a comparative study on city rebranding through gentrification of red light district in lahore,...

AMSTERDAM CREATIVE CITY: Final Project – Critical Essay

“A Comparative Study on City Rebranding through Gentrification

of Red Light District in Lahore, Pakistan versus Project 1012 in

Amsterdam, Netherlands”

Submitted By: Eisha Salim – 11120010

Submission Date: 10th July, 2015

Submitted to: Professor Miriam Messinar, Judith Naeff & Pedram Dibazar

UvA Summer School – Faculty of Humanities

Project: Critical Essay – Comparative Case Study of Lahore, Pakistan’s Red Light

District Gentrification versus Amsterdam, Netherlands

University of Amsterdam, Faculty of Humanities Amsterdam Creative City

Eisha Salim (11120010), Summer School – UVA July 10, 2015

Abstract

Gentrification has been a worldwide phenomenon for a while and thus there has been much

debate on the meaning of the term, however it can be defined as “the process of renewal and

rebuilding accompanying the influx of middle-class or affluent people into deteriorating areas

that often displaces poorer residents.” (Merriam Websiter , n.d.)

In context to the definitions of gentrifications presented, it is evident that gentrification

critiques refer to this act as handing over of the area to more affluent class in order to rebrand

the district as a more sophisticated, high end area which will attract potential investment and

socio-economic progress. However, in the stance presented by the City Council De Warren

1012 Amsterdam, this handover is much needed.

Amsterdam as a city has built its brand name in the world on the ideals of tolerance, liberty

and freedom. According to most visited travel sites and top tourist to-dos suggested by them,

when coming to Amsterdam, a visit to the Red Light District is recommended by most travel

sites and blogs. However, through the Project 1012, the municipality of Amsterdam plans to

gentrify the area to make it more family friendly and change the overall image of the district

The question here arises, why would Amsterdam, a city universally associated with sexual

tolerance, implement such an adversative policy? The answer lies with the frame used to

legitimatize the transformation. It was then Alderman Lodewijk Asscher of the left-leaning

Social Democrats who managed to ‘sell’ the project.

Comparing the above two, it is evident that while in Lahore’s case, gentrification of the district

has proved to be beneficial for both the municipality and the general public who got a free

public space for entertainment and recreational purposes, the effect of gentrification on

Amsterdam’s Red Light District may bring some positive changes to the district, reducing

criminal activity and allowing the area to be more accessible to families and other tourists.

The idea is not to eradicate the sex and drugs business from the city, but to regulate it on

order to make the city and the De Warren district in order to keep the criminal activity in

control and make the facilities available through legal, regulated means. Project 1012 will not

only enable the city’s image to be more than just legal sex and drugs available zone, but an

area of commerce, culture and progressive thinking which will overall be beneficial to

Amsterdam City’s image via city re-branding.

Keywords: Urban Planning, City Rebranding, Red Light Districts, Public Space Gentrification



Table of Contents

1. The Theory of Gentrification: Introduction ...................................................................... 4

a. Defining Gentrification & City Re-Branding: ................................................................... 4

b. The Need for Gentrification & City Re-Branding: ........................................................... 4

2. Gentrification According to Critics – Literature Review ................................................... 5

a. The Rebranding of City Places: An International Comparative Investigation ................ 5

b. The Journal of Sex Research ........................................................................................... 5

c. Amsterdam’s Plan to Save Prostitutes, Shifting Cityscape of Amsterdam ..................... 5

d. The Problem Statement .................................................................................................. 6

3. Heera Mandi to Food Street – Gentrification of Red Light District of Lahore, Pakistan: 7

a. About The Project ........................................................................................................... 7

b. Significant Elements ........................................................................................................ 7

c. Government & Public Standing....................................................................................... 8

4. Project 1012: Gentrifying Red Light District, Amsterdam ................................................ 9

a. About The Project ........................................................................................................... 9

b. Significant Elements ........................................................................................................ 9

c. Government & Public Standing....................................................................................... 9

5. Comparative Analysis: Lahore versus Amsterdam – A Case of Red Light District

Gentrification .......................................................................................................................... 10

6. Conclusion ........................................................................................................................ 11

7. Bibliography ..................................................................................................................... 12



1. The Theory of Gentrification: Introduction

In order to better understand the actions that were taken under the gentrification projects of

Red Light District in Amsterdam, Netherlands and Lahore, Pakistan; it is crucial to understand

what the term “gentrification” implies.

