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The passing of the Prostitution Reform Act (PRA) in 2003 has resulted in Aotearoa/New Zealand being in a unique position internationally in terms of the regulation of sex work. In this paper, I provide an overview of the history of sex work in Aotearoa/New Zealand leading up to and subsequent to the passing of the PRA. Underlying this overview are theoretically informed discussions considering how discourses of heteronormative sexuality result in sex work being gendered in particular ways, and how different models of regulating prostitution reflect different ideological and political concerns, and have different outcomes. The specifics of the gendering of sex work means that these understandings and outcomes have particular effects on women. While the interests of women are thus prioritised in recent theorising and, in some instances, in the regulation of prostitution, it is apparent that what is considered to be in 'women's interests' varies. I conclude by suggesting that while the PRA may not challenge the gendered nature of the industry, it protects the immediate interests of the women who work within it. This paper is intended to serve the dual purpose of providing the reader of this special issue of the Women's Studies Journal with some relevant background, and giving students interested in the area -- especially those in Aotearoa/New Zealand - a starting point for their research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2003, New Zealand passed the Prostitution Reform Act (PRA), becoming the first country in the world to decriminalise sex work. Aotearoa/New Zealand's model of decriminalisation is internationally regarded as an ideal model for prioritising sex workers' rights and safety, and is understood to have had several positive impacts in these areas. The decriminalised model is often described as 'full decriminalisation', to distinguish it from legal frameworks which decriminalise sex workers while still criminalising clients and/or third parties. However, an infrequently discussed aspect of the Aotearoa/New Zealand model of 'full' decriminalisation is that it prohibits migrant sex work as an anti-trafficking measure. In this paper I discuss the contradictory nature of Aotearoa/New Zealand's sex work law in relation to the precarious legal status of migrant sex workers. I explore the disconnect between the intention and consequences of this policy, outlining the challenges this poses for sex workers, and those committed to the full realisation of sex worker rights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although there has been substantial research conducted in New Zealand over the last 20 years into prostitution, there has been no enquiry into the lives of strippers, strip clubs or the striptease industry in general. Yet, women who take their clothes off for a living are a discrete group in the sex industry with distinct motivations who occupy a different habitus to prostitutes or pornographic actresses. This paper, based on undergraduate research, is a review of international literature pertaining to strippers from the year 2000 onwards. The review revealed that, in contrast to the research conducted on the industry before 2000, current feminist scholarship has moved away from a polarised narrative of stripping work as either oppressive or emancipating. Instead, recent research has been concerned with the complexities of the occupation of stripping for young women, both in the workplace and in their wider lives. In particular, this study identified four dominant thematic areas where current research was focused: (a) othering (or the differentiation of strippers from other women); (b) sexualisation (self-worth as based on their sexuality); (c) gender performance (stripping on a spectrum of femininity), and (d) emotional work (stripping work and its emotional demands). In summary, it would seem that the strip-club is a site of both oppression and resistance, a space where women can use their sexual power for financial gain if they are willing to make compromises at work and in their personal lives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the passing of the Prostitution Reform Act (PRA) in 2003, New Zealand became the first country to implement a full decriminalisation of street and in-house prostitution, nationwide. As few New Zealanders have direct regular contact with prostitutes, the media has a strong role in shaping public discourse in relation to the sex industry. Using Foucauldian inspired poststructuralist analysis, from a critical feminist perspective, this paper investigates the representation of prostitution in the New Zealand print media before and after the passing of the PRA. Newspaper articles from 2000 to 2013 were analysed to identify key discursive constructions of the PRA, prostitution, sex workers, and other key players in the New Zealand sex industry. The main representations identified in the data were adult or child street prostitution, those who sell sex were always depicted as women (or girls) and those who buy sex, as men. Discussions of men who buy sex were noticeably absent, except in coverage of men who had been violent towards sex workers and men who bought sex from children. Inhouse prostitution was depicted as a more legitimate profession than street prostitution and the (street) sex worker was portrayed in disparaging ways. We conclude that although New Zealand has decriminalised prostitution, visible sex worker activity on the street continues to be deplored, due to its violation of various codes of traditional femininity and female sexuality. The media also work to individualise issues related to the sex industry, which require a more social, structural, and economic analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]