Nordic model of prostitution: Is this the best solution for prostitutes in Canada?

On December 20, 2013, the Supreme Court of Canada struck down 3 laws relating to prostitution.
The Canadian top court believed the laws banning living off the avails of prostitution, keeping a
bawdy house, and public communication for clients were over-broad and "grossly disproportionate."
In a 9-0 decision, Chief Justice Beverly McLaughlin wrpte "Parliament has the power to regulate against nuisances, but not at the cost of the health, safety and lives of prostitutes," 

This ruling followed an appeal from the Court of Appeal from the Ontario, who upheld the public
communication ban. The Supreme Court of Ontario had previously struck down the other two laws.

Those who want to abolish prostitution were not happy that the laws were struck down. However,
they vowed to push the Parliament  to adopt the model used by Sweden where men are criminalized
for purchasing sex. The Swedish model has political support, particularly
from Manitoba MP Joy Smith. There are also rumblings the Conservative government will agree to
Smith's report, The Tipping Point, to adopt the purchase ban sometime this year.

Sweden became the first country to bring the model in 1999. Its first official government report in
2010 claims the ban on purchase is important in fighting sexual trafficking (Page 6).
While the street prostitution has been cut in half, internet prostitution has increased. The report
concludes prostitution has not increased in Sweden, whereas other Nordic nations have seen
large jumps.

According to the Swedish police in the report, the traffickers have been deterred (Page 7). However,
in page 20, it says there are more foreign women in Swedish streets since the purchase ban. A few
pages later in 29, the report claims the Swedish police have NOT been estimating victims of sex
trafficking since 2007.

But what has been the effect on the sex trade workers themselves? While those who left prostitution
support the model, people who are still in the trade say cop harassment has increased. However, the
report says increased stigma
"must be viewed as positive from the perspective that the purpose of the law is indeed to combat prostitution".

What about notions of increase violence for the sex workers after the ban was instituted? While the
Swedish report claims the fears of additional violence after the ban has not been realized (page 33),
the next line on 34 also says
"There are no statistics about cases reported to the police and criminal proceedings regarding assaults
against people involved in prostitution."

A 2012 research on 123 Norway sex workers perhaps suggest increased violence may be the case
after Norway adopted the Swedish model in November 2008. While 52% of 95 women suffered
violence in their careers back (1 day to 50 years) in a previous study done in 2007/08, 59% of 125
women experienced violence in 2012, roughly 3 years after the purchase ban was adopted.

Prostitution abolitionists like Samantha Berg claimed that violence actually decreased in
Norway after the purchase ban (Nordic Model) as the rape incidence decreased from 29% in the
2007/08 study to 15% in the 2012 follow-up. But the 2012 study only looked at the purchase ban only
after 3 years of its existence in Norway. A follow up study in 2018 and beyond would probably be a
better gauge of the Nordic model in Norway, provided the ban lasts until then.

Now let's say the Conservatives adopt the purchase ban sometime this year, much like Sweden
and Norway. How will the purchase ban stand up to a constitutional challenge?

3 months ago, the Supreme Court of Canada struck down 3 laws: having a brothel, living off profits
of prostitution, and public communication for purpose of prostitution.

The Sweden penal code bans the following:
A) purchasing "sexual relation for payment" (CH 6, S 11),
B) promoting or exploiting someone making money from sexual services , and if one owns a premise
C) renting a place to someone for prostitution purposes and failing to anything reasonable to
terminate the conduct.