The Hon. T.A. FRANKS: I rise to oppose this bill. I imagine that it will come as no surprise that the Greens, who have a policy position, a party position, from our grassroots membership right to every MP, support the decriminalisation of sex work right across this country. Unfortunately, South Australia has some of the most punitive laws and is still the furthest away from decriminalisation of any state or territory in this nation.
This is a bill that purports to be trying to help people. It infantilises people; it treats workers as criminals. I tell you what: rather than spending convictions for people who engage in adult consensual sex, how about we stop convicting them? That would be the progressive way forward.
We have a system that currently sees our SAPOL resources put into entrapment of adult consensual sex workers and their clients—people simply making an honest living, providing a service in exchange for reward as workers. What we should be debating here tonight is ensuring that they have workers' rights, good conditions and that our laws are reflective of decriminalisation— decriminalisation that now exists not only in New South Wales and New Zealand but Queensland, Victoria, the Northern Territory and so many other jurisdictions that are now far ahead, treating sex workers with the dignity and respect that they deserve.
This parliament could work towards that, but we have found it too hard so far. What I would suggest is this parliament should look at decriminalisation of sex work, as those other jurisdictions have done and in the same way that Queensland did—and my goodness, Queensland is leaps and bounds ahead of us right now—and refer this matter to the South Australian Law Reform Institute. This will allow us to have a proper, informed debate and not these fairytales and fantasies and stories about so-called 'prostituted people'—who, I would note, in that particular story in the contribution by the Hon. Heidi Girolamo, if they were under 17 were actually being trafficked. They were a minor and that was not sex work.
But continually in this debate, proponents purporting to try to help people conflate sex trafficking with sex work. One is consensual and adult, the other is a crime. One deserves real protections, and those real protections come with rights and respect, the ability to unionise, the ability to organise and having their voices heard. With that, I oppose this bill, but should we get to the committee stage, I of course do have amendments.