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De Wallen |
De Wallen is the largest and best-known red-light district in Amsterdam and a major tourist attraction. It is located in the heart of the oldest part of Amsterdam, covering several blocks south of the church Oude Kerk and crossed by several canals. De Wallen is a network of alleys containing a little less than three hundred tiny one-room cabins rented by female prostitutes (and some ladyboys) who offer their services from behind a window or glass door, typically illuminated with red lights. The area also has a number of sex shops, sex theatres, peep shows, a sex museum, a cannabis museum, and a number of coffee shops that sell marijuana.
De Wallen, together with the prostitution areas Singelgebied and Ruysdaelkade, form the Rosse Buurt (red light areas) of Amsterdam.
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The total area is approximately 6500 square meters, limited by the Niezel in the north, the sea dike/Nieuwmarkt in the east, the Sint Jansstraat in the south and the Warmoesstraat in the west. Prostitution takes place within this area in the following streets: Barndesteeg, Bethlehemsteeg, Bloedstraat, Boomsteeg(now closed), Dollebegijnensteeg, Enge Kerksteeg, Goldbergersteeg, Gordijnensteeg, Molensteeg, Monnikenstraat, Oudekerksplein, Oudekennissteeg, Oudezijds Achterburgwal, Oudezijds Voorburgwal, Sint Annendwarsstraat, Sint Annenstraat, Stoofsteeg and Trompettersteeg.
The red light district has existed since the 14th century and formerly contained many distilleries, mainly catering to sailors. The name Wallen (walls) refers to the medieval retaining dam walls in the old center of Amsterdam.
Prostitution is legal in the Netherlands, with the exception of streetwalking. However, only EU citizens can work legally in the sex industry, since no working permits are given for prostitution.
While health and social services are readily available, sex workers are not required to undergo regular health checks. A study conducted before 2006 found that about 7 percent of all Dutch prostitutes (including street prostitutes) have HIV/AIDS. Brothel owners and room operators often require health certificates before employing or leasing rooms1
The women in De Wallen are self-employed and rent the rooms from private owners for some €100-150 per 8 hour shift, which includes closed-circuit security. Condoms are generally used for sexual contact, although not always with oral sex. Twenty minutes of sex typically costs about €65 to €100. There are women of most nationalities offering services.
To counter negative publicity Mariska Majoor, founder of the Prostitution Information Center has organized 2 "open days" in February 2006 and March 2007, allowing visitors access to some window brothels and peep shows and informing them about the working conditions there.2 Majoor was also instrumental in having the world's first monument to Sex workers installed in the red light district. The bronze statue was unveiled on the Oudekerksplein in front of the Oude Kerk at the open day in March 2007 and shows a woman standing in a doorway.3
City authorities are concerned about reports of pimping and human trafficking in the area, although the extent of these phenomena in this area is uncertain.
Two anonymous vice officers of the Beurstraat police station who have worked in this area revealed in October 2005 that there are two main groups of human traffickers on de Wallen, the "loverboys" and a group known as "the Turks". The group of loverboys consist mostly of young Moroccan males who use romantic techniques to persuade young women to work for them as prostitutes. The Turkish group concentrates mainly on the trafficking in Eastern European prostitutes. An investigation into this group in early 2003 failed miserably: only a few arrests were made and the defendants were quickly released due to lack of evidence. The general setup of window prostitution was said to be helpful to pimps, as it facilitates the control of the women compared to prostitution in closed brothels.4
Accordingcitation needed to a Christian organization of aid workers named the 'Scharlaken Koord’ (in English, Scarlet Cord), out of the 439 Dutch window-prostitutes on de Wallen they had contact with in 2001-2002, 380 indicated they were introduced into prostitution by a loverboy. Accordingcitation needed to these aid workers many prostitutes find it difficult to escape prostitution because they are socially isolated and have huge debts, often built up by their former boyfriends in their name. Usually the only friends they have are other prostitutes or their pimp. The Scharlaken Koord has set up a special ‘pal’-program for prostitutes in which the pals help the women to build up a new social network.5
In the year 2004 the Amsterdam authorities ordered research into the nature and scale of the loverboy phenomenon in Amsterdam. The researchers found that women under the control of a pimp can be easily put to work in most legal brothels. But the researchers concluded that the typical loverboy is rare. The phenomenon is not new, either; there have always been pimps who use romantic techniques. However there was a problem with what they called ‘the modern pimp’. Prostitutes they have spoken to indicated it is nearly impossible for a prostitute to work independently and offer resistance to obtrusive men. Nearly all prostitutes work for a man, and some have been coerced into sex work. The researchers assume that, for Latin American and African prostitutes, men in their home countries play a big role in the background. For East European women they suspect human traffickers play a big role. It is assumed that these human traffickers subcontract the supervising of these women to mainly Albanian pimps.
The researchers referred to a portfolio compiled by officers from the Beursstraat policestation. It contains a list of 76 pimps with a violent criminal history who operated on de Wallen during the previous half year. Of those 76 pimps five were foreigners and the rest were Dutch of whom only three were Dutch natives. The researchers asked more than 20 random Dutch prostitutes how they entered prostitution. Many were introduced into prostitution by their (former) boyfriends through a love affair. The girls call this "voodoo". Often these boyfriends were pimps. Most of these women now work independently for a boyfriend they have chosen themselves or have switched from one pimp to another. Sometimes they say they have been sold for tens of thousands of euros.6
In September 2007, the city council of Amsterdam at the behest of mayor Job Cohen, concerned about trafficking and pimping in the area, forced the owner Charlie Geerts to close 51 prostitution windows, reducing the total number of windows in De Wallen by a third. Amsterdam authorities bought 18 properties from Geerts, with the aim of developing the area with fashion designers and other up scale businesses.7
Mariska Majoor of the Prostitution Information Centre and representatives of the sex worker rights group De Rode Draad have decried the decision, claiming it would not reduce crime but would only lead to higher rent and more competition for the remaining windows.89
In January 2008 the city council announced plans to close the Casa Rosso live sex theatre and the Banana bar strip club in the area.10 Local business owners have formed the group "Platform 1012" (named after the postcode of the area) to oppose the efforts of the Amsterdam government.7
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