Prostituting the 2010 Soccer World Cup — a more practical approach to prostitution policy in South Africa

Discussions about the legal status of prostitution often focus on theoretical, philosophical and feminist arguments for and against criminalisation (with an appropriate dose of moral outrage on both sides) and ignore the fundamental question: what is it about prostitution that we find offensive? This article endeavours to unpack the challenges facing policy-making in this area by investigating what it is that we are trying to achieve through the regulation or deregulation of prostitution in the South African context. Three distinct approaches will be compared: the 'moralistic argument', at least partially endorsed by South Africa; the 'public nuisance' approach adopted by England, where, although prostitution itself is not illegal, almost all related activities (kerb-crawling, soliciting, etc) are prohibited; and the 'human rights based approach' taken by New Zealand. Ultimately, this article will conclude that the South African Constitution requires that the human rights based approach be favoured in the South Africa context.