Government makes first moves to regulate gentlemen’s clubs

A recent court ruling which acquitted a topless lap dancer of 'immoral acts' may not have given the 'green light' to lap dancing clubs - to quote the Home Affairs Ministry's official reaction to the sentence last week - but it has set the ball rolling for possible regulation of this industry in future.

Parliamentary secretary Owen Bonnici has confirmed that his ministry is currently looking into the possibility of drawing up a legislative framework for these clubs to operate without fear of criminal sanctions.

"I have already asked the Attorney General to prepare for me a proposal regarding the alternatives and the different scenarios which one has to study for the regulation of gentlemen's clubs," Bonnici told MaltaToday. "This has to be done after proper consultation with the stakeholders and the relevant authorities."

The issue rose to prominence following a ruling earlier this month by magistrate Ian Farrugia earlier this month, who observed that the definition of 'immoral acts' did not apply to acts performed in private.

Rebecca Camilleri, 26 from St Paul's Bay, was in fact observed in a state of semi-nudity behind the curtain of a private club (Steam) in St Julian's.

"This was deemed - and correctly so in my opinion - not to be an offence to public morals by the Court of Magistrates, since the alleged offence took place in a closed scenario, and therefore public morals had nothing to do with it since nothing was done in public in the first place," Bonnici said, adding that "there is nothing illegal with the actual act of prostitution in Malta (let alone the watching of a topless dancer in a private, closed cubicle) as long as what is done is done privately. What is illegal in prostitution is the touting and the living off prostitution..."

Bonnici stands by earlier claims that this judgment cannot, on its own, be interpreted to mean that a green light was given to the opening of bars with topless dancers. He is also cautious not to commit his government to any clear line of action with regard to the legality or otherwise of this enterprise.

But isn't it slightly unfair to leave owners, employees and clients of these establishments in a state of ignorance as to whether this activity is legal or not?

"Yes, I agree," is his reply. "If you had to ask me whether I had any objection to the actual regulation of gentlemen's clubs involving topless dancers, I would reply absolutely not. Adults should be perfectly free to go wherever they want to go as long as they know where they are going."

Regulation of this sector is 'a very good idea', he adds; but this does not make the matter any less complex since the underlying issues are diverse - ranging from employment to human trafficking.

"My only reservation of a moral nature - and it is a very important one from which I won't budge an inch - is that we as a society should make sure that the women (or potentially men) actually involved in the topless or sensual dancing do so out of their own free will and that their rights are fully respected. I don't want Malta to be used as a sort as a new haven for 'modern or refined slavery'."

Meanwhile the acquittal of Rebecca Camilleri does not represent the first time a local magistrate has rejected cases brought forward by the police against 'gentlemen's clubs'. In November 2006, eight club owners and 36 dancers were likewise prosecuted, in a case that was eventually thrown out of court on a technicality.

Then as now, the police had acted on the assumption that 'immoral behaviour' was a direct violation of the Criminal Code. In the 2006 case in particular, there was also the additional charge of 'living off the earnings of prostitution'.

The lap dancers themselves were rushed to court without even being allowed a change of clothes, so that (in the words of one of the inspectors) "the court could see what sort of people these were".

But the case did not go according to plan. Of the 36 girls arrested in the 2005 sting, all, without exception, turned out to have been professional dancers who had been granted work permits by the Employment & Training Corporation. The police themselves were forced to admit in court that they had found no proof of prostitution and dropped the 'brothel' charges themselves.

In view of the evident uncertainty with which such establishments are viewed by the authorities, club owners have been calling for regulation of the adult entertainment industry for years.