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Mexico fights pavement porn
23/12/2005 18:59 - (SA)
Mexico City - An uphill battle was launched this week against the street vendors who have turned many of the city's sidewalks and subway entrances into in-your-face displays of graphic, triple-X movies and magazines.
Displays of videos whose photo covers leave nothing to the imagination have sparked complaints in a society where many still value qualities like obedience in children and modesty in dress.
"It's everywhere. It bothers us a lot because we have to pull the kids away so they won't see it, and then there it is on the other side, too," said Ramon Villegas, who heads the Mexico City chapter of a national parents' association. "This can really damage kids psychologically. It can damage them emotionally.
"The police need to make a commitment to do something about this."
Taking action
Starting this week, authorities did start doing something. On Monday, the Mexico City government signed an agreement with an association of newspaper vendors to keep hard-core magazines off the front shelves of kiosks, where they are often hung.
But the agreement only covers stands located near schools and parks - less than 20% of the city's 14 000 newspaper and magazine kiosks.
Not a crime
In an effort to force some of the tens of thousands of unlicensed street vendors to be more discreet, about 600 city police swept through a five-block stretch on Tuesday and confiscated thousands of pirated porn videos.
No arrests were made.
Selling pornography is not a crime in Mexico City. Police instead confiscated the X-rated videos because they are - as most DVDs sold in the city - pirated copies, often of US films.
- AP
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