Prostitution windows closed in Amsterdam

The city of Amsterdam said today it has revoked licenses for 37 businesses, representing nearly a third of the 350 prostitution “windows” in the city’s famed red-light district.

The move is part of an ongoing crackdown on crime in the area.

The city said a 2003 law allowed it to deny or revoke the licences when it suspected operators would use them for money laundering or other illegal activity, “which in concrete terms means that those involved won’t be able to continue their businesses”, the city said in a statement.

The Dutch government legalised prostitution in 2000 with an eye to making it easier to tax and regulate.

Even before then, Amsterdam’s red-light district was a major tourist attraction. The narrow streets near Amsterdam’s centre have been known for prostitution since the city was the hub of a global trading empire during the Netherlands’ 17th century golden age.

But it is also a magnet for human trafficking and petty crime and the city’s largest political party called for the crackdown.