Glasgow brothels case 'shows need for harsher punishment for buying sex'

The sentencing of three people involved in sex-for-sale flats in Glasgow and Edinburgh has prompted calls for men seeking to pay for sex with vulnerable women to face harsher punishments.

Xiao Min, 38, Qin Huang, 31, Guolei Huang, 35, were jailed for a total of more than 20 years for trafficking women into the country to provide sexual services.

An investigation found women had been trafficked, mainly from east Asia, to work in brothels in Glasgow, Edinburgh and throughout the UK in a scheme described as “degrading” by a Scottish judge.

The case has prompted social policy charity CARE to urge the Scottish Government to introduce tough legislation that would punish those who pay for sex.

Sitting at the High Court in Glasgow, Lady Justice Poole said: “Brothel keeping and trafficking women for prostitution involves the deliberate degrading of fellow human beings.

“Prostitution is a dehumanising experience. Women often end up being deprived of the ability to act in their own interests. They are valued not as people, but as a potential source of profit.”

Louise Davies MBE, director of advocacy and policy at CARE, explained: “Awful cases like this underline the need for a change in approach in Scotland.

“Sex buyer laws target those who pay for sex – primarily men – and in doing so, directly challenge a demand for sexual services that fuels criminal industries like human trafficking. Purchase of sex laws have been successfully embedded in several countries including France, Sweden, Norway, and Northern Ireland. Scotland should join them.

“To provide a disincentive to prostitution and drive down demand for sexual exploitation, the courts should punish sex buyers. Men seeking to pay for sex with vulnerable, often exploited women – including women who have been trafficked – face no disincentive to their actions if they do not face the threat of criminal action.

“We would urge the Scottish Government to introduce legislation that punishes men who pay for sex, creating a clear deterrent and making it clear that this exploitative manifestation of gender-based violence has no place in a modern Scotland.”

In February, the Scottish Government announced a new national hub that will “bring together specialist services which support women affected by commercial sexual exploitation (CSE) – linking them more closely with local services, such as housing, health and social security”.

At the time, the government stated that: “Lessons learnt from the piloting of the strategy will help inform any future legislative considerations, including whether to criminalise the purchase of sex.”

CARE for Scotland has accused Ministers of “dragging their heels” on the issue, as the government has long recognised prostitution as a “form of violence against women”.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Any form of human trafficking and exploitation is completely unacceptable. Perpetrators should be brought to justice and dealt with by the independent courts. Prostitution is a form of violence against women and girls and is completely unacceptable.

“Our recently published strategy to challenge men’s demand for prostitution, outlines actions to help women safely exit commercial sexual exploitation. It creates a pilot programme for a new national hub to improve access to support for those with experience of prostitution. Lessons learned from the strategy will help inform any future legislative considerations, including whether to criminalise the purchase of sex.”