World Sex Sells News

    Hungarian Enterprise . ..

Sex workers to be given permits to issue invoices and pay tax

From Google News

In an effort to bring prostitutes into the legal economy, officials said that Hungary will allow sex workers to apply for an entrepreneur's permit, a move that could generate government revenues from an industry worth an estimated $1 billion annually.

The permits allow prostitutes to give receipts to customers and become part of the legal economy by paying taxes and making social security contributions, said Agnes Foldi, head of the Hungarian Prostitutes' Interest Protection Association.

Hungary's sex industry including prostitution and the production of pornographic materials, generates an estimated $1 billion annually, said Agnes Bakonyi, the spokeswoman of Hungary's tax authority APEH: It is one of the leading sectors of the shadow economy. With this project, APEH is trying to help a group of professionals, in what is called the world's oldest profession, who have never paid taxes in their life.

Hungary legalised prostitution under certain conditions in 1999. Prostitutes can work legally only within certain zones, distant from schools and churches, and must get regular medical checkups. Pimping and bordellos are banned.

One of the prostitutes who already has been granted a permit said she applied for it in an effort to improve her future and self-image: From now on, no one will be able to ask me where I got the money to buy my house or my car, said Rebeka, Now we are also part of a taxpaying group and we too are making a contribution to society.

    Window Shopping . ..

Amsterdam to buy up red lit windows

From Expatica

The municipality of Amsterdam wants to work with large investors to buy up more of the buildings in the red light district so as to combat crime and deterioration. The city has its eye mainly on prostitution businesses and coffeeshops.

Together with NV Stadsgoed of housing corporation Het Oosten Amsterdam has already acquired 83 buildings in the notorious neighbourhood.

We plan to continue this on a larger scale," alderman Lodewijk Asscher (economic affairs) said on Thursday. We are in talks with large investors who can develop new investment plans for the inner city under the direction of the municipality.

Charles Geerts ('Fat Charles'), one of the most important business owners in the red light district, is on the verge of selling all his buildings to an Amsterdam housing corporation. A considerable number of prostitution windows in the area will disappear with the sale.

The municipality revoked Geerts' brothel permits in 2006 because of his presumed criminal connections and allegations that he was using his empire for laundering money. The accusations have never been proven however.

    Update: Closing the Windows to Pimps . ..

Amsterdam continues action against red light area

From Radio Netherlands

The Mayor of Amsterdam, Job Cohen, wants to ban pimping in the city's red light district and other areas where prostitutes work. He says the ban is needed to prevent exploitation and human trafficking, and sees it as the next step in cleaning up the red light district.

Ten years ago a parliamentary commission established that the district was controlled by around 16 people with "serious criminal histories and/or contacts". In recent years, an increasing number of stories have been circulating about human trafficking and forced prostitution in the red light district. The mayor and city council concluded that the district was no longer a tourist attraction to be proud of.

The big clean-up started last summer when Amsterdam refused permits to a number of "window" brothel operators. The most important of them was Charles Geerts, owner of large number of premises in the red light district.

Cohen expalins: Our aim is to combat criminality. To make the district more manageable. To improve the quality of life by reducing the excessive concentration of prostitution, bad-quality cafes and restaurants, and marijuana coffee shops. We want to create more opportunities for bona fide businesses.

Cohen believes the legalisation of prostitution in the Netherlands seven years ago hasn't had the desired effect. Many prostitutes have not become "ordinary employees" or self-employed businesswomen, but are still exploited by pimps. The mayor is therefore calling for a ban on pimping.

The pressure group for prostitutes, the Red Thread, strongly opposes the council's measures. Spokeswoman Metje Blaak says Red Thread asees no advantage in a pimping ban. Blaak says the measure is unnecessary because pimping is already illegal. In the criminal code there is indeed an article forbidding "the inducement of women to commit involuntary sexual acts for money". The offence is punishable with a prison sentence of up to eight years. The Red Thread thinks Cohen would do better to enforce the existing law.

    Burning Issue . ..

Taiwan sex workers protest at anniversary of prostitution ban

From Taipei Times see full article

On the 10th anniversary of the banning of prostitution, around 100 former sex workers and their supporters staged a demonstration in front of the Presidential Office to demand legalization of the sex industry in Taipei City.

