News24 reports that early findings of a study by the SA Medical Research Council and the Perinatal HIV Research Unit has found that more than half of sex workers, in a sample of 3,000, have been victims of rape.

This is the first time evidence has been available from a national sample of sex workers linked to sex worker programmes in 12 sites. "In the past year, 70.4% of female sex workers experienced physical violence, and 57.9% were raped: by policemen (14.0%), clients (48.3%), other men (30.2%) and/or an intimate partner (31.9%)," the study found. It said sexual intimate partner violence was associated with food insecurity, entering sex work as a child, childhood trauma exposure, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), drinking alcohol to cope with sex work, working more days, partner controlling behaviour, having an ex-client partner, and having no current partner to protect from ex-partners. Dr Jenny Coetzee, the principal investigator of the study, said that because of the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, there would likely be an increase in the number of people engaging in "survival-type" sex work. "It is vital that sex worker programmes are properly resourced, so that they can help protect sex workers from violence ... There has been a lot of research showing what needs to be done to help sex workers. Now we need committed resources to protect this vulnerable group of women," Coetzee said.

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Lwandile Bhengu at News24

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