Called by some "the Oldest Profession", prostitution is a universal social problem known in almost every society in history. That such a major social problem should somehow be tackled by someone is only appropriate. The question is why should an organization such as APAP, which claims to be a legal and human right organization with emphasis on the human rights of women and the poor, be engaged in an activity aimed at addressing this major social problem. Implicit in this are two important questions. One is how the question of prostitution is related to human rights. The second is how the law and human rights can be made use of in dealing with the problem of prostitution. In this article we will try to look at the first question. The second question will be dealt with in another article.

We will begin by stating our conclusion: that prostitution constitutes a state of systematic violation of and disrespect to human fights. To justify this conclusion let's look at some of the internationally accepted statements about the mature of human rights. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights in its Preamble states "the highest aspiration of the common people" to be "a world in which human beings enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want". It thus emphasizes the central place that the individual's freedom from situations which place him or her in fear and in want has in the realization of human rights. More recently the world community's restatement of its understanding of human rights - the Vienna Declaration and Plan of Action on Human Rights emphasizes "the importance of ...the elimination of all forms of sexual harassment, exploitation and trafficking in women" for the realization of the rights of women" which are described in the same document as " an inalienable, integral and indivisible part of universal human rights." Prostitution is a systematic violation of human rights because it is a state of affairs in which individuals are placed in fear and want. It is on the one level the violation of individuals rights to personal, economic and social security and to a fair access to resources and wealth. On another and more comprehensive level, however, prostitution is a situation of gender relationship which is one gruesome manifestation of the oppression of women in our society.

How prostitution constitutes a violation of the rights of individual is illustrated by a number of stories from actual life presented in another article- Life for sale. Suffice to note here that women in prostitution may be considered as constituting one of the major groups lacking in human security. The, in the words of the UNDP, is "...safety from such chronic threats as hunger, disease and repression...[and] protection from sudden and hurtful disruption in the patterns of daily life...".

Prostitution, however, is more than the violation of the rights of individuals. It also represents the subordinated and oppressed position of women in our society as an expression of a biased gender relationship. Gender refers to the socially prescribed roles and functions expected from an individual by the mere fact of being a male or a female. It indicates the attitude that conditions a person to behave in ways expected of his or her sex group.

It does not need conducting any detailed survey to conclude that our society favours men as a whole and places women in an inferior or subordinate position. This attitude is expressed in the law, in the various cultures and traditions, the family and other social institutions. The following may be taken as some instances of such a view. Women are encouraged to be trained and do woks that are traditionally considered as womanly like domestic work, and bearing and rearing children. The society takes for granted that only men could be the bread winners of the family, though in actual fact women are for the most part the producers of wealth. Usually, girls are not encouraged to go to school or are not encouraged to go beyond a certain level in their education. The acquisition of skills that may enable women to get employed in extra household production activities is perceived as cultural deviation. Women do not exercise equal rights as their husbands in makings decisions concerning family matters and common property. Perhaps more disturbing are the persistence of the tradition of family arranged and early marriages and the prevalence of violence against women in the form of rape, physical assault, wife battery, etc. in both rural and urban Ethiopia.

All these and other similar practices and attitudes are manifestations of a skewed gender relationship that is biased against women. In such relationship women are denied the access to resources and wealth and their roles as "supporters" are drawn for them in a manner which makes them dependent. Their preclusion from wealth, resources and skills again represents the prevalence of gender inequality and the absence of social justice. While these constitute the social forces that underlie prostitution, the societal attitude and the inculcation in women of the attitude towards women as "comforters" encourages women joining prostitution. Hence, prostitution in general and child prostitution in particular are manifestations or results of the prevalence of such social injustice and gender inequality in Ethiopia.

This may not be immediately obvious as there are other more direct and immediate causes for one woman becoming a prostitute such as unemployment, broken up families, poverty, and the like. Yet, not only that it is gender inequality and social injustice that constitute the substructures for women bring in prostitution, but also these immediate causes are usually themselves caused by the more fundamental problems of gender inequality and social injustice.

Factors behind the exacerbation and growth of prostitution in Ethiopia are also explicable in terms of gender inequality and social injustice. Such factors include, the ambivalent attitude of society about prostitution, the exploitation and abuse of women in the service sector, the high visibility and easy way of practicing prostitution, and the non prosecution of persons who encourage, promote and exploit prostitution in general and child prostitution in particular.

On the whole, one can say, and there is all the evidence to say so, that women are not given equal opportunity as men and are made to grow, behave and accept such inequality as just and natural by the society. Obviously, such an attitude contributes significantly to the impoverishment of women and their inability to lead a decent life by themselves. It is also a reason that has led many young women and children to be involved in prostitution.

These are thus some of the reasons why we consider the problem of prostitution as a question of gender equality and a matter of social justice. For us our concern with human rights and particularly the rights of women and the poor could be turned into action by confronting such major social problems as prostitution in however a limited sense. This represents to us an action for the realization of the rights of the marginalized which may lad to development the core of which has increasingly come to be recognized as its human aspect.