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Abstracts: November 2004
01-Nov-04
Three city centre pubs bought by lap dancing club
According to this article:
The Ladhar Group, owners of the "For Your Eyes Only" chain of lap dancing clubs, has been granted permission by Glasgow City Council for a club in Royal Exchange Square. The club will open in April 2005. Ladhar has purchased
three Glasgow pubs in in prime city centre sites, "Praha", "Absolution", and "Failte" but said that it had no immediate plans for more lap dancing venues. Employees at those clubs are uncertain about
their future. Glenn Nicie, operations manager for Ladhar said their goal is to increase the turnover at the pubs but there would be no dramatic changes. Ladhar also owns several pubs, clubs and hotels in England.
Controversy over "For Your Eyes Only" lapdancing clubs has occurred in Newcastle and Bournemouth. Nicie said that they are looking closer at Edinburgh to expand their lap dancing operations. He also said that opposition to
lapdancing clubs waned once people realise they are well run, regulated and do not cause an increase in prostitution or drug use.
03-Nov-04
New taskforce will tackle triad gang
According to this article:
The Government and police are to create a specialist task force to deal with the risk posed by a shadowy triad gang operating in Northern Ireland.
-
McCambridge, Jonathan "New taskforce will tackle triad gang" Belfast Telegraph. Nov. 3, 2004. Nov. 25, 2004. <http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/
story.jsp?story=578956>
03-Nov-04
Task force to tackle triads
According to this article:
The NI Security Minister, Ian Pearson said that an Asian Mafia-style crime triad gang is running immigration rackets in Northern Ireland. A specialist task force is to be created by the British Government and police to tackle the
problem. An illegal Chinese "Snakehead" group was discovered by the Organized Crime Task Force earlier this year. It is believed that triad gangs are earning thousands of pounds every week from illegal gambling and
their bosses are demanding protection money from Chinese firms in Belfast.
05-Nov-04
Raids net 13 suspected of human trafficking
Operation Maxim: Turks trafficked into UK
According to this article:
Police arrested eight alleged members of an alleged human trafficking ring on Nov. 4, 2004. Five other alleged ring members were arrested in Hamburg and Cologne. Victims were all of Turkish origin and most were men destined for
work in fast food kitchens, but women and children were thought to be among the victims. £11,000 in cash was discovered at one of the raided homes. Operation Maxim is Scotland Yard's ongoing action against human trafficking. It is
headed by Detective Chief Superintendent Steve Kupis.
-
Laville, Sandra. "Raids net 13 suspected of human trafficking" The Guardian. Nov. 5, 2004. Nov. 20, 2004.
<http://www.guardian.co.uk/Refugees_in_Britain/Story
/0,2763,1344024,00.html>
12-Nov-04
Lap-dancing club in cinema denied lawful use certificate
Surrey
A scheme to convert a cinema and snooker club in Surrey to a lap-dancing club has been denied a lawful development certificate after an inspector decided that it would involve a material change of use and noted that lapdancing
clubs are not referred to in class 02 or in the A1 retail use class. He judged that patrons would visit the lapdancing club for a variety of reasons, including watching dance shows, dancing, drinking and socialising and decided that those
activities were likely to attract people from a very wide area, in contrast to the more localised trips associated with the existing leisure uses.
-
Wood, Mark and Philip Moren, Julie German. "Lap-dancing club in cinema denied lawful use certificate"
Planning. London: Nov 12, 2004. , Iss. 1595; pg. 35. Nov. 20, 2004.
http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?RQT=309&VInst=
PROD&VName=PQD&VType=PQD&sid=1&index=
60&SrchMode=1&Fmt=3&did=000000758984301
&clientId=13518
13-Nov-04
Probe launched into scandal of Ulster people trafficking racket
Belfast Telegraph
Brian Hutton
Trafficking
Inter-agency probe launched into people trafficking racket.
Abstract to follow.
