The Shame in Spain

That prostitution is legal in Spain is an enlightened approach to an age-old situation. The problem now is that human traffickers have set up camp firmly on Spanish soil and the "world's oldest profession" is no longer a more or less free choice to make a living, but a brutal slave trade made up mostly of foreigners. This is no victimless crime or just a moral issue anymore.

Nor Spaniards are entirely blameless. Data shows that there is a significant domestic demand for sexual services in the country, in addition to the "tourists for tricks" that come in, mainly from France, where prostitution is both illegal and more expensive. Hard economic times -- around 50% of Spanish youth are unemployed -- have also forced women into prostitution.

All in all, it's a dire situation and an embarrassment for a country that a generation ago was among the most conservative and sexually repressed in the world.

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