Prostitution as Gender Inequality: the Icelandic Policy on Stripping-Prostitution-Trafficking

Abstract

The "Swedish model" for dealing with the direct exchanges of sex and money, namely the policy of criminalization of clients of prostitution, was adopted in Iceland in 2009, after intense feminist campaigning. After an introduction on gender relations in Iceland's recent economic boom and crisis, I will present the debate that has led to the approval of the new rules, the legislative framework for prostitution and strip shows itself, and a discussion on the historical and linguistic context for the exchange of money and sex in Iceland. Then I will move on to the issue of globalization and the work/constriction of foreign women in local strip clubs. The presentation of cases in which the laws on the sex trade and human trafficking have been applied will follow, concluding with an interpretation of these recent legislative developments.  

Keywords: Iceland, prostitution, trafficking, feminism, law.