Speaking of the present day, it must be mentioned that in 1999 Sweden declared that the only criminal is the client. Taiwan does not consider prostitution to be against the law, while the majority of other countries does. (Prostitution. Procon.org) It is obvious that the varying attitudes that societies have had towards the phenomenon under discussion were closely connected with the political and historical circumstances which most weighed upon people. While it is considered to be a victimless crime, reality suggests things are somewhat different. Women and girls are often forced into practicing this profession. Not only do they have to give the majority of their earnings to the men who force them to do it, but they often get abused by clients, "protectors" and corrupt members of the police.

It is true that a person ought to be free to dispose of her own body according to her wishes and that ethics should not have anything to do with this. Nevertheless, saying that a woman is allowed to become a prostitute if this is what she really wants encourages the phenomenon. It is safe to believe that the overwhelming women do this because they need the money and not because they like sex with strangers. Making a legal profession out of prostitution is a means of pushing women from poor environments in this direction.

Bluntly speaking, the act of selling one's...

The law which is meant to protect this integrity ought to forbid the existence of such practices. Making prostitution a legal profession implies that the state earns from it. The issue becomes absurd at this point if we are to take into account the data regrading the phenomenon. A real job would imply benefits such as a pension, but also safety measures. This would mean legalizing brothels and eliminating prostitution on the streets. Unfortunately the phenomenon can not be controlled in this manner and the only people who get hurt are the very "professionals."
Bibliography:

Hickenbottom, I.L., Prostitution, then and now. Women's issues then and now. A feminist overview of the past 2 centuries. Retrieved October 3, 2010 from http://www.cwrl.utexas.edu/~ulrich/femhist/sex_work.shtml

Historical Timeline of Prostitution, Procon.org, Retrieved October 3, 2010 from http://prostitution.procon.org/view.resource.php

resourceID=000117

Lowen, L. Is prostitution an victimless crime? Answer exposes gender gap. Retrieved October 4, 2010 from http://womensissues.about.com/od/prostitution/a/VictimlessCrime.htm

Ringdal, N.J., Daly, R., Love for sale: a world history of prostitution, Google Books, Retrieved October 3, 2010 from http://books.google.it/books?id=Mg4crDiz1uEC&printsec=frontcover&dq=history+of+prostitution&source=bl&ots=sIXqd3NyTV&sig=TkHIZTARe7IP0eUZ_3albcEB61w&hl=it&ei=bkmqTJzYDciQswb_hbCpBA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=8&ved=0CFAQ6AEwBw#v=onepage&q&f=false

Sanger, W.D. History of prostitution:its extent, causes and effects throughout the world, Google Books, Retrieved October 3, 2010 from http://books.google.it/books?id=4hMbAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=history+of+prostitution&source=bl&ots=_bkg5AHNMC&sig=ck0C0KFWv9dmmrK31xe67cuyI10&hl=it&ei=bkmqTJzYDciQswb_hbCpBA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CEYQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q&f=false