The Prostitution law review committee of the Ministry of Justice in NZ has recently released their 5 year review of the decriminalization of prostitution (.PDF HERE). They have some interesting findings, after what is now 5 years of legal prostitutionⁱ:
Some quotes from the Associate Justice Minister Lianne Dalziel:

“The report indicates that the numbers have remained more or less the same since the Act came into force and that most sex workers are better off under the PRA than they were previously, which was the intention of the Act.

This year the Vermont Transgender Day of Rememberance recognized the lives lost to anti-sex worker violence alongside those lost to anti-transgender violence. Through a collaboration with the newly minted Vermont branch of SWOP, a sex worker rights activist was invited to speak on the issue of sex workers' human rights. On behalf of SWOP East, I eagerly accepted the offer to be the keynote speaker at the event.

Sex Worker Rights are Human Rights-Dignity and Respect

In the past “respect” and “dignity” were used against sex workers and other "un-pure" women to kill or imprison them. In our struggle for human rights we choose to reclaim these words and give them renewed meaning.
Through dignity we honor the unique diversity that is intrinsic in all people. We also choose to respect each person’s unique traits, abilities and oppressions which through our mutual respect lets us work together in a complimentary fashion to achieve our mutual goals.

Communities

View this video report from SWOP-LA @ the 6th IASSCS CONFERENCE "Dis/Organized Pleasures" in Lima, Peru, June 27-29 2007.