Prostitution in Qatar

Prostitution in Qatar is illegal[1] and carries severe punishment of several years in prison.[2][3] Prostitution normally takes place in bars, nightclubs and hotels. There are occasional clamp-downs and the prostitutes are arrested and deported.[4] Many Chinese women travel to Qatar with tourist visas to work in prostitution.

Like other Gulf countries, prostitution and related activities are illegal. Chapter 6 of the Penal Code deals with Instigation of Debauchery, Dissipation and Fornication:[5]

  • Article 294
    • Whoever instigates debauchery, dissipation or adultery in public through words, gestures or any other means shall be liable to a prison term of no less than six months and not exceeding three years.
  • Article 295
    • Whoever commits any of the following acts shall be punished with imprisonment for a term of no less than one year and not exceeding three years.
      • 1- Opens or runs a brothel or contributing to its opening or running;
      • 2- Owns a house or a store and leasing it knowing that it is going to be used as a brothel;
  • Article 296
    • Whoever commits the following offences shall be punished with imprisonment for a term of no less than one year and no more than three years:
      • 1- Grooms a female to commit adultery;
      • 2- Instigates, induces, seduces a female in any way to commit adultery or to frequent a brothel in order to commit debauchery whether inside or outside the country;
      • 3- Leading, instigating or seducing a male by in any way to commit sodomy or dissipation;
      • 4- Inducing or seducing a male or a female in any way to commit illegal or immoral actions;
      • 5- Bringing, exposing or accepting a male or a female for the purpose of sexual exploitation.
  • Article 297
    • Whoever commits any of the offences mentioned in the preceding Article through compulsion, duress or ruse or if the victim is under sixteen of age or the offender is one of the previously mentioned in Article 279 of the present Law, where the offender is assumed to know the real age of the victim, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term up to fifteen years.
  • Article 298
    • Whoever performs adultery or sodomy as a profession or for a living shall be punished with imprisonment for a term up to ten years.
    • The same penalty shall be imposed on any person who exploits another person's immorality and prostitution.
  • Article 299
    • In addition to the penalties stipulated in the preceding Articles, the court shall order the closure of the place where the offence is committed, and may only reopen for a legal purpose with the approval of the Office of the Attorney General.

Sex trafficking
See also: Human trafficking in Qatar

Qatar is listed by the US Department of State as a Tier 2 country for trafficking.[6] It is a destination for men and women trafficked for the purposes of involuntary servitude and, to a lesser extent, commercial sexual exploitation.[6] The country is a destination for women from China, Indonesia, the Philippines, Morocco, Sri Lanka, Lebanon, India, Africa, and Eastern Europe trafficked for the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation,[6]

References
  1. "The Legal Status of Prostitution by Country". Chartsbin. Retrieved 17 December 2017.
  2. "In Qatar, Up to 3 years jail for illegal sex and 10 years for prostitution". Qatar Day. Retrieved 17 December 2017.
  3. Ditmore, Melissa Hope (1 January 2006). Encyclopedia of Prostitution and Sex Work: A-N. Vol. 1. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 9780313329685. Retrieved 21 March 2017 – via Google Books.
  4. "Life in Qatar". Qatar Visitor. 23 April 2007. Retrieved 17 December 2017.
  5. "Law No. 11 of 2004 Issuing the Penal Code - Instigation of Debauchery, Dissipation and Fornication". Almeezan. Retrieved 17 December 2017.
  6. Protection Act of 2000: Trafficking in Persons Report 2007, US Department of State This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
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