More Can Be Done Regarding the Sex Trade in Israel

Prostitution is currently not illegal in Israel.

In Israel, prostitution is considered legal – however running a brothel and pimping – earning a living off of sex workers is not legal.  Police are often short-staffed and underfunded, and more often than not, they look the other way when it comes to enforcing the law against these enterprises that are generating income from prostitution (Rosenthal, 385).  There are at least two problems with this picture.  First, due to the overwhelming population of illegal sex-workers living in Israel, the amount of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and AIDS which was once considered low in Israel are increasing rapidly (Rosenthal, 384).  In 2016, Dr. Itay Gal, a medical correspondent for Ynet News published an article that highlighted the various forms of STIs that were shown to be substantially on the rise in Israel: chlamydia, syphilis, and gonorrhea.  Although Dr. Gal does not attribute any specific reason for the increase in these profound STIs, it is not unreasonable to relate this study to Donna Rosenthal’s discussion in her book The Israelis.  The International Association for Medical Assistance to Travelers, a non-profit organization that provides health information to travelers, warn that when traveling to Israel there is a high risk for acquiring STIs, and attribute the risk to casual sex or the service of prostitutes.  Another problem with prostitution is the vast influence of organized crime involved in the sex trade, which results in widespread violence and corruption.  According to Donna Rosenthal, many of the women who come into Israel to work in the sex trade come in illegally, mostly from the former Soviet Union (Rosenthal, 385).  The Russian mafia earns a fortune off of these women – Rosenthal goes on to explain where a woman can charge $50 for sex, she will likely only retain $5 out of that sum, which is equivalent to a modern-day slave trade (Rosenthal, 385-386).  In order to protect their profits, violence surrounding the sex trade is intense.  Sex workers often have no one to turn to – they are afraid of their pimps, and because of this, they are afraid to turn to the police.  According to Rosenthal, the prostitutes who rebel often disappear, which explains why they are afraid (Rosenthal, 386).  With enormous revenues at stake, rival brothel owners or prostitution rings are often murdered in a battle for control of this illicit enterprise.  Corruption is a problem, as well.  Ringleaders purchase luxurious property without any question in regards to the source of the money being paid for by Russian mafiosos (Rosenthal, 386).  When a real estate agent is profiting in commissions from a client he knows is involved in an illegal enterprise, it is an exploitation device that should be deemed ethically inappropriate and certainly deemed as illegal activity.

 

Women with bruised faces on display, for sale in Israel.

Another problem of the sex trade is human trafficking, or purchasing women illegally from the darknet, which Yonah Jeremy Bob reported that is likely a new technique to fund terrorism.  This report is from the point of view of IDC Herzliya’s International Institute of Counter-Terrorism, which is an academic institute that specializes in terrorism, counter-terrorism, security, defense, and intelligence.  The report found that $150.2 billion per year is profited from human trafficking and discusses in detail the crimes involving terrorist groups that are using this industry to bankroll their terrorist activities.  Although the contents of the report do not specify Israel as the destination of where these women are being shipped, or even the Russian mafia as potential buyers, it can, however, be linked to the discussion regarding Rosenthal’s information in her chapter Hookers and Hash in the Holy Land.  The Russian mafia, is in fact known for purchasing women as Rosenthal explained, for anywhere between $5,000 and $20,000 depending on the way she looks and the value of the falsified immigration documents she comes with (Rosenthal, 386).

Former members of the Knesset who introduced the new bill in 2018.

Times of Israel Staff published an article late in 2018 regarding the Knesset’s move to criminalize the act of purchasing sexual services.  In the most recent legislation regarding prostitution, a person caught in the act of hiring a prostitute in exchange for sex now warrants a fine. The article uses the point of view of the notable sponsors of the bill: Aliza Lavie of the Yesh Atid party, New Right members Shuli Mualem-Rafaeli and former Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked – all now former members of the Knesset, and formerly Zionist Union and presently Labor Party member Shelly Yachimovich, who is still a member of the Knesset as the Leader of the Opposition coalition.  Levie was quoted in the article that the new law “defines the state of Israel as a society” and their values, and Yachimovich likened the war against the sex trade to a war on slavery, and “an important and historic step.”  Sure, it is a step in the right direction, but why not take more, loftier steps?  This law is not enough.  The article regards pimping, sex trafficking and brothels as illegal activities, but this law does not address the widespread criminal activity involved in the prostitution industry.  Maybe if the Knesset introduced a law similar to the United States’ Racketeer Influenced and Corruptions Act (RICO), Israel can make progress in their war against the Russian mafia.  Since its enactment in 1970, RICO has successfully prosecuted thousands of prominent figures and organizations engaged in illicit crimes – most remarkably, it has severely weakened organized crime syndicates such as La Cosa Nostra.  This would prove to be an aggressive step towards achieving the notable proponents of the Knesset legislation discussed in the Times of Israel article.