Article content
BOGOTA — The mayor of Colombia’s second largest city on Monday issued a six-month ban on prostitution in some of the city’s most famous neighborhoods, arguing that it is a necessary step to prevent the sexual exploitation of children.
Article content
Medellin’s Mayor Federico Gutierrez said in a press conference the ban will be enforced in the neighborhoods of Provenza and El Poblado, two areas of the city that are teeming with trendy bars and clubs and are also frequented by thousands of tourists.
Article content
The neighborhoods have also become popular with sex workers who walk the streets in search of international clients. Mayor Gutierrez said that criminal networks are taking minors to these districts and forcing them into sex work.
“We have to recover the control of this area,” Gutierrez said. “It is also very important for us to protect the community.”
Sex work is legal in Colombia if it involves consenting adults. But Colombian laws enable local governments to ban this activity temporarily from some parts of the city, if it is deemed a threat to public order.
Article content
The Medellin prostitution ban comes just days after an American man was found in a hotel room with two local girls aged 12 and 13, in a case widely covered by the local press.
The 36-year-old was held in police custody for 12 hours, then released while officials investigated the case. Local press reported that he left Colombia and went to Florida.
RECOMMENDED VIDEO
During Monday’s news conference, Gutierrez urged Colombian authorities to speed up the investigation.
“It is sad to see how many people believe they can come to Medellin and do whatever they want,” he said.
Sex work has grown in Medellin as the city of three million people becomes increasingly popular with tourists, who head to Medellin for its balmy weather, affordable prices and festive atmosphere.
While some tourists meet sex workers directly in the city’s streets, others are meeting them through dating apps and some of these encounters have turned violent.
In January, the State Department issued a security alert on the risks of using dating apps in Medellin, after eight Americans were killed there in the prior two months.
The alert said criminals were using dating apps to lure visitors to hotels, restaurants and bars where they were drugged, kidnapped or robbed.
Share this article in your social network