Protesters, who included sex workers, gathered in front of the Presidential Office and burned a picture of President Chen Shui-bian.

The protesters were stopped by the police as they attempted to march towards the Presidential Office, and a minor scuffle occurred.

During Chen's stint as Taipei mayor, Chen abolished the prostitution licensing system on Sept. 6, 1997.

As Taipei was the only city that had an ordinance to regulate the sex industry, the abolition of the decades-old licensing system therefore put an end to legal prostitution in the country.

For those who turned to illegal prostitution, they have more to fear than the police.

In the past [when prostitution was legal], we could pick our customers, we could call the police when we had non-paying customers, one girl, Ching said. The regulation even stipulated that we got 70%of the revenue while their madams got 30%t.

However, illegal sex workers today can no longer choose their customers, can do nothing when customers don't pay, and are often exploited by their madams, Ching said.

A spokesperson for the Collective of Sex Workers and Supporters said: They [sex workers] wouldn't hurt anyone, they're only trying to make a living. We'd like to call on the government to legalize the sex industry so they can have a safer and more secure work environment.

    Update: Boobs Ever Popular ...

 

Thousands of New Zealanders enjoy  topless parade

Based on an article from Stuff

Thousands of people turned out for the parade to watch topless porn stars on motorcycles driven from upper Queen St to Quay St as a prelude to the Erotica Expo this weekend.

The event went ahead despite opposition from Auckland mayor Dick Hubbard and conservative family nutter group Family First NZ.

Family First NZ national director Bob McCoskrie said while the expo catered to a targeted audience, a lunchtime parade down a major street  would cause widespread offence.

Parade organiser Sandy Watts said this year the council gave approval for the parade to go ahead without fuss.

The Erotica Expo has been running since 2000. The expo consists of live stage shows, jelly wrestling, erotica for sale and exhibits ranging from books and photography to sexual health education.

    Unsafe Law . ..

Canadian prostitution law challenged

From Canada.com

Two Vancouver lawyers will launch a constitutional challenge of Canada's prostitution laws, arguing they force sex workers into unsafe conditions and infringe a sex worker's right to freedom of expression.

The prostitution laws . . . subject sex workers to increased risk of physical and sexual violence, psychological injury, kidnapping and death, says a statement of claim to be filed in B.C. Supreme Court.

The prostitution laws deprive sex workers of the ability to lawfully conduct their work safely because they are prevented from taking steps to establish health and safety conditions in their work, it adds.

On Thursday, lawyers Katrina Pacey of Pivot Legal LLP and Joseph Arvay planned to file the statement of claim on behalf of the Downtown Eastside Sex Workers United Against Violence Society, a group of mostly aboriginal women, some of whom have experienced physical or sexual violence because of their work in the sex trade.

The basis of this whole case is that we have a Charter of Rights and Freedoms and that that Charter protects all of us equally, Ms. Pacey said in an interview this week. Regardless of the type of work we are in, or how we live our lives, we should all have equal access to those fundamental protections.

Canadian law does not explicitly prohibit the exchange of sex for money. Instead, there are sections in the Criminal Code that prohibit activities surrounding prostitution, such as: keeping a "bawdy-house;" procuring another person to have illicit sex; and communicating in a public place for the purposes of engaging in prostitution.

A similar challenge was launched in Ontario earlier this year, and Ms. Pacey said though the two involve slightly different arguments it is possible they could be combined if they eventually reach the Supreme Court of Canada.

In an interview Thursday, John Lowman, a criminologist at Simon Fraser University who has been researching violence in prostitution since the 1970s, said he thinks Canada's prostitution laws have forced sex workers into extremely dangerous working situations, and applauded any challenge brought to the courts: Approaching 300 women [across Canada] have died, murdered, since 1985 when the communicating law was enacted. I say there is a direct correlation between our prohibitionist approach to street prostitution and the slaughter that we've seen.

Update: Filed

13th August 2007

The writ has now been filed and the legal case is in motion

The Downtown Eastside Sex Workers United Against Violence Society allege in a writ filed ithat prostitution laws violate Section 15, which makes it illegal to discriminate on the basis of occupation, among other things, because sex workers are treated differently from people who have consensual sexual relationships that do not involve the exchange of money and they're treated differently from others who perform other personal services for pay.

    Power to the Porn People . ..

