Anticipating the 2010 Soccer World Cup has been exhilarating for some while others feel indifferent towards it. Excitement brews from the thought of such an iconic event finally happening in a third-world country, as this is the first time such a tournament is being hosted by an African nation. South Africa beat Morocco and Egypt in the bidding process.

While thousands of South Africans are looking forward to finally meeting their favourite UEFA players or finally watching Brazil and Korea go head to head, debates are rising worldwide. Issues such as economic growth, the increase in employment as well as crime and the effects of the World Cup on our country are looming worldwide. Hate it or love it, there is hype around it, and this hype excites me personally because I love a good debate and the World Cup is a great way to start one.

However, of all the issues that comes to mind when I hear “2010” or “World Cup”, one that has occupied my mind the most has to be the legalization of prostitution. Proposed by Jackie Selebi in 2007, the rationale behind the passing of this legislation was to help free up the police force for other “pressing security issues” during the world cup. Selebi called it an innovative way of controlling prostitution. So what I’m getting from Selebi’s rationale is that in order to decrease or “control” crime (as he put it) we should just make crime legal. So I find myself questioning what the next step for South Africa would be: legalizing rape, murder, child trafficking and all other crimes said to be too trivial that the police force can’t waste time trying to control it?

Nevertheless, this legislation is said to work in other countries such as the Netherlands (with an estimation of 30 000 prostitutes) where a sex worker rents a window where she waits for her customers.  But predictably an estimated 50 to 90% of these prostitutes are victims of rape on a daily basis. Research published by international group Organization for Migrants shows how countries that have legalized prostitution have become magnets for human trafficking and related crimes including drug dealing, child pornography, child prostitution and violence.  We then have to look at the real reasons why the South African government would want to legalize prostitution because as seen in Netherlands, it does not help the sex workers. So who does this legislation favour? The government, of course. The legalization helps in decreasing crime as now prostitution will not be regarded a criminal offence. It helps the government economically as these sex workers will be taxed, thereby increasing revenue and of course it “frees up the police force for other pressing security issues”. But does it really?

In the case against the legalizing of prostitution the government is described as the pimp controlling prostitution and receiving the taxable revenues while turning a blind eye to money laundering, corruption and undeclared profits from organized crime. So I think my standpoint on the matter is quite clear, but, having spoken to a variety of people before writing this article, different people have different opinions on the matter. Beats me why one would want prostitution to be legalized, but when those in favour were asked whether or not they would be alright with a person in their family going into the trade of prostitution there is a long pause… so what is your stance?