity and context. The draft law aims to reduce exploitation, dependencies and violence in sex work – which is precisely why it opposes the equation or conflation of human trafficking and sex work.
Working conditions and health care are of crucial importance to enable sex workers to lead a good life, free from stigma, discrimination and violence. They represent a significant part of the law – and it is not for nothing that it is called the “Sex Work Act” for short.
But it is also called “SAG” – say something, say what you think and what you want. The law thus refers to consensus in contact, social participation and media representations: The law ascribes crucial importance to sexual education and voluntary counseling – not only for sex workers, but also for clients, those around sex workers and society as a whole.
Public funding for education and counseling as well as access to state health and social systems are the be-all and end-all of socially just and human rights-based sex work.
Background info:
The series of workshops with sex workers (in Berlin and online), from which the alternative draft law emerged, was initiated by SMART-Berlin, supported by various sex worker self-organization projects, financed by the Federal Association for Sexual Services (bufas e.V.) and led by me.
I did not write the draft bill myself – I guided the process, moderated it, initiated discussions and commented on the wording.