A petition is to be handed into the Dutch parliament demanding that visiting a prostitute be made illegal.
Some 42,000 young people have added their signatures, which means the issue will be debated by politicians in a country that has some of the most relaxed laws around paying for sex.
“I am priceless” is the name of the social media-led campaign.
Activists want buyers to be penalised, under the so-called Nordic model.
Partly inspired by Christian and feminist views, the group have posted Instagram photos showing supporters clasping boards with words in black and white bearing the message “Ik ben onbetaalbaar” (I’m priceless) along with “what if it was your sister?” and “prostitution is both a cause and consequence of inequality”.
In the Netherlands, buying and selling sex is legal as long as it involves “sex between consenting adults”.
Under the Nordic model, adopted by Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Northern Ireland and France, buyers are penalised.
The young activists argue more should be done to protect vulnerable women.
According to the “I am priceless” petition, the Netherlands’ facilitation of the sex industry is outdated, exploitative and the Dutch should look to countries like Sweden for inspiration.
They say countries in which the model has been introduced have seen:
- fewer people going to buy sex
- the country becoming less attractive for human traffickers
- fewer people being exploited by prostitution.
