On 20-25 October 2008 Tais Plus, SWAN member from Kyrgyzstan presented its Shadow Report on the implementation of UN CEDAW (Convention on Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women) by the Kyrgyz Republic at the 42nd CEDAW session in Geneva, Switzerland. More

In this issue of Sex Workers’ Report we speak with Shahnaz, a sex worker and activist from Kyrgyzstan, a country in Central Asia, formerly part of Soviet Union. We discuss the economics of sex work. People are so much focused on the sex part of sex work, that they often forget the money side of the equation. Shahnaz, actively involved with TAIS Plus, a SWAN member from Kyrgyzstan, tells us how sex workers’ struggle to make out a living while their earnings are supporting extended families, babysitters, landlords, clinics, and police officers. More

Shahnaz Islamova from Tais Plus, SWAN member from Kyrgyzstan participated at the Barcelona conference and spoke about Tais Plus outreach work with sex workers. Shahnaz’s presentation can be read here.

Representatives of two organizations, members of SWAN Network, participated at the Mexico conference: Irina Maslova from Humanitarian Action in Russia and Gulnara Kurmanova from Tais Plus in Kyrgyzstan. Here is a short report on the conference, written by Irina exclusively for the SWAN News. More

On 10 June 2008, a two-hours informal interactive civil society hearing, with the theme of Action For Universal Access 2010: Myths and Realities, was run in High-Level Meeting on AIDS (General Assembly, United Nations, New York). One of the civil society rapporteurs was Gulnara Kurmanova of Tais Plus, SWAN member from Kyrgyzstan. More
 

On 10 June 2008, a two-hours informal interactive civil society hearing, with the theme of Action For Universal Access 2010: Myths and Realities, was run in High-Level Meeting on AIDS (General Assembly, United Nations, New York). One of the civil society rapporteurs was Gulnara Kurmanova of Tais Plus, SWAN member from Kyrgyzstan. Read the speech here.

Only a day after the round table on legalization of prostitution, on April 9 in the evening hours police paid a surprise visit to the Community Centre of the Kyrgyz Labrys (Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Organization in Kyrgyzstan) and interrupted a dinner with some 30 participants, among them representatives of Anti-AIDS Association, Tais Plus, the SWAN member from Kyrgyzstan, guests from Netherlands (COC, HIVOS), Moldova (Gender Doc-M), the Labrys staff, Board, volunteers and the Centre’s clients. More

Kyrgyz news agency 24.kg asked some known public and political figures about their attitude to prostitution legalization: May Kyrgyzstan legalize prostitution? What is your personal attitude to commercial sex workers? Would you like to invest money in brothel development? More

Kyrgyz law is rather strict in dealing with prostitution. There are three articles in the Criminal Code penalizing minors’ and adults’ involvement in sex work as well as brothels industry development with up to five years of imprisonment. But recently, there are ever more voices requesting re-evaluation of such policies, claiming they have negative effect on public health and human rights. More

Bishkek, December 17, 2007 -- Our Voices, Our Rights is the title of the newsletter produced by sex workers from Kyrgyzstan, in a drop-in center run by Tais Plus, SWAN member from Kyrgyzstan and the organizer of Rights, not Violence in this Central Asian country. More