Gentrification has been a worldwide phenomenon for a while and thus there has been much

debate on the meaning of the term, however it can be defined as “the process of renewal and

rebuilding accompanying the influx of middle-class or affluent people into deteriorating areas

that often displaces poorer residents.” (Merriam Websiter , n.d.)

a. Defining Gentrification & City Re-Branding:

As the definition implies “renewal” and “rebuilding”, most gentrification projects are met with

harsh criticism due to their pro-white resident influx into the gentrified neighborhood.

According to a report published by Williams College Professor Stephen Sheppard, (Stephen

Sheppard, n.d.), “gentrification has been viewed as an unfortunate desecration of interesting

and “authentic” urban neighborhoods, a dilution of vibrant ethnic neighborhoods into

something that is bland and uninteresting.”

Post the World War I & II, most cities in Europe, USA and UK have undergone major

gentrification projects by which certain neighborhoods were transformed due to various

reasons. However what is missing in most of the analysis present in the context of

gentrification projects is its social relationship to the reasons why the gentrification project

was taking place.

M Davidson & L Lee in the Journal of Environment and Planning further discuss the theory of

gentrification as, “early definitions of gentrification by authors such as Smith (1982, page 139)

were closely aligned to Glass's (1964) description: ‘By gentrification I mean the process by

which working class residential neighborhoods are rehabilitated by middle class homebuyers,

landlords and professional developers. I make the theoretical distinction between

gentrification and redevelopment. Redevelopment involves not rehabilitation of old

structures but the construction of new buildings on previously developed land.’” (M Davidson,

2005)

b. The Need for Gentrification & City Re-Branding:

In context to the definitions of gentrifications presented, it is evident that gentrification

critiques refer to this act as handing over of the area to more affluent class in order to rebrand

the district as a more sophisticated, high end area which will attract potential investment and

socio-economic progress. However, in the stance presented by the City Council De Warren

1012 Amsterdam, this handover is much needed and we will further see why.



2. Gentrification According to Critics – Literature Review

Amsterdam as a city has built its brand name in the world on the ideals of tolerance, liberty

and freedom. According to most visited travel sites and top tourist to-dos suggested by them,

when coming to Amsterdam, a visit to the Red Light District is recommended by most travel

sites and blogs. However, through the Project 1012, the municipality of Amsterdam plans to

gentrify the area to make it more family friendly and change the overall image of the district.

a. The Rebranding of City Places: An International

Comparative Investigation

In their paper titled “The Rebranding of City Places: An International Comparative

Investigation”, Roger Bennett and Sharmila Savani argued that rebranding of cities has been

common for many years and can involve to revive the pre-existing but outdated place image

in order to make it up to date and more appealing to tourists, public and government officials.

An increasingly common practice is for a city’s authorities to attach a fresh brand identity to

a particular locality within the city due to increased economic and social deprivation in the

area with high levels of crime and homelessness.

The question here arises, why would Amsterdam, a city universally associated with sexual

tolerance, implement such an adversative policy? The answer lies with the frame used to

legitimatize the transformation. It was then Alderman Lodewijk Asscher of the left-leaning

Social Democrats who managed to ‘sell’ the project.

b. The Journal of Sex Research

According to The Journal of Sex Research (Aalbers, February 2005:), the Red Light District,

more commonly known as De Wallen by local Amsterdamers, unlike other red light districts

is not very different as “it is not visited only by heterosexual men seeking sexual pleasure and

members of groups that are usually seen as "undesirables"—although there are indeed many

of these people—but also by locals there for other purposes.”

