A lawmaker from Russia's second city of St. Petersburg has drafted a bill that would allow for heavy fines or a prison sentence for clients of prostitutes - unless they marry.
Olga Galkina, of the Civil Platform party, devised the bill, which would introduce fines of up to $240 for clients, rising to $2,400 if the client is aware that she was forced into prostitution. But all punishments would be cleared if the client “marry the person that provided the sex services.”
Russia Today reports that though the bill cites similar approaches to punishing clients in Sweden and Norway, Galkina says that she actually supports the decriminalisation of the industry, and is introduced the bill to start a discussion.
She says the bill is a response to Vitaly Milonov, another member of the city's assembly known for his anti-gay stance, who is currently campaigning to make prostitution a criminal offence.
