As of the fall, clients of prostitutes who are nabbed by the police in Longueuil will be able to be sent to school to follow a sexual exploitation awareness program, rather than find themselves before a judge and to risk prison.
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This diversion measure, a first in Quebec, aims to change the behavior of those who seek sexual services and to prevent recidivism.
Offenders will have to pay several hundred dollars to take part in the program, which also includes individual therapy for one to eight weeks.
“To participate, the individual will have to make a commitment and acknowledge their responsibility. This is the first step and it is crucial, ”explains agent Ghyslain Vallières, of the Longueuil agglomeration police service (SPAL), who set up the program.
In exchange for their participation, the men will avoid having a criminal record and having their names made public.
Not everyone will be able to access it, however. It is the Director of Criminal and Penal Prosecutions (DPCP) who will determine, based on several criteria, who will be eligible.
“For example, a person who has sexually abused a minor child will not be able to participate,” says agent Vallières. Those who have tried to buy the services of a minor will also not be eligible.
“Breaking Beliefs”
The training will include interventions by sexologists, therapists, ex-prostitutes and other stakeholders who will aim to “break the beliefs” of some men regarding sex work and the consequences of their actions. Issues such as sexually transmitted infections, the experience of victims of sexual exploitation, the impact on families and the consequences of a criminal record will be addressed.
This type of program, called “John’s School” elsewhere in North America (john being a term used to designate a client of prostitution), does not yet exist in Quebec, but it is present in a few Canadian cities, such as Toronto and Edmonton.
The SPAL had proposed to establish it on its territory during the Parliamentary Commission on the sexual exploitation of minors, in 2019-2020. The Department of Justice and Public Security have agreed to the implementation of a pilot project in Longueuil.
The results will be evaluated by researchers, specifies Ghyslain Vallières.
Since 2014, the purchase of sexual services is a crime in Canada, but not their sale.