Cheap flights and men on “stag nights” have threatened to turn Riga, Latvia into a destination most noted for pubs, clubs, strip bars and a growing sex industry—a “Baltic Bangkok,” if you will. It’s easy shorthand and perhaps too simple of a way to characterize Riga—or Bangkok, or any city for that matter—but some people in Latvia fear the name and image will stick. Hence, the current “Stop Sex Terrorism” campaign, which, according to Reuters, aims to steer local women away from one-night stands and to educate them about the dangers of interacting with tourists.
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