On Sunday night, a 21-year-old woman was murdered in a rustic house in Lodrino (Tessin). The perpetrator is a suitor who had ordered the Romanian woman — she worked as a prostitute — to her home.
“20 Minuten” reported on the femicide and focused on the fact that the man was on a black list for dangerous suitors. What does the journalist want to say with that? That the Romanian woman should have known how violent the man would be? In what other profession do people have to reckon with violence every time they contact a customer?
The article also cites the safety advice for prostitutes from official sex work agencies. For example: Tell a trusted person where you are. Avoid isolated locations. Leave the car door and window slightly open so that your screams are heard in an emergency, take off your necklace or something similar that could strangle you before sex.
In what other profession do people receive official recommendations on what they must do in order not to be murdered?
It's as if women were told: Prostitution is a completely normal job! — But: Never forget to make sure that someone can hear your screams.
No! It's not the women who have to make sure they don't get killed. It is Switzerland's responsibility to protect the lives of these women. This finally requires a policy that recognizes that prostitution is violence against women and acts accordingly.