c. Amsterdam’s Plan to Save Prostitutes, Shifting Cityscape

of Amsterdam

Aalbers further explains that “the crowd on the street includes local passer bys through the

walkways as well as couples, women, homosexual men, business people, and families with

grandparents and children in tow” (Wonders, 2004). However, gentrification critique and

rouge media scholar, Linda Duits, communicates the concern in “Amsterdam’s Plan to Save

Prostitutes Is a Billion Euro Gentrification Project”, (Linda Duits , Jan 30, 2015) that the Project

1012 had never been about the destiny of sex laborers, but about what urban sociologists



called gentrification. Its focus has been about possession and character of important land

property in Amsterdam's notable downtown area, which is the primary reason the houses of

ill-repute proprietors needed to leave, in spite of the truth that they were never accused of

genuine law violations. Around eighty million expense Euros have been spent on the district's

land exchange, while private accomplices are fixed to ensure more liquidity for Project 1012.

d. The Problem Statement

But what is the guarantee that the project will be as successful as it was sold to the public?

Amsterdam’s Red Light District (Municipality of Amsterdam, 2015) has been subject to

becoming a problem zone with rising criminal activities, affecting the overall brand image of

the city. The issue is being addressed to by the city council and municipal authorities through

“Project 1012”, however, does the district require gentrification considering the pros and

cons of the gentrification of Lahore’s Red Light District (Leiby, 2012) done by Government of

Pakistan?

The hypothesis of the comparative study is that like Lahore, the Red Light District in

Amsterdam has created a significantly negative brand image for the city and thus the

gentrification of the area will allow the city to rebrand itself on a positive fresh note.

For this purpose we will look at the gentrification project of Heera Mandi, a Red Light District

in the heart of Lahore, a major urban city in Pakistan; which was converted from a street full

of brothels into a family friendly food street preserving the architecture and art of the ancient

red light district for cultural heritage purposes.



3. Heera Mandi to Food Street – Gentrification of Red Light

District of Lahore, Pakistan:

a. About The Project

Heera Mandi, which literally means

the Diamond Market; was the

traditional Red Light Quarter of

Lahore since the time of the Mughals

and British pre-independence of the

Indian Sub-Continent. More recently

however, since the Government of

Pakistan had abolished and

prohibited prostitution on the

grounds that the idea of prostitution

has been forbidden as per the

teachings of Islam and Pakistan being an Islamic Republic cannot allow prostitution to be a

legal business, the Red Light District was gentrified into what is now the very popular “Food

Street” of Lahore, visited by thousands of food and culture lovers in the heart of the city,

alongside of major heritage sites like the Lahore Fort and Minar-e-Pakistan.

The idea of the Red Light District now only lives in the popular mindscape through its stories

of longing, loss and 'mujras' after the Pakistan government clamped down on prostitution in

the 1970s.

b. Significant Elements

Heera Mandi, the popular Red Light District

known better for its sex and sleaze, in

present times is now the place for the rich

and famous to dine on the choicest

delicacies of Pakistani cuisine and pay a

pretty packet for the fare.

The area of Heera Mandi is a V-shaped

offshoot of the road connecting the Mandi

to the Fort opened as Fort Road Food

Street, with 27 buildings which were

acquired by the municipality for the project, opening popular food businesses along with the

restoration of the buildings interiors to serve as museums which had architectural and

cultural significance in the district. The old buildings were renovated, painted and decorated



to supposedly resemble the Mughal architecture of yore, which give the area an old Mughal

look and feel and restored its ancient glory.

c. Government & Public Standing

A French columnist Claudine Le Tourneur d'lson, who as of late discharged her novel called

Heera Mandi in India and Pakistan, slanders the allocation of the structures, and says her 1988

visit there demonstrated how the red-light territory of Lahore was unique in relation to those

of Mumbai or Cairo:

"There can be no comparison. In Mumbai or Cairo all you see is flesh trade. Nothing more,

nothing less. In Heera Mandi you saw color, you saw dance, and you heard music. There was

a culture to it. Sadly, it is no longer there. The girls have mostly gone to the UAE, where they

make more money and where there is no moral police. The ones who have stayed behind

practice their profession in posh localities of Lahore or are at the beck and call of hotel guests."

