| RyuLion |
12-17-2007 12:41 PM |
Amsterdam to clean up "Red Light" district
Mon Dec 17, 2007 1:27pm EST
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - The city of Amsterdam announced plans Monday to clean up its infamous "red light" district to fight human trafficking, money laundering and drug abuse and replace prostitutes' windows with upmarket boutiques.
Amsterdam Mayor Job Cohen told a news conference he wanted to clamp down on the organized criminals whose growing influence has corrupted the historic city center.
"The romantic picture of the area is outdated if you see the abuses in the sex industry and that is why the council has to act," he said. "We don't want to get rid of prostitution but we do want to cut crime significantly."
Cohen said the city wanted to partially reverse the full legalization of prostitution introduced in the Netherlands in 2000 because it had not achieved its aim of bringing the profession out of the shadows and protecting sex workers.
The city wants to fight forced prostitution by clamping down on pimps and demanding that brothel owners, escort agencies and those who protect prostitutes apply for permits. It also wants the minimum age for prostitutes lifted to 21 from 18.
Prostitutes have plied their wares in the narrow alleys of the old center of Amsterdam for centuries. While they used to attract sailors and merchants in the city's heyday as the heart of a global trading empire, they are now a huge tourist draw.
Deputy mayor Lodewijk Asscher said the city wants to restore a number of historic buildings and reverse the decline of a large central area where brothels, sex clubs and the coffee shops that sell marijuana line the city's canals.
The neon-lit boudoirs that earn about 70 million euros ($100 million) a year should be limited to a few streets while drop-in centers for the homeless and drug addicts are relocated.
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddly...76462920071217
:Oh crap |