- http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk
/news/story.jsp?story=582521
14-Nov-04
Pole dancers just want to have fun
According to this article:
Pole dancers are uniting to challenge the view that they are victims of sexually exploitative men. Dana Mayer, choreographer ("Closer"/Mike Nichols film) said high powered women were choosing pole dancing because it made them feel
sexually empowered. She criticized the Glasgow City Council report re: UK lapdancing clubs (author: Julie Bindel) and is angered by the "bimbo" image of lapdancers. Other lapdancers are quoted in defense of pole dancing and the
misconception of dancers as victims.
Glasgow City Council is determined to reclassify lapdancing venues as sex shops rather than as part of the leisure industry. It's position is that women are demeaned and exploited at the clubs, Bindel's study confirmed their fears
that women were being exploited sexually, financially and through poor employment conditions.
- Martin, Lorna "Pole dancers just want to have fun" The Observer Nov. 14, 2004 Nov. 20, 2004 <http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/
0,6903,1350956,00.html>
20-Nov-04
Director ban for shamed solicitor
The Scotsman
Prostitution
Edinburgh
Michael Karus, property developer / Saunas
Abstract to follow.
20-Nov-04
We don't want lap-dancing here
Norwich
Teasers
According to this article:
Michael Driver has applied to the Norwich City Council for a public entertainment licence to open a lap-dancing club in a building on Dove Street. The matter will come before the Regulatory Committee on Nov. 24. Driver is currently
recruiting dancers through local newspaper ads offering women £1,000 a week for full-time work . Local shop owners are worried about the effect on the area, loud music and hours of operation. A petition objecting to proposal has over
70 signatures. The police have stated they would have no objection to the lap-dancing club as long as it closes at 2 am. The fire brigade has not objected.
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"'We don't want lap-dancing here'" Evening News. Nov. 20, 2004. Nov. 23, 2004 <http://www.eveningnews24.co.uk/content/
News/story.asp?datetime=20+Nov+2004+12:21&tbrand=
ENOnline&tCategory=NEWS&category=News&brand=
ENOnline&itemid=NOED20+Nov+2004+12:21:19:033>
21-Nov-04
Fears of Triad link to bloody murder and ‘suicide’ at tower block
Glasgow
(Note: This article is included due to the investigations into Chinese Triads in Northern Ireland & Scotland, and their possible links to trafficking, prostitution and strip clubs. Triads are known to focus on credit card fraud as
well.)
According to this article:
A link to Chinese Triad crime gangs is feared in the violent death of two Chinese students in Glasgow. It is believed that one of the men stabbed the other repeatedly and then threw himself from the sixth story of their tower
block. A respected member of Glasgow's Chinese community said he had been told that the men were connected to the Triads and had links to bigger criminals in China. Neighbours believe that the flat was also occupied by a
Chinese girl.
- Mackay, Neil "Fears of Triad link to bloody murder and ‘suicide’ at tower block" Sunday Herald Nov. 21, 2004. Nov. 25, 2004.
<http://www.sundayherald.com/46217>
21-Nov-04
Law to target men who fuel sex trade
According to this article:
A review of prostitution law is underway. Ministers believe trafficking of women will not stop until demand is tackled. Attempts are being made to shift towards criminalizing men who pay for sex. The solicitor
general Harriet Harman asked the Crown Prosecution Service to propose ways to target men using services of trafficked prostitutes. Currently it is illegal for women to solicit and for men to 'kerb crawl' or to pimp women. The
offence of sleeping with an underage prostitute has recently been created. Trafficking became a criminal offence in 2003.
Quotes:
"The only reason traffickers are making huge amounts of money coming here is because men are paying for sex with these girls. If they thought that if the girl didn't speak English or looked young they could be prosecuted, it
might really have a deterrent effect..." (Unnamed senior minister)
Annually approx. 1,400 women are thought to be smuggled into Britain annually for prostitution. Some feminist campaigners argue against treatment of prostitutes as "victims". Others argue that targeting punters
could cause prostitutes to be attacked. Natalia Dawkins (Poppy Project/safe houses for trafficked women) said punters must recognise their complicity in exploitation and supports criminalization. The Home Office is expected to oppose
"tolerance zones" and instead boost "exit strategies" for prostitutes.