Maryam Rabi, an architect at the Agha Khan Cultural Service, Pakistan, who worked on the

walled city of Lahore, criticized the makeover in a blog for The Dawn:

"On visiting the Fort Road Food Street, one would expect to be introduced to the true culture

and experience of the walled city – the project, however, rarely brings forth that opportunity

and instead presents a ‘Disneyfied’ version of itself to the public. The words, conservation,

restoration and protection are widely misunderstood in most of Pakistan. What has been

implemented on the Fort Road is merely a superficial facelift and a complete disregard for its

historic context and cultural value."

Traditional expression of music and culture has missed out to the well-known society and film

numbers and the period of "keeps" or "fancy women" finished and powerless sex laborers

developed out of the Mandi, with little insurance and no support. What's more, now their

residence is important land and was up for gets. The new Food Street was a venture by the

Provincial Government and the acknowledgment of Pakistani Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz

Sharif's fantasy to supplant the Food Street made by his ancestor Pervez Elahi's at Gwalmandi

in President Pervez Musharraf's times.



4. Project 1012: Gentrifying Red Light District, Amsterdam

a. About The Project

According to the official press release

by the City of Amsterdam and the

Urban District Centrum, the agenda for

Project 1012, which takes its name

from the postcode area 1012, De

Warren Amsterdam, is to turn it into a

more beautiful and livable area.

The main reasons for this gentrification

project have been a constant increase

in the organized crime business in the

district. The City of Amsterdam has

been united on the front that the districts free and liberal environment has been harboring

crime whose infrastructure has been maintained by the brothels and coffee shops, which

needs to be addressed to.

b. Significant Elements

The document provided by the municipality of

Amsterdam clearly outlines its 4 pillar agenda through

which the area will be redeveloped and gentrified

providing new exciting opportunities for the district

with a new perspective for the city center and fresh

appeal.

Red Windows are known and marketed as Amsterdam’s

key city branding world over and thus this piece of

culture cannot be eliminated completely. Through the

project 1012, the windows will be preserved by being reduced in number in two key areas.

This would allow about half of the windows to remain, leading to a more effective and

efficient enforcement by police and other regulators.

c. Government & Public Standing

According to the Municipality of Amsterdam, mutual collaborations from all parties will be

done which is crucial for the success of the whole project. The council wishes to preserve the

attractive parts of the city center and improve the experience of the city dwellers. The city’s

metropolitan allure will also be preserved and public spaces redesigned for a more

Amsterdam experience through nine key projects that will refurnish the 1012 area.



5. Comparative Analysis: Lahore versus Amsterdam – A Case

of Red Light District Gentrification

Having seen both the Red Light Districts as a student of the Media, Art and Architecture

program, it is evident that the gentrification projects in most cases particularly with the Red

Light Districts have been a turnaround for the area and its residents.

The similarities between both projects has been quite enlightening to be able to draw a

conclusion for the purpose of this study.

Firstly, both Red Light Districts, Amsterdam and Lahore; have been subject to well-grounded

organized criminal activity that somehow was linked to the prostitution and drug business.

Secondly, the areas were a part of the main city center of the respective cities, close to the

tourist and cultural attractions, and due to the widely open prostitution businesses, the areas

were not family friendly or part of the entertainment zones of the city. Last but not the least,

due to the businesses in these areas of the city, the image of the city had started to become

polluted and widely known for the free liberal thinking which went overboard at some point.

The project of gentrification of the Red Light District of Lahore proved to be extremely

profitable and a turnaround for an area which was known only for the “sex & sleeze”. Not

only has the area risen from the ashes, it has also become the most frequently visited tourist

spot in Lahore, known for the culture and traditional food within the setting of traditional art

and architecture.

The primary difference in both the districts and its projects has been that while Lahore has

cultural heritage and old architecture attached to the old Red Light District area, Amsterdam’s

Red Light District has the city center attached to it.

Also, another key aspect to note is that while prostitution has been prohibited in the

constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan as per the Islamic Shariah Laws observed in

the country, this does not apply to Netherlands, where in particularly Amsterdam’s case the

business of prostitution and drugs is legal if not regulated.

