Abstracts: May 2004

May 1, 2004
Lap-dancing licence application aims at executive market
According to this article:
Privilege Glasgow, run by Peter Hodgson, Alan Brown, Alan Wall and Anthony Marriot, has submitted a licensing application to Glasgow City Council licensing board. Mas already holds an entertainments licence and the application represents a change in its present use.

• Simpson, Cameron "Lap-dancing licence application aims at executive market" The Herald May 1, 2004.

May 2, 2004
Middlesbrough
According to this article:
The licence has been renewed for the lapdancing club "Secrets", despite objections from the children's charity Barnardo's and others. 

• "The week in five minutes" ic Teesside.co.uk May 2, 2004.
  <http://icteesside.icnetwork.co.uk/sundaysun/page.cfm?
  objectid=14203865&method=full&siteid=50081>

May 4, 2004
Anger over claim that lap dancing will boost tourism
According to this article:
The claim by Privilege Glasgow that the lapdancing bar it plans to open is needed by people attending conferences in the city was scorned by critics.  Tourism experts and politicians dismissed the argument.

The city's tourism chief, Eddie Friel, said there was no evidence that lapdancing clubs attract people or cause them to extend their stay.  Alex Mosson, former Lord Provost, said "We are not turning Glasgow into a mini-Soho."

Quotes:

"A survey of our city centre members last year showed 75% of city centre businesses believe plans for a lap dancing club in high-profile streets would damage Glasgow's image.

"There is an opinion that in modern cities there is a place for such establishments but city centre businesses told us loud and clear that the place is not in the city's prime shopping area."
~Lesley Sawers, Glasgow Chamber of Commerce chief executive.

"Clubs such as these are demeaning to women and we don't want them setting up a club like this in Glasgow." ~Sandra White, MSP

Glasgow City Council opposes lapdancing clubs but is not permitted to refuse a licence on "moral grounds."

• Thomson, Gordon. "Anger over claim that lap dancing will boost tourism" 4 May 2004. Evening Times. <http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/print/news/
  5026155.shtml>

May 5, 2004
City leaders reject claim lap-dancing bar is good for economy
According to this article:
Privilege Glasgow, run by Peter Hodgson, Alan Brown, Alan Wall and Anthony Marriot, hopes to open a lapdancing club in Glasgow.  Hodgson claimed that the new lapdancing club would help tourism by making "businessmen stay an extra night".  

This claim has been criticised by tourism leaders and politicians, including Alex Mosson, the former lord provost and Eddie Friel, the chief executive of the Greater Glasgow and Clyde Valley Tourist Board.

• "City leaders reject claim lap-dancing bar is good for economy" The Scotsman. May 5, 2004.
  <http://news.scotsman.com/glasgow.cfm?id=
  510452004>

May 7, 2004
NATO force 'feeds Kosovo sex trade'
According to this article:
On May 6, 2004,  Amnesty International said that the rapid growth of the sex slavery industry in Kosovo over the past five years has been largely caused by western troops, policemen and civilians. Over 2,000 women are estimated to have been coerced into sexual slavery in Kosovo.  There are an estimated 200 premises involved in the rackets.  Abductions of local girls is also a worsening problem.

NATO soldiers, UN police, and western aid workers receive immunity from prosecution unless a waiver is issued by the UN or NATO military chiefs. AI was unable to find evidence that any criminal proceedings related to trafficking were initiated against any military personnel in their home countries, although US, French, German and Italian soldiers were known to be involved.

 Kosovo has become a major destination country sex slaves.  80% of the income generated by pimps, brothel owners and the mafia is due to the international presence.

• Traynor, Ian. "NATO force 'feeds Kosovo sex trade'" The Guardian May 7, 2004
  <http://www.guardian.co.uk/Kosovo/Story/
  0,2763,1211248,00.html>

May 11, 2004
Don’t Legalize The Czech Republic proposes a Dutch solution to sex trafficking.
Statements by Professor Donna Hughes, Carlson Endowed Chair in Women's Studies at the University of Rhode Island.

Ms. Hughes argues that the sex trade in the Czech Republic has gone from being almost nonexistent to a hundred-million dollar industry in the last decade.  Organized crime networks and collaborating corrupt officials benefit while the women and children used as sex slaves keep very little of the money. Mafias control most of the victims.

There are over 860 brothels in the Czech Republic, 200 of them in Prague.  Police estimate there are 15,000 women and children in prostitution. It is a destination country for sex tourists.  It is the "stag party" capital of Europe for men, most of them from Great Britain and Germany.  Almost 200 websites advertise prostitution services in the Czech Republic, allowing sex tourists to prearrange travel and appointments with prostitutes.

An NGO reported last year that approximately 500 children were sold for sex along the Czech-German border.  The report was denounced by the Czech government as exaggerated. The Czech Tourist Authority and police started a campaign aimed at child abusers coming into the Czech Republic.

Rudolf Blazek, deputy mayor of Prague, said ""The spread of brothels, peep shows and prostitution in the city is becoming unbearable. Prague is starting to resemble Amsterdam."

