Prostitution in Georgia is illegal but widespread, particularly in the capital,

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Kura River with a population of approximately 1.5 million p ...

. Many

NGO A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...

's attribute this to the harsh economic conditions according to the

US State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other nati ...

. Prostitution occurs on the

streets Streets is the plural of street, a type of road. Streets or The Streets may also refer to: Music * Streets (band), a rock band fronted by Kansas vocalist Steve Walsh * ''Streets'' (punk album), a 1977 compilation album of various early UK punk ba ...

, in bars, nightclubs, hotels and brothels.

UNAIDS The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) (, ONUSIDA) is the main advocate for accelerated, comprehensive and coordinated global action on the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The mission of UNAIDS is to lead, strengthen and support an ...

estimate there are 6,525 prostitutes in

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. The

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Rom ...

resorts become a sex tourism destination in the summer months. Many prostitutes, mainly Central Asians and Russians from the

North Caucasus The North Caucasus, ( ady, Темыр Къафкъас, Temır Qafqas; kbd, Ишхъэрэ Къаукъаз, İṩxhərə Qauqaz; ce, Къилбаседа Кавказ, Q̇ilbaseda Kavkaz; , os, Цӕгат Кавказ, Cægat Kavkaz, inh, ...

come to the area. Due to the close proximity of the Turkish border, and no visa requirements for Turks, many men from Turkey come to the area to find prostitutes. Child prostitution is a problem in the country.

Legal situation

Prostitution is punishable by a fine. Related activities are prohibited by the criminal code: * Article 143¹ - Human trafficking * Article 171 - Child prostitution * Article 253 -

Forced prostitution Forced prostitution, also known as involuntary prostitution or compulsory prostitution, is prostitution or sexual slavery that takes place as a result of coercion by a third party. The terms "forced prostitution" or "enforced prostitution" appea ...

* Article 254 - Premises used for prostitution Prostitutes are sometimes arrested for public order offences.

Sexual health

Georgia has a high rate of STIs, especially near the Turkish border. Although UNAIDS report high condom use between sex workers and clients (95.4%), sex workers are a high risk group. Infections are usually transferred during violent attacks by clients. Stigmatisation prevents some sex workers accessing healthcare. There is a 10.8% active syphilis rate and 0.7%

HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...

prevalence amongst sex workers according to UNAIDS. Condom and lube distribution and also redirection for treatment are provided by the NGO Tanadgoma.

Sex trafficking

Georgia is a source, transit, and destination country for women and girls subjected to sex trafficking. Women and girls from Georgia are subjected to sex trafficking within the country, in Turkey, and, to a lesser extent, in China and the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia ( The Middle East). It is located at t ...

. Georgia is also a transit country for women from Central Asia exploited in Turkey. Women from

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of t ...

and Central Asia are subjected to forced prostitution in the tourist areas of the Adjara region and in saunas, strip clubs, casinos, and hotels. The majority of identified trafficking victims are young, foreign women seeking employment. In 2006 the country incorporated into its domestic law the ''Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children'', supplementing the UN Convention against

Transnational Organized Crime Transnational organized crime (TOC) is organized crime coordinated across national borders, involving groups or markets of individuals working in more than one country to plan and execute illegal business ventures. In order to achieve their ...

, and the Council of Europe

Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings The Council of Europe Convention on Action Against Trafficking in Human Beings is a regional human rights treaty of international human rights law by the Council of Europe. The Convention aims to: * prevent and combat all forms of human trafficki ...

. The punishment for human trafficking in Georgia is 15 years. There is also a special law to protect families of Georgian women who fear reprisals from gang masters of women who refuse to be forced into prostitution abroad. The government investigated 12 new cases of sex trafficking in 2016, compared to 11 in 2015. The government prosecuted one defendant for sex trafficking in 2016, compared to two defendants in 2015. The United States Department of State

Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons The Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (J/TIP) is an agency within the United States Department of State charged with investigating and creating programs to prevent human trafficking both within the United States and internation ...

ranks Georgia as a ' Tier 1' country.

Disputed territories

Although Abkhazia and

South Ossetia South Ossetia, ka, სამხრეთი ოსეთი, ( , ), officially the Republic of South Ossetia – the State of Alania, is a partially recognised landlocked state in the South Caucasus. It has an officially stated populat ...

have declared independence from Georgia and are self-governing, they are not generally internationally recognised.

Abkhazia

Prostitution in Abkhazia is rampant, including child prostitution. HIV amongst sex workers is estimated to be 60%-70% in some areas.

South Ossetia

Following the conflict in

, many men left to work in

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

. Some of the women who were left behind were forced to turn to prostitution to survive. Many adolescents have also turned to prostitution and child prostitution is a problem, especially in the capital,

Tskhinvali Tskhinvali ( ka, ცხინვალი ) or Tskhinval ( os, Цхинвал, Чъреба, Tskhinval, Chreba, ; rus, Цхинва́л(и), r=Tskhinvál(i), ) is the capital of the disputed ''de facto'' independent Republic of South Ossetia, in ...

References

{{Europe in topic, Prostitution in Culture of Georgia (country)