28 January 2011

Family First NZ is welcoming the decision of the new Auckland Super City Council to support the bill before Parliament banning street prostitution.

"Auckland City councillors are listening to and respecting not only the huge concerns expressed regarding the welfare of families in these 'red light' districts and what they are experiencing, but also the concerns about prostitutes who are being harmed by this so-called work," says Bob McCoskrie, National Director of Family First NZ.

“There have been ongoing concerns about the negative effects of street prostitution and associated conduct in the Manukau area and the local council has been powerless to act, These negative effects include increased littering, noise and nuisance, a reduced sense of public safety, and a decline in property values.”

“There has also been a large increase in street prostitution since the decriminalisation of prostitution. A review last June found girls as young as 12 prostituting themselves in central Auckland, and a similar investigation in Manukau City in 2008 found 16 teenagers aged between 13 and 16 prostituting themselves on the streets of Manurewa.”

“The association of prostitution with gang and criminal behaviour, alcohol and drug abuse, and sexual abuse and violence means that we are sentencing more and more young people and prostitutes to an unacceptable situation. This bill should actually be extended to cover all areas of New Zealand.”

“The decriminalisation of prostitution has been a community disaster harming families, businesses, and the welfare of women and men caught in the industry. Prostitution is not the world's oldest profession - it is the world's oldest oppression,” says Mr McCoskrie.

Family First NZ has also made a submission supporting the bill.

ENDS

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