Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Sunday vowed to take stringent steps against prostitution to outlaw the practice in the country. Calling prostitution an act that enslaves women, Sanchez said that his party will work upon the issue and outlaw it from Spain.

Also Read: Welcome to Spain’s ‘Crying Room’, a step to normalise mental health taboos

 One of the prime reasons behind Spain’s current battle with prostitution is that Sanchez manifesto promised steps against the practice, potentially to attract women, voters and no legislation was tabled or formulated even two years after the election.

Here’s what the prime minister’s 2019 manifesto said about prostitution. ” It is one of the cruellest aspects of the feminisation of poverty and one of the worst forms of violence against women.”

Also Read: Texas abortion law to remain in force: Federal appeals court

Apart from that, prostitution was decriminalised in Spain in 1995 but the sex industry in the country has been quite active despite, which is a huge concern in the country now. In fact, figures suggest that the industry has boomed after decriminalisation with common figures suggesting that around 300,000 women work as prostitutes in Spain.

In 2016, a United Nations index estimated Spain’s prostitution industry to be worth € 3.7 billion which amounts to $4.2 billion.

A survey conducted in Spain in 2009 found that 1 in every 3 men in the country pays for the sex. However, another report on the subject, published in the same year, suggested that the figure may be as high as 39% and a 2011 UN study cited Spain as the third biggest centre for prostitution in the world, behind Thailand and Puerto Rico.

Prostitution is currently unregulated in Spain, and there is no punishment for those who offer paid sexual services of their own will as long as it does not take place in public spaces. However, pimping or acting as a proxy between a sex worker and a potential client is illegal.

In recent years, trafficking-related concerns have also grown in Spain. In 2017, Spanish police identified at least13,000 women in anti-trafficking raids, who clearly stated that at least 80% of them were being exploited against their will by a third party.

Prime Minister Sanchez announced the fight against prostitution in Valencia at the end of his Socialist Party’s three-day congress on Sunday.