A register of child asylum seekers will be launched this week to keep tabs on children as they move around the UK. One in six asylum seekers in London is a lone child, some orphans and others sent abroad by parents. The fear is that
others are trafficked and exploited by sex abusers.
- Hinsliff, Gaby. "Law to target men who fuel sex trade" The Observer. Nov. 21, 2004. Nov. 25, 2004.
<http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/
0,6903,1356104,00.html>
23-Nov-04
Woman on man's lap in club raid
According to this article:
Details of the raid of Angel's lapdancing club in Salthill on June 5, 2003 were revealed at Galway District Court during a trial of individuals accused of breaching the Employment Permits Act of 2003. During that raid, Gardai had to
send for a female garda, Ann Murphy, to search for documentation because many of the dancers were undressed. Gda Murphy discovered a topless woman sitting on top of a man on a couch. The State alleges two of the lapdancers did
not possess valid work permits. The accused men, Pat O'Keeffe, Michael Clarke and Danny Kenny deny the charge as does the company Fat Chef Catering Ltd.
Sergeant Michael Coppinger testified that he was told there were 10 dancers at the club and then handed photocopied passport documents and National Immigration Bureau cards. Documentation relating to "Deborah Miller"
claiming to be British caught his eye due to the lapdancer's poor English. Further investigation showed the passport was stolen and the woman was actually a Nigerian "Ese Osahon". A second dancer, Charity
Ajayioba's, documents were also suspicious. Neither woman held work permits.
- McDonald, Brian. "Woman on man's lap in club raid" Belfast Telegraph. Nov. 23, 2004. Nov. 29, 2004 <http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/
story.jsp?story=585812>
23-Nov-04
The Link Between Prostitution and Sex Trafficking
US Dept. of State
Bureau of Public Affairs
PDF FORMAT - 995kb
Full Text from website:
"The U.S. Government adopted a strong position against legalized prostitution in a December 2002 National Security Presidential Directive based on evidence that prostitution is inherently harmful and dehumanizing, and fuels trafficking
in persons, a form of modern-day slavery. Prostitution and related activities—including pimping and patronizing or maintaining brothels—fuel the growth of modern-day slavery by providing a façade behind which traffickers for
sexual exploitation operate.
Where prostitution is legalized or tolerated, there is a greater demand for human trafficking victims and nearly always an increase in the number of women and children trafficked into commercial sex slavery. Of the estimated
600,000 to 800,000 people trafficked across international borders annually, 80 percent of victims are female, and up to 50 percent are minors. Hundreds of thousands of these women and children are used in prostitution each year.
Women and children want to escape prostitution
The vast majority of women in prostitution don’t want to be there. Few seek it out or choose it, and most are desperate to leave it. A 2003 study first published in the scientific Journal of Trauma Practice found that 89 percent
of women in prostitution want to escape.[1] And children are also trapped in prostitution—despite the fact that international covenants and protocols impose upon state parties an obligation to criminalize the
commercial sexual exploitation of children.
Prostitution is inherently harmful
Few activities are as brutal and damaging to people as prostitution. Field research in nine countries concluded that 60-75 percent of women in prostitution were raped, 70-95 percent were physically assaulted, and 68 percent met the
criteria for post traumatic stress disorder in the same range as treatment-seeking combat veterans[2] and victims of state-organized torture.[3]
Beyond this shocking abuse, the public health implications of prostitution are devastating and include a myriad of serious and fatal diseases, including HIV/AIDS. A path-breaking, five-country academic study concluded that research on
prostitution has overlooked "[t]he burden of physical injuries and illnesses that women in the sex industry sustain from the violence inflicted on them, or from their significantly higher rates of hepatitis B, higher risks of cervical
cancer, fertility complications, and psychological trauma."[4]
State attempts to regulate prostitution by introducing medical check-ups or licenses don’t address the core problem: the routine abuse and violence that form the prostitution experience and brutally victimize those caught in its
netherworld. Prostitution leaves women and children physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually devastated. Recovery takes years, even decades—often, the damage can never be undone.
