Berlin is not for play — just yet. The famous brothels in the German capital were finally allowed to reopen their doors last week, after nearly six months of coronavirus shutdowns. But clients looking for old-fashioned, body-on-body, professionally performed sex will still have to wait a little longer. According to the Agence France-Presse, until coronavirus regulations are further relaxed next month, brothel clients will have to satisfy themselves with erotic massages, instead.
Sex work has been banned in Berlin for over five months. The ban was implemented as a way to help slow down the spread of the deadly virus. On March 16, German officials ordered the closures of all entertainment venues in Berlin — including brothels — as the number of COVID infections started to increase. Sex work is a regulated profession in Germany. The AFP said that some 40, registered sex workers work under a contract and are entitled to benefits.
Susanne Bleier Wilp, a former sex worker and the spokeswoman for the Association of Erotic and Sexual Services Providers, told The Associated Press that the overall number of sex workers in the country could be between , and , The closures of the spaces have led to massive losses to the industry, according to Aurel Johannes Marx, who works in a brothel in the area.
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