The Czech government is proposing legalization of prostitution. The Ministry of Interior believes that it is possible to separate prostitution from crime, register prostitutes, impose health regulations, and collect taxes. And in the process eliminate the involvement of organized-crime groups in the trade and decrease the trafficking of women and children. In Prof. Hughes opinion, this is wishful thinking.

Prostitution has been legalized in Australia, the Netherlands and Germany.  Illegal prostitution and sex trafficking by organized crime groups continue to exist in those country.  Legalization of brothels in Victoria, Australia was supposed to eliminate street prostitution but did not.

Legalization of prostitution does not reduce prostitution or trafficking because men can legally buy sex, pimps and brothel keepers can legally sell sex and profit.  Cities develop reputations as sex-tourist destinations.

Professor Hughes points out that another dynamic to factor into the debate is that in countries where prostitution is illegal but thriving, government officials often "look covetously" at the profits made by criminals, jealous that they are not "getting their share." 

Estimates by the Czech Ministry of Interior suggest that state and municipalities will earn tens of millions of dollars in tax revenue after the legalization of prostitution.  In Germany, the legal "business owners" in brothels will not pay up.  The Federal Audit Office estimates that over two billion euros a year in tax revenue from the sex industry has not been paid. The legislature is now looking for ways to increase collection from the prostitutes themselves.

In Germany, the Netherlands, and Australia, few prostitutes have signed up for benefits or for unions. Professor Hughes points out that  the "unionization of sex workers is a fantasy."  The reason for this has to do with the basic nature of prostitution.  " It is not work; it is not a job like any other. It is abuse and exploitation that women only engage in if forced to or when they have no other options."  Significant numbers of women are trafficked into countries where prostitution is legal and trafficked women cannot register with an authority or join unions due to the mafia control.  In cases where a woman is supposedly making a "free choice" to be a prostitute, it is done out of immediate necessity - debt, unemployment and poverty.  That woman considers prostitution as a temporary choice, that when the debt is paid or money earned for their poverty-stricken families, they will go home.  They do not want to register with authorities and create a permanent record of being a prostitute.

Professor Hughes points out the danger that exists in the legalization of prostitution in the Czech Republic due to its central geographical location between Eastern and Western Europe, its membership in the European Union, and the fact that it is already a transit country for the trafficking of victims from Eastern to Western Europe. 

Hughes notes that women have not had an effective voice to protest the move to legalize prostitution. The best-known anti-trafficking organization, La Strada — Czech Republic, is a member of a Dutch founded network of anti-trafficking NGOs, and expresses its funder's support for legalization of prostitution. 

International human-rights activists have come together to urge the Czech government to halt the legalization of prostitution. Last week, 110 signatories for organizations representing millions of members, sent a letter to Czech President Vaclav Klaus and other government officials urging them to reconsider their plan to legalize prostitution.

"We are writing to express our profound concern over the prospect that the Czech Republic may be planning to legalize prostitution. ... We believe that such action would be a terrible mistake for the country as a whole and, in particular, for the women and children of the Eastern Europe region who will be victims of the Czech Republic sex trade. ... We are certain that legalizing prostitution within the Czech Republic will not curb abuses such as child prostitution and enslaving sex trafficking. Organized crime controls the "industry" and, in a legalized regime, it will have an enhanced capacity to do so. ... Brothels are sexual gulags for women and girls. ... A decision to accommodate traffickers, pimps, and organized crime's slave trade in girls and women [is] an act unworthy of Czech's traditions of fighting for their own freedom. It is an act we will resist with every democratic means available to us, and will fight in Congress and our legislatures, through our organized women's movements and from tens of thousands of church and synagogue pulpits. At a minimum, we are determined that our efforts will in financial terms alone, be more costly to the Republic — and not in terms of tourism alone — than any hypothetical financial gains claimed. We close by urging you to reject the calls for legalization that sully the reputation of the Czech Republic and dishonor its history. Please take a leadership role in resisting the trade in women and children and please, in a manner consistent with your traditions, maintain the Republic as a model for human rights and democracy."

• Hughes, Donna. "Don’t Legalize. The Czech Republic proposes a Dutch solution to sex trafficking"  National Review 11 May 2004 
  <http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/
  hughes200405110833.asp>

May 12, 2004
Lap dance clubs face battle for go-ahead
According to this article:
Several senior figures within the Glasgow city council met on this date to discuss objections to the latest two applications to open lapdancing clubs in Glasgow. They intend to lodge formal objections to the venues before the licensing board meets in early June. "Privilege Glasgow" wants to open a lapdancing club on the site of the "Mas" club in royal Exchange Square. "For Your Eyes Only", based in London, wants to open a club in Glasgow beside the Radisson hotel.

• Braiden, Gerry "Lap dance clubs face battle for go-ahead" Evening Times. May 12, 2004.
  <http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/print/news/
  5026422.shtml>

May 12, 2004
Club owner hopes lap dancing event will help 'explode myth'
According to this article:
Tall Trees nightclub in Newquay has applied to Restormel's licensing committee for permission to allow striptease and lapdancing in a three day event in the Top Bar and Cocktail Lounge of the club on May 28, 29 and 30.  The club is co-owed by Dave Matthews who denied that the event is a precursor to regular lapdancing nights.

