Prostitution was banned for a long time during the Corona era – too much physical contact. Many women continued to work illegally. The easing has only partially changed this.
Nuremberg – One of the industries that had to cope with particularly severe restrictions in the corona pandemic is sex work. Brothels and clubs were closed for months. Prostitutes no longer knew how to finance their living.
This has had consequences to this day: Many sex workers migrated to illegality during the lockdown – and stayed there. In Nuremberg’s red light district around the Frauentormauer women are again sitting in the windows and trying to lure customers with their charms. But in some houses there are still empty rooms. Not all women have returned to their old jobs, says a brothel operator who does not want her name to be published. “Many have gone abroad, where the regulations are different.” Others would have continued to work in private apartments during the lockdown and continue to do so.
Hedwig Christ from the Nuremberg counseling center Kassandra, which receives inquiries from prostitutes all over Germany, is concerned about this development. “We hear from women who work illegally that customers are asking for more.” For example, unprotected sex. Christ is not surprised: Experience has shown that violence and communicable diseases always increase when sex work is prohibited. But Christ has also found that many prostitutes want to change their careers after the experiences in the past two years and are now looking for a stable job.
The consequences of the coronavirus can also be seen in the number of cases from the police and the judiciary: According to the Bavarian Ministry of Justice, the number of criminal proceedings for forced prostitution, human trafficking and pimping has literally exploded in the past two years. The Munich I public prosecutor’s office alone started more than 200 investigations into illegal prostitution this year. Last year there were around 200 – almost twice as many as in 2019.
The professional association for erotic and sexual services has been observing for a long time that prostitutes are increasingly working in secret. “Corona has accelerated it even more,” says the political spokeswoman Johanna Weber. “Many were forced to work secretly during the lockdown because they didn’t get any support.”
The women had learned to market themselves and now wanted to save the taxes on the brothel or bypass the hard corona rules in the brothels, says Weber. However, due to this isolation, there is also a lack of social exchange with colleagues, support and protection. “You have to do everything with yourself.”
Despite the relaxation of the corona measures, the business of love for sale is rather sluggish. “After the lockdown, the number of visitors was zero,” reports the Nuremberg brothel operator. That has improved, but the level before the Corona crisis has not been reached for a long time. “Of course, customers are afraid of being infected,” she says. But also the recording of the contact data is an inhibition threshold for some.
“The business is actually more difficult than before Corona,” says Weber. “This is also due to the fact that there are not so many business trips and the guests from abroad are missing.” In many industries, the pandemic has led to a shift to the Internet – Weber sees no danger in sex work. “That will still take place in real life.” Dpa
