Innocent When You Dream Clients and Trafficked Women in Italy

Abstract

Over the past twenty years in Italy, the phenomenon of trafficked prostitution has grown producing an increase in criminality and social insecurity. In this regard, some pieces of research have been conducted to explore the phenomenon and suggest possible areas of intervention. However, current studies have focused only on “one side of the coin”, i.e. the supply for trafficked sex, neglecting its demand.

This chapter presents the results of the first exploratory study conducted in the country on clients of trafficked prostitution. In particular, the work has tried to answer the two core questions: Who are the clients of trafficked prostitution in Italy (i.e. age, social background, occupation, education) and (above all) if they do look for this segment of the overall sex market what is the rationale behind it.