Methodical Approach

Pro Vest works under the Action Plan to combat trafficking. Based on the knowledge available in Denmark so far, women in prostitution constitute the largest group of trafficked persons. Therefore, the primary area of focus for Pro Vest is foreign women in prostitution.

Not all foreign women have been trafficked for prostitution, but in order to get in touch with those trafficked we have to reach the whole group of foreign women in prostitution.

It is impossible to decide from reading an ad in the Ekstra Bladet or from a door contact whether a woman is trafficked or not. However, we know from international experience as well as our own that long-term contact and trust need to be built before a trafficked woman will have the courage to talk about her situation.

Different forms of support for different women

Pro Vest does outreach work among foreign women at massage parlours, in escort services and in other prostitution communities in order to establish contact. But talks can also take place on the phone or wherever the women may wish. It might be at our Drop-in Centre.

Our approach to working with foreign women is that each woman is unique and that not all will benefit from the same kind of support. Our talks with the women are centred on their needs. We share our knowledge with them and consider options and problems in their present and future situation.

What the women have in common is their experience with prostitution. But their backgrounds, personalities and ways of handling their situations vary. Some women grew up under miserable circumstances and may also have been sexually abused. For those women there may be a connection between their upbringing and the fact that they are in prostitution. However, even women without that background may have weighed the pros and cons and made a deliberate choice to be in prostitution in order to support themselves and in many cases also their children and other family members in their home country.

Trafficking and prostitution

Trafficking of women for prostitution is a growing problem. The women come from parts of the world where the possibilities to support oneself are poor and prospects for the future grim. As a result, they are easy victims who can be forced, threatened or under false pretenses lured into prostitution, where they are grossly exploited. Others make their own choices to enter into some form of trade for prostitution, because they see this as the only option to escape their misery and create another life for themselves and their families. They will often perceive themselves as migrants. At the same time, however, they are in a vulnerable position, depending on the help of others to organize the trip and finding a place to live/prostitute themselves from. Kingpins stand ready to exploit their vulnerability. As long as the women are able to pay installments on their debt to the kingpins, their situation may be tolerable, but it could soon change into a daily life filled with threats and violence if they are unable to pay.

The Danish Action Plan to combat trafficking allows women a stay of up to 100 days in a protected shelter/crisis centre. If the women so wish, their repatriation can be prepared through the IOM which establishes contact with NGOs in the women’s countries of origin.

Not all women who have been trafficked into prostitution want to make use of this offer. Some women are so scared of their kingpins, bound by religious covenants, or fear reprisals and perhaps even stigmatization if they return to their home country.

Others find that, in spite of everything, prostitution is the best alternative in their present situation and therefore choose to endure suffering and try to overcome the difficulties. They do not want to be identified as victims, but see themselves as active agents.

The Danish Action Plan aims, on the one hand, to support victims and, on the other, to combat kingpins and bring them to justice. Hence it is a criminal offence not only to profit from the prostitution of others, but also to force and threaten others into prostitution and to exploit a vulnerable person for prostitution.

Support for the women to stay as healthy as possible

We work with empowerment and see it as our task to assist the women in managing their daily lives while staying as healthy as possible. This, in turn, will give them a basis for coping in the future. We share our knowledge of the offers in the Action Plan and other options/rights with the women to give them a well-informed basis for making decisions, for example about changing their situation.
 
At the same time our contact with the women gives us knowledge about their situation and need of support. Based on that knowledge we continue to develop our offers.

Drop-in Center

Thus, our premises have developed from being just an office into being a Drop-in Centre that women may visit for formal or informal talks. We inform each individual and groups of women about their possibilities and rights in Denmark as well as in their countries of destination. At the Drop-in Centre there is also access to the Internet, various information leaflets and the loan of books.
 
Health clinic

In connection with our Drop-in Centre we have also established a Health Clinic because the women expressed a need for that possibility. At the Health Clinic the women can consult a doctor every Tuesday between 5 and 7 p.m. for a free and anonymous examination.

Danish lessons

Health is not only the absence of physical and mental disease, but also the experience of being in control of your situation. Therefore, at the women’s request, we also offer Danish lessons for everyday use at our Drop-in Centre. Lessons are given at the Drop-in Center during the opening hours of the Health Clinic. According to the women, Danish language skills give them a boost in their negotiations with customers and, more generally, for getting on in Danish society.

Meaningful life

Another aspect of health is that life is perceived as meaningful. In our talks with the women we support them in seeing connections and assist them in clarifying options now and for the future. In anonymous form, we also pass on the experience of individual women to other women in the community.

Network

Network is yet another aspect of health. Therefore, for a number of years we have been supporting the women in forming networks by arranging contact among interested women. At our Drop-in Centre the women can meet and share their experience with others who are in the same situation. They form networks, which they also use privately.

Stigmatizing and solidarity

Prostitution is associated with many prejudices and myths. Virtually all women with experience from prostitution fear stigmatizing and live double lives, keeping the prostitution hidden.  This is a great cost, and at the same time the women are prevented from participating in the debate about them and their issues, because it would mean personal disclosure of being in prostitution.  We want to assist the women in getting a chance to speak for themselves.
 
Women in prostitution do not always make ideal choices.  To some, it is a choice between the devil and the deep blue sea, while others make more deliberate choices. We see it as a great challenge to fight against the stigmatizing of women in prostitution and to support the women whether they want to get out of prostitution or not.