Commission on Justice and Peace Document Archives

Re: Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act

Dear Minister MacKay,

We are writing to welcome the recent efforts of the Department of Justice to strengthen the protection of the rights of children, women, and men to be free from violence and exploitation, specifically sexual exploitation, and to criminalize those who profit from and exploit others for their own benefit. We affirm the steps your government has taken towards framing prostitution as a form of violence against women and are encouraged that you do not accept prostitution as inevitable; these are important contributions to affirming the full equality and dignity of girls, boys, women and men. Likewise, we welcome the announcement regarding $20 million in new funding to support grassroots organizations dealing with the most vulnerable who assist those who want to exit prostitution.

We believe human beings – women, men and children – are created equal and all are promised abundant life, each of us a glittering strand in the shimmering web of life. Therefore, all have a fundamental right to the necessities of life, including safety and protection from exploitation. Accordingly, we support efforts to address the systemic objectification and commodification of children’s, women’s and men’s bodies for sexual services.

File Type: pdf
File Size: 233 KB
Categories: English, Sexual Exploitation
Tags: exploited persons, federal poverty reduction plan, Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act (PCEPA), sexual exploitation, violence against women
Author: Chair of the Human Trafficking in Canada Working Group (Jennifer Lucking), General Secretary of The Canadian Council of Churches (Karen Hamilton)