RED LIGHT DISTRICT for VINA DEL MAR

[Chris Brady <cdbrady@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

{ Most workers don't holiday in Viña, a posh, seaside tourist town just
north of the Chilean port city of Valparaiso.  This development follows
in the trend of certain southern nations to exploit the sex industry,
e.g., South Africa.  The Sex Sector of Southeast Asia brings in billions
of dollars in revenue. --cb}

RED LIGHT DISTRICT TO BE DESIGNATED IN VINA DEL MAR

Santiago Times, CURRENT AFFAIRS, October 4, 2002
http://www.santiagotimes.cl/news/2002/10/04/n2.asp?subnews=1
Sources: LA TERCERA; EL MERCURIO

A "barrio rojo" or red light district will soon be designated in Vina
del Mar following a meeting between police, government officials and
community leaders. Party for Democracy (PPD) Dep. Laura Soto and the
Col. Rodrigo Campos, head of Vina del Mar's police force, also attended
the meeting on Wednesday.

"We came to a very important agreement with the police and the
municipality that this trade will be regulated and exist in a place
where it can be practiced, although no one wants to live next to a red
light district," Soto said.

While the agreement to designate an area in the city where prostitution
would be contained was reached rather quickly, the location of the
district has not yet been determined. The suggestion of Calle 15, which
looked like the most easily accepted location for the district was, met
with harsh criticism from the community, as it borders on a residential
area. However, the area Renaca, where the majority of Vina del Mar's
hotels are located, will most likely become the location.

Although the agreement came quickly, after just one meeting, even Vina
del Mar's transvestite community had mixed reactions to the proposal.
Zuliana Araya, the president of the Aphrodita Transvestites Union, said
that the designation of a red light district is not as good an idea as
it may seem. She said many transvestite prostitutes preferred to operate
in a manner similar to a small business, with the help of the state, but
they need to be in a place where they can work peacefully without the
risk of homophobic assaults. "We are conscious that our activity is
illicit, but we have no other way to earn a living; no one will give us
work," Araya asserted.

The transvestite prostitutes in Vina de Mar earn roughly 250,000 pesos
per month, according to a report in La Tercera.

The approaching summer will bring in even more as nearly 60 percent of
their earnings come from tourists.





~~~~~~~
PLEASE clip all extraneous text before replying to a message.