Prostitution creates a safe haven for criminals
Legalization of prostitution expands the market for commercial sex, opening markets for criminal enterprises and creating a safe haven for criminals who traffic people into prostitution. Organized crime networks do not register with
the government, do not pay taxes, and do not protect prostitutes. Legalization simply makes it easier for them to blend in with a purportedly regulated sex sector and makes it more difficult for prosecutors to identify and punish those who
are trafficking people.
The Swedish Government has found that much of the vast profit generated by the global prostitution industry goes into the pockets of human traffickers. The Swedish Government said, "International trafficking in human beings could not
flourish but for the existence of local prostitution markets where men are willing and able to buy and sell women and children for sexual exploitation."[5] To fight human trafficking and promote equality for women,
Sweden has aggressively prosecuted customers, pimps, and brothel owners since 1999. As a result, two years after the new policy, there was a 50 percent decrease in women prostituting and a 75 percent decrease in men buying sex. Trafficking
for the purposes of sexual exploitation decreased as well.[6] In contrast, where prostitution has been legalized or tolerated, there is an increase in the demand for sex slaves[7] and the number of
victimized foreign women—many likely victims of human trafficking.[8]
Grant-making implications of the U.S. government policy
As a result of the prostitution-trafficking link, the U.S. government concluded that no U.S. grant funds should be awarded to foreign non-governmental organizations that support legal state-regulated prostitution. Prostitution is not
the oldest profession, but the oldest form of oppression.
For more information, please log on to the website of the State Department’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons at www.state.gov/g/tip.
[1] Farley, Melissa et al. 2003. "Prostitution and Trafficking in Nine Countries: An Update on Violence and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder." Journal of Trauma Practice, Vol. 2, No. 3/4: 33-74; and Farley, Melissa. Ed. 2003.
Prostitution, Trafficking, and Traumatic Stress. Haworth Press, New York. [back to paragraph]
[2] Farley, et al. [back to paragraph]
[3] Ramsay, R. et. Al. 1993. "Psychiatric morbidity in survivors of organized state violence including torture." British Journal of Psychiatry. 162:55-59. [back to paragraph]
[4] Raymond, J. et al. 2002. A Comparative Study of Women Trafficked in the Migration Process. Ford Foundation, New York. [back to paragraph]
[5] Swedish Ministry of Industry, Employment, and Communications. 2004. Fact Sheet: Prostitution and Trafficking in Women. http://www.sweden.gov.se/content/1/c6/01/87/74/6bc6c972.pdf [back to paragraph]
[6] Ekberg, G.S. 2001. "Prostitution and Trafficking: The Legal Situation in Sweden". Paper presented at Journées de formation sur la mondialisation de la prostitution et du traffic sexuel. Association québécoise des organismes de
coopération internationale. Montréal, Quebec, Canada. [back to paragraph]
[7] Malarek, Victor. The Natashas: Inside the New Global Sex Trade. Arcade Publishing, New York, 2004. [back to paragraph]
[8] Hughes, Donna M. 2002. Foreign Government Complicity in Human Trafficking: A Review of the State Department’s 2002 Trafficking in Persons Report. Testimony before the U.S. House Committee on International Relations. Washington,
DC, June 19, 2002. [back to paragraph]
25-Nov-04
Angels boss and management convicted of employing lap dancer without work permit
According to this article:
After a 2 day hearing, Angel's Lapdancing Club owner, Patrick O'Keefe (along with his company "Fat Chef Catering Ltd") was convicted of having in his and the company’s employment on June 5 last year at Angels
nightclub, non national, Charity Ajayioba, who was not in possession of an employment permit issued by the DETE, contrary to Section 2 of the Employment Permits Act, 2003. Judge Gibbons fined Fat Chef Catering Ltd, € 400, Mr
O'Keeffe € 400 and the other two accused, € 150 respectively. He ordered Mr O'Keeffe to pay € 732.88 expenses to three State witnesses, including € 130 to Ms Ajayioba. O'Keefe along with Danny Kenny,
general manager and Michael Clarke, manager, denied the charge and a similar charge in relation to Ese Osahon, another dancer found on the premise during the Operation Quest raids, June 5, 2003. That summons was dismissed by Judge
Gibbons.
