Chch City Council Tackled on Liberalised Brothel Laws

Family First NZ is encouraging supporters to make submissions against Christchurch City Council’s plans to liberalise laws surrounding the location and signage relating to brothels.

“If this bylaw is changed, any brothel will be allowed to advertise their business anywhere and anyhow they like, and it will be left up to the individual to complain to the Advertising Standards Authority or the Censorship Board if they find their advertising offensive which, based on past experience, is a completely unacceptable and useless option,” says Bob McCoskrie, National Director of Family First NZ. “A complaint against an offensive sign can take up to two months to process and occurs after the offense.”

“The Council also wants to revoke the bylaw controlling the location of brothels because "there is no significant evidence of nuisance problems caused by the location of brothels." This is contrary to the experience of many residential and business areas throughout the country.”

“To allow brothels next to a family home or sensitive site such as a school, playground or church is unacceptable. We already have accounts of home brothels where men willing to pay for sex are knocking on nearby homes trying to find the brothel. We must not expose our children and families to that level of risk. There are also concerns about noise, traffic, and late-night visits.”

“The recent opposition to residential brothels in Greenlane, Albany, Mt Victoria in Wellington, and concerns about a sex parlour to operate in the same building as a preschool in Wellington, attempts by Manukau City Council to tackle the problems of street prostitution in Papatoetoe and Manurewa, and opposition to the brothel in the main street of Dannevirke shows that communities are not accepting the liberalised and harmful laws.”

“The decriminalisation of prostitution has been a community disaster harming families, businesses, and the welfare of workers caught in the industry. Cities throughout NZ have been trying to deal with the ‘hospital pass’ given by the politicians when they passed this law. It’s time the new government fixed the law,” says Mr McCoskrie.

“And Christchurch City Council should bin this proposal to liberalise the brothel bylaws for the sake of families.”
ENDS

© Scoop Media