Zurich Referendum on Prostitution Zone with Supporting Infrastructure

[Guest W***ledi*Time]

[I]Agence France-Presse[/I] reports, 9 Mar 2012:

[url]http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/03/09/swiss-officials-ponder-building-prostitute-garages-to-get-sex-workers-off-the-streets/[/url]

[B]Residents of the Swiss city of Zurich will vote Sunday on whether to build dedicated garages where prostitutes can ply their trade, in a proposal aimed at moving streetwalkers away from residential zones.[/B]

The Zurich vote will be one of several referendums to be held this weekend....

Proponents for the Zurich referendum want a parking zone built for prostitutes by 2013 at the entrance to the city.

[B]The site would be open from 7 p.m. to 5 a.m., and would have an alley where prostitutes and clients can cruise along and garages where they can carry out their transaction.

The site will be shielded from sight by signs, be fitted with showers and toilets and will feature a gynaecologist for any medical problems and volunteers from the Flora Dora womenâ??s group for any advice.[/B]

The proposed site aims to eliminate areaâ??s like Zurichâ??s Sihlquai area, where about 60 streetwalkers work every night.

Besides nightly traffic jams due to clients cruising along the street, used condoms are among a variety of trash found the next morning on the pavement to the consternation of residents.

â??There is a lot of competition along Sihlquai, where many women go with their clients to the backyards of buildings, creating a difficult situation for residents who have to put up with the noise and disorder,â? said Ursula Kocher, who heads Flora Dora.

[B]Kocher said that the proposal had the support of the prostitutes themselves, as it could offer better security.[/B]

As the parking site would be under the authority of the municipality, officials can get rid of overly aggressive clients, said Kocher.

Three German cities â?? Koln, Bonn and Dortmund â?? have already tried out such garages, but with mixed results. Local associations in Koln find that such garages helped to reduce violence, while Dortmund said they attracted crime.

Feminist association Zuercher Frauenzentrale is not convinced about the proposal.

â??What makes it safer than Sihlquai, where there are many more people,â? making violence less probable? asked Andrea Gisler, chairman of the association.

â??The problem is not solved, just displaced,â? she said....