Chams - Sun

Sex workers affected by violence receive support and counselling in emergency situations. They are empowered, can overcome their traumas and create new perspectives for their lives.

Although Morocco passed a law to prevent violence against women in 2018 and criminalised some forms of domestic violence, the measures have so far hardly been enforced by the police and judiciary. Women's shelters are virtually unfunded by the state. Sex workers are particularly affected by sexual and gender-based violence.

What is it about?

Like extramarital sex, sex work is also prohibited by law in Morocco, but it is tolerated. A sex worker can therefore hardly report a client who has subjected her to sexual violence. The risk of being punished instead of the client is too great. Due to their vulnerability, they are also at high risk of sexually transmitted diseases when in contact with clients. The risk of sex workers contracting AIDS is around 16 times higher than in the rest of the population. In addition, their children are often not registered at the registry office, as the mother does not register the child out of shame or ignorance. As a result, many children do not have a birth certificate and the mothers face major challenges, such as giving them access to education. The stigmatisation and high level of social exclusion make sex workers in Morocco a highly vulnerable group.

What do we do?

In the "Chams - Sonne" project, Frieda is working with its Moroccan partner organisation Association de lutte contre le Sida (ALCS) to empower sex workers affected by violence. In consultation hours, HIV-positive women or women at risk of HIV infection receive low-threshold access to medical care, medical examinations, tests, vaccinations and counselling. The project also offers a wide range of other services, including information and awareness-raising sessions, self-help groups to improve self-esteem and mutual exchange, as well as psychological support.

In addition to social counselling, a solidarity fund provides emergency aid for women who find themselves in particularly precarious situations - for example in the form of food vouchers, warm blankets, emergency accommodation and the payment of emergency medical costs. Legal support is also offered to women who have suffered violence, abuse or are single parents.

In order to create new prospects, the project gives the women the opportunity to complete vocational training so that they have an alternative to sex work. In order to ensure that the support provided is as needs-oriented as possible, the accompanying specialist agencies are sensitised to and trained in the specific problems and concerns of sex workers affected by violence.

What are the objectives of the project?

• Sex workers affected by violence are empowered and sensitised against gender-specific violence.

• Medical, psychological, social and legal care and support for women affected by violence (Moroccan sex workers, sex workers with a history of migration and HIV-positive and AIDS-positive women) is guaranteed.

What is actually carried out?

• Medical and psychological support for sex workers who have experienced sexualised violence and women who have contracted HIV, syphilis, hepatitis B and/or C.

• Individual counselling sessions for sex workers affected by sexualised and gender-based violence.

• Legal support for sex workers.

• Weekly awareness-raising sessions on gender-based violence against women for sex workers from Marrakech and Agadir.

• Awareness-raising work with partner organisations and institutional actors in all three cities on the situation of women affected by violence.

• Facilitation of vocational training courses for women who wish to reorient themselves professionally.