Decriminalisation Recent Debates Geetanjali Gangoli RECENT debates on prostitution and anti- prostitution laws in India have changed the parameters within which the debates around the issue have been conducted. Feminists have seen prostitution as being a violation of the rights of women, as constituting violence against women [D'Cunh a .1991 ]. More recently, the debate has been enriched by the voices of prostituted women, some of which have articulated their views somewhat differently. One such voice is the manifesto the Calcutta Sex Workers Union (1997) which offers a critique of patriarchal oppression while arguing for a shift in the prism through which their lives and work is viewed.
