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Migratory Prostitution with Emphasis on Europe

J Travel Med. 1995 Mar 1;2(1):28-32. doi: 10.1111/j.1708-8305.1995.tb00616.x.

Abstract

In many European countries, foreigners constitute the majority of certain groups of prostitutes, e.g., approximately 90% of the window prostitutes in the red light district of Amsterdam are not native to the Netherlands. The same is true for prostitutes working in bars in Vienna. In cities where registered prostitution is legal, unregistered prostitutes, most of whom are foreigners, often outnumber the registered ones. Central European countries often receive "sex workers" from eastern Europe, e.g., from Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, and Romania, whereas the majority of migratory prostitutes in Great Britain and continental western Europe come from Africa, the Caribbean, and South America. In northern Europe, women from Russia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, and the Baltic states are prostituting themselves in increasing numbers. Scandinavia has so far been affected relatively less by this mobility. In Spain, France, and Italy, women from Arabic and subSaharan countries are common among prostitutes. Foreign prostitutes move into Turkey along two main routes: women from the Balkan countries come to the western part of the country, whereas those from the former Soviet Union cross the border from Georgia, where they usually operate at resorts along the eastern Black Sea coast. Prostitutes are also mobile within the former communist bloc. For instance, women from Russia prostitute themselves in Lithuania, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary. the customers are locals, particularly those with "hard currency", such as businessmen and "sex tourists" from the West. Following the outbreak of civil war in the former Yugoslavia, women from that country are now more frequently seen among the population of migratory prostitutes in Europe.