Restormel recommended approval of the application on the proviso there are no objections from residents and despite its own Community Safety department's concerns. Conditions will be imposed upon the club including CCTV monitoring, performers shall not give or take telephone numbers and no physical contact between performers or customers. Mark Formosa, Restormel councillor and Conservative parliamentary candidate indicated that he would stand against Tall Trees’ application. 

Quote:

"I think it's time the myth was exploded that it's seedy. It's a thing people worldwide enjoy. "There's a lot of misconception over what actually happens but a lap dancing place is always less trouble than a normal nightclub." ~Dave Matthews

• Bond, Matt  "Club owner hopes lap dancing event will help 'explode myth'" Newquay Voice May 12, 2004
  <http://newquayvoice.co.uk/nvnews/news/
  newsItem.php?news_id=433&offset >

May 13, 2004
Outrage as city strip bar reveals 'trashy' new look
According to this article:
The Burke and Hare lapdancing bar in Tollcross came under fire by planning chiefs after its formerly "traditional look" was replaced by silver and black paintwork and new signs promoting "Edinburgh's famous Burke and Hare" as a "strip bar" offering "lapdancing."  The modifications were done without permission from the planning department.  If the council finds strict planning rules have been breached, the landlord could be forced  to tear down the new design.

The Burke and Hare is among many in Edinburgh that offer lapdancing even though they do not have an entertainment licence due to a loophole in existing legislation.  Any pub owner can offer lapdancing as long as it is not the main line of business.

Efforts last year by the council to take enforcement action against Hooters were overturned by the Scottish Executive. The city council and Lothian and Borders police want to clamp down on lapdancing in pubs and hope the Scottish Executive will back a proposal to close the loophole.  The move to amend the Civic Government (Scotland) Act was ruled out in April 2004. Councils are being told to pursue local by-laws which would allow some local monitoring of lapdancing clubs.

• "Outrage as city strip bar reveals 'trashy' new look" The Scotsman. 12 May 2004.
  <http://news.scotsman.com/edinburgh.cfm?id
  =545722004>

May 27, 2004
Dancing and objections continue at new gentleman's club
According to this article:
On May 1, 2004, Le Club Paradis, owned by Joseph Keegan and Danny Keane,  opened in Galway without consultation or notification to local residents. The new lapdancing venue is mainly used by stag parties and visitors to Galway.  A petition against the club was launched on May 21 by local residents, including the West Resident's Association, and members of the Green Party. Trevor Sargent TD, leader of the Green Party was among protestors congregated to launch the petition.  He said that a change in legislation is needed to stop such venues opening without prior notice.

Le Club Paradis replaces "Taylor's Bar", one of Galway's most traditional bars.  Traditional music sessions were held there and it was considered one of the "last real pubs" left in Galway. Its "non-pretentious atmosphere" was loved by its regulars.  Former patrons have described the new Le Club Paradis as "like a whore house" and bemoaned the fact that there is now a dancing pole where the traditional musicians used to hold their sessions. Local resident Martin Crosby plans to appeal the club's license when it comes up for renewal in September. The West Residents Association are concerned about the undesirable clientele and possibility of unlawful sexual activity. 

To date there have been no unfavorable reports made to the Mill Street Garda station about the club.  Although signs and a security camera were erected in front of Le Paradis without City Council permission, the owners have a number of weeks to rectify that problem.

Quote:
"We will carefully examine the legislation surrounding the setting up and licensing of lap dancing clubs with a view to ensuring that these clubs cannot be set up without going through a rigorous planning process. I welcome the fact that the Galway Greens have raised this issue and they have my full support,"

"It really is despicable that a traditional pub which has been enjoyed by Galweigans for so many years, has been turned into a sexist outlet that discriminate against women. If I could assume that everyone involved was doing it of their own free will then it may be okay, but with the level of exploitation of non nationals, we really do need reassurance that that is not what is going on here," -Trevor Sargent TD (Green Party leader)

"The last thing we need in Galway is the objectification of women in this way. It is all about power and vulnerability, and we don't need that kind of influence," -Aoibheann McCann (Green Party local election candidate for the West Ward and education officer for the Galway Rape Crisis Centre)

"To operate as an exotic dancing club a business needs two things; an intoxicating liquor licence, and a dancing licence. The intoxicating liquor licence previously used by the premises can be carried forward with applications for extended opening hours to be made on an individual basis. And a temporary dancing licence may be applied for at any district court, not specifically the local district court, thus bypassing any objections locals may have. Objections may only be made when the licence is up for renewal." -Sinead McGovern - this article

• McGovern, Sinead. "Dancing and objections continue at new gentleman's club"
  May 27, 2004. Nov. 16, 2004. <http://www.galwayadvertiser.ie/dws/
  story.tpl?inc=2004/05/27/news/46559.html>