New Zealand retailer launches political party

From X Biz

Auckland pornographer Steve Crowe has launched a new political party in an effort to challenge the current candidates in Auckland's upcoming mayoral race. Campaigning on the 1auckland.com party platform, Crowe will make his bid for mayor.

Crowe is the owner of Vixen Direct, a company that produces adult DVDs and distributes them to the Australian and South African markets. The company also operates a retail store in Auckland.

The controversial Crowe raised eyebrows by sponsoring last year's Boobs On Bikes Parade held in Auckland.

    Enough Already . ..

Canadian government sidesteps nutter inspired prostitution reforms

From Canada.com

The Conservative government has turned aside calls from Liberals and New Democrats, as well as its own MPs, to rewrite federal criminal laws in order to shift the burden of punishment away from prostitutes and onto their customers and pimps.

Opposition MPs said the government's refusal to act on the key recommendation of a report by the Commons committee on the status of women is disappointing and unacceptable.

The government announced in June it will allow victims of trafficking brought into Canada from abroad to remain here for 180 days on temporary resident permits, up from 120 days under the old rules. It also said they will be allowed to apply for work permits.

The measures were advocated by the committee as a way to tackle the consequences of human trafficking, a form of human slavery that revolves largely around the exploitation of women.

The committee had also wanted the criminal law amended so as to make purchasing a sexual service a criminal offence, and to repeal provisions that outlaw the act of soliciting by prostitutes and that make it illegal for them to be found in a bawdy house.

Justice Minister Rob Nicholson quietly tabled the government's response to the committee's recommendations just before MPs broke for the summer recess: The Criminal Code of Canada provides a comprehensive set of tools to ensure that traffickers are held accountable, the government's response statement said.

    Red Light Zone Held to Account . ..

Police and tax inspectors knock on Amsterdam windows

From Boston Herald

Amsterdam's Authorities have announced a major crackdown on organized crime in Amsterdam's Red Light District. For the first time national police investigators and tax authorities will bear in on what had long been seen as a local problem.
With its scantily clad prostitutes posing in brothel windows and coffee shops oozing the pungent aroma of marijuana smoke, the area's seediness has always been part of its attraction.
But the district is a magnet for petty criminals and, authorities believe, human traffickers, drug lords and mobsters who take advantage of the situation to launder money.

Prostitution is legal in the Netherlands, and coffee shops are licensed to sell small amounts of marijuana. But prostitutes don't have cash registers and drug vendors don't give receipts, making it easy for them to launder money for crime lords.

Authorities said they hope to detect and prosecute money-laundering by building a national database of tax returns and other information that would allow them to compare cafe and brothel owners' legal income to assets they hold around the country. And local authorities promised to enforce other existing laws more strictly.

Amsterdam has been conducting its own cleanup program for nearly five years, using a 2002 law that forces business operators to disclose detailed accounting in order to have their licenses renewed.

Last year, the city used the law to order the closure of one-third of all brothels in the Red Light District that were unable to comply. But Amsterdam's District Court blocked the closures while brothel owners fight the decision. That case is still making its way through the courts.

    Canada on Trial . ..

For endangering the lives of prostitutes

Based on an article from Reuters Canada

As grisly details emerge in a sensational case involving the serial killing of Canadian prostitutes, a group of lawyers is launching a constitutional challenge of the country's prostitution law, seeking to decriminalize the practice to make it safer.

Toronto law professor, Alan Young, is leading the challenge. The group of lawyers and law students -- representing three current and former prostitutes -- will argue in Ontario Superior Court, likely in August, that these three provisions are unconstitutional in that they endanger the lives of sex trade workers.

Under the convoluted Canadian law, buying or selling sex is legal, but it is illegal to communicate about it beforehand, live off its avails, or run a private bawdy house.

If you can't talk with a prospective client before entering the client's vehicle, how do you expect someone on the street to screen a client to know whether it's Robert Pickton or not? Young said in an interview.

He is referring to the trial of Robert "Willie" Pickton, who has been charged with killing 26 of more than 60 prostitutes who disappeared from the streets of Vancouver, British Columbia, from the early 1990s until 2001. It is the worst serial killing case in Canadian history .

A scheduling judge will hear preliminary cases this week in the first step of what Young expects to be a legal process that will eventually end at the Supreme Court of Canada. It is unclear how the government will respond to the challenge.