Germany has been the centre of porn, sex, drugs and trafficking in Europe. It has been estimated that almost 75 percent of sex workers in Germany are foreigners i.e. non-Germans. Hence, it is the centre of all time attention towards women and girls trafficking. Suppliers are caught at many instances in trafficking women and under-aged girls, with Polish, Turkish and Russian background, to Germany (Germany, n.d). Also, the number of women trafficked from Thailand to Germany exaggerated the officials in Germany (Thailand-th.net, 2006).
The government in Germany intervened in the prostitution and drug sector immediately after the increasing number of cases of women trafficking and kidnapping in different parts of Germany. The 100% mount in those numbers were seen in 1996 with trafficking numbers found at 1094 cases compared to those 517 cases just three years back from that of 1996 figures (Germany, n.d). Also, the women were subjected to physical and social harassment in Germany. They were deprived of medical and social facilities if compared to local populous. Also, the fear of being deported, if once caught, kept many women especially those non-German to do their work in the dark times, i.e. during the late nights, in Germany.
Hence, the government legalized the prostitution in Germany in 2002 due the continuous increasing numbers of trafficking, accidents and women harassment cases (i.e. deprivation of sex women workers from medical and other facilities) (Easton, n.d). Also, the Government wanted to reduce that trafficking numbers and thus ensures that sex workers especially the women sex workers are working in a out of harm’s way ambience in Germany. The government also intended to give open rights to those sex workers that include the proper brothel houses, proper medical facilities and social recognition. The positive impact was the welcome of around 40 thousand sex workers to Germany during the football world cup back in 2006 (Pravda.Ru, 2006).
The move to authorize the Prostitution in Germany came as a sign of relief to all those businesses involving sex toys, products and utilities. Because, since prostitutes or sex workers were assured to be provided with all relevant and equal facilities as compare to other labors in Germany, the business of sex shops began to rise. This also insures the sex shop owners as a separate place called Mall was entitled for the working of sex workers and prostitution.
Legal and Ethical Issues
The legal issues of operating a sex shop in Germany are almost settled because of the legalization of prostitution by the Government itself, which is just quoted and stated in the sources mentioned in the above text. Hence, the owner of those sex shops now has the legal right for the purchase or selling of sex toys, magazines, products, porn videos and everything that the prostitute industry needs in order to prosper.
Also, the prostitution industry in Germany is the bread and butter of those thousands of sex workers working prostitution and porn industry. Many of those workers come from developing countries of Asia, Africa and South America. As mentioned above, an unexpected huge numbers of women from Thailand flew all the way to Germany to earn via mean of prostitution. But still the prostitutes are subject to restrict themselves to certain boundaries within cities in Germany. Many sex workers, although have entitled with the benefits of medical and social recognition from the government, but they avoid to utilize them due to disgrace or being discriminated as subjugates or sex workers.
Hence, the government plans to put all the offenders of sex workers trafficking behind the bars, which is why it legalized the prostitution, leaving behind an enormous but tight business for sex shops in the country.
References
Easton, R. (n.d). German Culture: The Sex Industry & Prostitution in Germany. Web.
Germany. (n.d). Web.
Pravda.Ru. (2006). Germany attracts prostitutes on the eve of football World Cup. Web.
Thailand-th.net. (2006). Thailand Human Traffiking. Web.