Baselland: Billboard advertising for sexual services should not be banned
Brothel advertisements and other posters advertising sexual services on public property will not be banned. The county council made this decision on Thursday.
It narrowly rejected an EPP motion with this aim. The motion failed by 37 votes to 39 with two Green abstentions. The left and the center were not united in support of the motion. The government warned that the demarcation would be extremely delicate, as reported by the SDA.
Security Director Sabine Pegoraro described a ban on posters as disproportionate. She referred to similar advertising on private property, in the press or on the Internet. The industry's self-regulation via the Fairness Commission works well. And municipalities could issue regulations in their area.
The SVP and the Greens argued against the proposal. The oldest trade could not be stopped in this way. The FDP insisted on freedom of expression in advertising too. In addition, some women worked voluntarily in the industry and were therefore not exploited. It would be better to fight exploitation, not advertising.
The EPP campaigned for the ban on the grounds that not everyone wanted to see such images and on the grounds of child protection. Women would be degraded to commodities with such advertising. The canton was also encouraging excesses by making its land available for advertising. The SP supported the request.