O'Keeffe testified that he kept strict control over the club in Dublin, but was unable to control the club in Galway himself and it had since closed. He said the had instructed staff to check dancer's identities and to copy
documents for back up. He also said that dancers were self-employed and paid their own taxes - the club paying taxes on the 50% of dancer's earnings taken by the club. He said that Fat Chef Catering Ltd. was in the process of
being wound up. O'Keefe claimed that Fat Chef Catering Ltd. had only three employees at the time of the Operation Quest raids: Danny Kenny, Micheal Clarke, and Mary Bernard.
Further details of events during the Operation Quest raid are provided in the article.
- "Angels boss and management convicted of employing lap dancer without work permit" Galway Advertiser. Nov. 25, 2004. Nov. 29, 2004 <http://www.galwayadvertiser.ie/dws/story.tpl?inc=
2004/11/25/news/53584.html>
25-Nov-04
Lap-dance club plan booted out
Norwich
According to this article:
Norwich city council's regulatory committee denied the proposal made by Michael Driver for a lap dancing club at the former Lock Stock and Manhattans club in Norwich city centre due to the fact that it was inappropriate for the area and
to fears it would drive shoppers away. The club is directly above the Fara charity shop, which raises money for Romanian orphans. It is also above Thorns ironmongers, Hoaxes designer skateboard shop and opposite Treehouse vegetarian
restaurant. A petition protesting the club had been circulated, with over 70 signatures. Mr Driver and his legal representative Alan Ketford said they were hoping to attract a high-calibre clientele. He is now taking legal advice,
claiming the club would have been good for the area.
- "Lap-dance club plan booted out " EveningNews24: News. Nov. 25, 2004. Dec. 5, 2004.
<http://www.eveningnews24.co.uk/content/News/
story.asp?datetime=25+Nov+2004+12%3A12&tbrand
=ENOnline&tCategory=NEWS&category=News&brand=
ENOnline&itemid=NOED25+Nov+2004+
12%3A12%3A31%3A090>
26-Nov-04
Red-light zone Bill delay 'leaves vice girls at risk'
According to this article:
Delays by an expert group in producing a report on prostitution have caused Margo MacDonald's bill to allow prostitution tolerance zones to be held up. The report was due in October and is still not ready. The MSP debate was originally
scheduled for early July 2004 and is now rescheduled for April 2005.
Those in support of legalised red-light areas are warning that prostitutes are at risk of violent attack due to the delay. Ruth Morgan Thomas of Scotpep argues that "the delay would mean the continued spread of prostitutes across
Leith, along with the heightened risk of violent assault for women working on their own rather than in twos and threes." She claims attacks have increased since the unofficial tolerance zone ended.
- "Red-light zone Bill delay 'leaves vice girls at risk'" Edinburgh Evening News. Nov. 26, 2004. Dec. 1, 2004.
<http://edinburghnews.scotsman.com/
edinburgh.cfm?id=1360942004>
26-Nov-04
Paying the
Price A Consultation Paper on Prostitution
British Home Office
England / Wales
According to the website:
"The objective of the review is the development of a coordinated strategy on prostitution for England and Wales to reduce vulnerability to involvement in prostitution and to reduce the exploitation, violence and other forms of
criminality - including problematic drug use - associated with prostitution."
Paying the Price -
a Consultation Paper  (file size: 604kb)
27-Nov-04
City's sex traders 'exploiting juveniles'
According to this article:
The Ulster Unionist Party spokesman, Esmond Birnie called on the courts to crack down on the potential exploitation of young people in brothels in south Belfast, and said that the true extent of the use of juveniles may be hidden. He urged
police to visit brothels and lap-dancing clubs and noted the links to organised crime. Dr. Birnie warned that a dozen brothels are operating in south Belfast at any one time and there were probable cases of sex workers moving back and
forth across the Irish border.
