"Norway will not be a free zone for pimps and traffickers of human beings,"
Justice Minister Knut Storberget said in a statement following circulation of a
draft bill.
"We want to stop prostitution in Norway," he said.
Prison sentences would be longer than six months if trafficking was involved,
officials said of the draft bill that was sent to officials and other
interested parties for discussion before a final proposal to parliament by
mid-2008.
Norway is following the example of Scandinavian neighbour Sweden that
introduced a similar ban in 1999. Its law also provides for up to six months in
prison.
Prostitution is allowed in Norway, although procuring, commonly known as
"pimping," is illegal. Street prostitution in the Norwegian capital, Oslo, has
become increasingly visible and aggressive in the past few years, triggering
calls for a ban.
Backers of the measure say it makes sense to try to stop prostitution by
punishing those who use the service rather than the often poor, young,
immigrant women who supply it.
Opponents say it will hurt the women by driving prostitution underground where
they will be even more vulnerable.
Sweden's law helped largely rid Stockholm of street prostitution, though
law-breakers are seldom sent to prison but rather fined or given suspended
sentences.
