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WORLD NEWS Friday 14 February 2020

Amsterdam bans tour groups

from sex workers' windows

AMSTERDAM (AP) — The lo- Sex workers are regu- Some 115 guided tours pass
cal government in Amster- larly abused and photo- through the district every
dam has banned guided graphed without their con- day. The city said research
tours that take groups past sent by members of tour has shown that the high
the famed windows in the groups, the city said. number of visitors inconve-
city's red-light district where "It is disrespectful to treat niences more than half of
visitors watch semi-naked sex workers as a tourist at- the residents and business-
sex workers pose. traction," Amsterdam Dep- es in the area.
The move announced uty Mayor Victor Everhardt Banning group tours of the
Thursday is the city govern- said in a statement. red-light district windows In this Friday March 29, 2019, file image tourists bathing in a
ment's latest attempt to Tours of the red-light district "will help to prevent disrup- red glow emanating from the windows and peep shows' neon
address over-tourism and still will be allowed if guides tions for residents and busi- lights are packed shoulder to shoulder as they shuffle through
to clean up and to protect stick to the new restriction, nesses," Everhardt said. the alleys in Amsterdam's red light district, Netherlands.
workers the Dutch capital's which takes effect in April, Amsterdam has for years Associated Press
red-light district, which is a and keep the windows off suffered a negative side crowding the canal-side heart, which includes the
magnet for rowdy visitors. their itineraries. from too many people streets of the city's historic red-light district. q

European court backs Spain on express migrant deportations

By CIARÁN GILES
Associated Press
MADRID (AP) — The Eu-
ropean Court of Human
Rights on Thursday backed
Spain’s express deporta-
tion of two African migrants
back to Morocco from a
Spanish enclave in north-
west Africa as part of a
mass expulsion.
The court’s grand chamber
ruled that there had been
no violation of two articles
of the European Conven-
tion on Human Rights.
The case was taken by a
Malian and an Ivorian with
the support of the Euro-
pean Center for Constitu-
tional and Human Rights, or In this Feb.11, 2020 file photo, a group of migrants disembark from a vessel after being rescued by Spanish maritime authorities at
ECCHR. Motril port in Granada, Spain.
The two men, along with Associated Press
several dozen others, face if expelled. themselves in an unlawful borders with Africa, Each failing its human rights ob-
crossed the high three bor- The European court had ini- situation when they had year thousands of migrants, ligations, the court is ignor-
der wire fences separat- tially condemned Spain in deliberately attempted most of them from sub- ing evidence from all hu-
ing the Spanish enclave October 2017 for the case to enter Spain as part of a Saharan countries, try to man rights institution.”
of Melilla from Morocco and concluded that the large group and at an un- scale the fences to make it It said “the decision ignores
in August 2014. They were so-called summary returns authorized location, taking into Spain in the hope they the reality at European bor-
caught by Spanish police from the Spanish North Af- advantage of the group’s won’t be returned and ders, and particularly the
and immediately returned rican enclaves of Ceuta large numbers and using may get asylum. situation of Sub-Saharan
to Morocco. and Melilla to Morocco force.” Although there are no offi- Africans at the Spanish-Mo-
Human rights organizations were in violation of the Eu- It said “they had thus cho- cial figures, Spain is known roccan frontier. “
have long criticized express ropean Convention on Hu- sen not to use the legal to have carried out sum- “It will be perceived as a
deportations. man Rights. procedures which existed mary returns of hundreds of carte blanche for violent
They claim that migrants Thursday’s ruling followed in order to enter Spanish migrants at the enclaves. push-backs everywhere
are denied the opportunity an appeal by Spain. territory lawfully.” In a statement, the ECCHR in Europe,” said Wolfgang
to apply for asylum and an The appeal chamber said Ceuta and Melilla are the rights group said, “Instead Kaleck, general secretary
assessment of the risks they the migrants had “placed European Union’s only land of condemning Spain for of ECCHR.q