Quote:
"The sex trade in south Belfast has come to rely on organised crime, traffickers, people smuggling and abuses of the work permit and educational visa criteria.""It is our view that the exploitation of children in
lap-dancing clubs should be treated as harshly before the courts as any other form of child exploitation." "If the police do not visit brothels and lap-dancing clubs then the extent of juvenile exploitation in such premises will
never be officially determined."
- McAdam, Noel "City's sex traders 'exploiting juveniles' - Ulster Unionist's Birnie urges war on pimps." Belfast Telegraph. Nov. 27, 2004. Nov. 29, 2004.
<www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk>
29-Nov-04
EU force to take on pimps, drug barons and smugglers
According to this article:
The 7,000-strong European Force (EUFOR) will take over from NATO in Bosnia on December 2. They plan to target gangs dealing in prostitution and people smuggling. Estimates are that up to 100,000 women and children have been
trafficking victims in recent years, passing through Bosnia, Servia, Kosovo and Montenegro. The women come from Bosnia, Moldova, Ukraine, Romania, Bulgaria and Albania.
Major-General David Leakey, the British commander who will be in charge of EUFOR , told The Times that organised criminals who traffic in drugs, people and arms and who have links to political parties are also seen as the biggest obstacle
to Bosnia’s chances of becoming a member of the EU. Leakey compared Bosnia to Northern Ireland in terms of its tribal politics.
Other EUFOR concerns are highlighted in the article, including the possibility that Islamic militants are using Bosnia as an arms market and a recruiting ground for terrorist campaigns in Iraq, Afghanistan and Chechnya. They also
intend to deal with the last 20 indicted war criminals who are still on the run in Bosnia.
Quote:
“The networks of criminals pervade Bosnian society and my aim will be to provide the security environment in which the police can act against these people,” General Leakey said. People-trafficking and prostitution are two
of the biggest money-spinners for criminals and the threat that they pose has spread from Bosnia to the rest of the region." Major-General David Leakey
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Evans, Michael. "EU force to take on pimps, drug barons and smugglers" Times Online Nov. 29, 2004. Dec. 3, 2004. <http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/
0,,3-1379415,00.html>
29-Nov-04
Committee defers Prostitution Tolerance Zones (Scotland) Bill discussion
CJScotland
Prostitution Tolerance Zones (Scotland) Bill
- http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/business/
bills/billsInProgress/prostitution.htm
30-Nov-04
Teenager's pimp caged for six years
According to this article:
Niki Dimitrov was sentenced to a six year jail term for controlling a child prostitute and living off her earnings. He was arrested in July after a Met sting codenamed "Operation Russia". During the search of his apartment,
police discovered a forged Lithuanian passport Dimitrov gave the girl, some of her clothing and documents associated with the escort agency.
This article provides details of the 17 year old girl's ordeal, which include Dimitrov's purchase of her from a Belgium gang, the 12 hour days she was forced to work in numerous brothels and escort agencies, and the advertisement
run on the "Paradise" escort service website in which she was advertised as" probably the youngest escort girl in London".
Quote:
"Dimitrov preyed on a child and treated her as a commodity. She was forced to work in the most unimaginable circumstances for twelve hours at a time only receiving £10 whilst he lived a well-funded life. "The victim was
essentially his prisoner - taken from home to a brothel and back again. There is no doubt in my mind that this girl lived in constant fear from him without any hope of escape. "Today I hope this verdict sends a strong message to
anyone out there exploiting women in a similar way. These people are not above the law and my officers will work hard to ensure they are caught and convicted. "To anyone who is a victim of crime I would say that there is hope. Today
is the start of a new life for the girl freed from Dimitrov." -Superintendent Chris Bradford, in charge of operations for the Met's Clubs and Vice Unit.
- Brierley, Danny. "Teenager's pimp caged for six years" Edgware Times Nov. 30, 2004. Dec. 5, 2004.
<http://www.edgwaretimes.co.uk/mayorlivingstone/
glanews/display.var.550130.0.0.php>
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