While in Lahore’s case, gentrification of the district has proved to be beneficial for both the

municipality and the general public who got a free public space for entertainment and

recreational purposes, the effect of gentrification on Amsterdam’s Red Light District may

harm the influx of the touristic business with the sole purpose of prostitution and drugs for

recreation.

However, it is more important to consider the part that Amsterdam has been subject to 2

prior projects of rebranding the city, “City on Water” and “I Amsterdam” previously, which

communicates the agenda behind the Project 1012 to give the city a fresh, new, family

friendly perspective apart from its liberal free thinking ideals.



6. Conclusion

Gentrification is not a new phenomenon in the Netherlands. It was started by a few

unforeseen elements, for example, low premium rates, a generally youthful populace, and

business disinvestment in the downtown area. What started as an unconstrained process in

the 1970s, turned into a strategy objective in the 1980s and 'gentrification was held onto as

the lifebuoy'. (Van Gent, W.P.C, 2013).

The hypothesis of the comparative was that like Lahore, the Red Light District in Amsterdam

has created a significantly negative brand image for the city and thus the gentrification of the

area will allow the city to rebrand itself on a positive fresh note.

Comparing the above two pictures, (Left: Lahore Red Light District post Gentrification, Right:

Red Light District as of 8th July 2015); it is evident that while in Lahore’s case, gentrification of

the district has proved to be beneficial for both the municipality and the general public who

got a free public space for entertainment and recreational purposes, the effect of

gentrification on Amsterdam’s Red Light District may bring some positive changes to the

district, reducing criminal activity and allowing the area to be more accessible to families and

other tourists.

The idea is not to eradicate the sex and drugs business from the city, but to regulate it on

order to make the city and the De Warren district in order to keep the criminal activity in

control and make the facilities available through legal, regulated means. Project 1012 will not

only enable the city’s image to be more than just legal sex and drugs available zone, but an

area of commerce, culture and progressive thinking which will overall be beneficial to

Amsterdam City’s image via city re-branding.



7. Bibliography

1. Aalbers, M. B., February 2005:. Big Sister is Watching You! Gender Interaction and the

Unwritten Rules of The Amsterdam Red Light District. The Journal of Sex Research,

Volume 42 (Number 1), pp. 54-62.

2. Anon., 2009. Virtual Tourists. [Online]

Available at: http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Asia/Pakistan/Punjab/Lahore-

1310056/Nightlife-Lahore-Red_Light_Area_Heera_Mandi-BR-1.html

3. Anon., 2012. Heera Mandi's New Avatar. [Online]

Available at: http://www.tribuneindia.com/2012/20120429/spectrum/main1.htm

4. Anon., 2012. Lahore's Hira Mandi: a love affair. [Online]

Available at: http://www.deccanherald.com/content/225798/lahores-hira-mandi-love-

affair.htm

5. IBN Live, 2012. Lahore's Hira Mandi: a love affair. [Online]

Available at: http://www.ibnlive.com/news/books/lahores-hira-mandi-a-love-affair-

445403.html

6. Javed, H., 2013. The Sex workers of Lahore’s Heera Mandi. [Online]

Available at: http://www.desiblitz.com/content/the-sex-workers-of-lahores-heera-

mandi

7. Leiby, M. L., 2012. The Washington Post - Art & Culture. [Online]

Available at: http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/pakistani-artist-

quietly-honors-forbidden-culture/2012/11/18/b05f4af8-3039-11e2-a30e-

5ca76eeec857_story.html

8. Linda Duits , Jan 30, 2015. Amsterdam’s plan to save prostitutes is a billion euro

gentrification project. [Online]

Available at: https://medium.com/@lalalalinder/amsterdams-plan-to-save-prostitutes-

is-a-billion-euro-gentrification-project-375183088650

9. M Davidson, L. L., 2005. New-Build `Gentrification' and London's Riverside Renaissance.

Environment and Planning, Volume 37 , pp. 1165 - 1190.

10. Merriam Websiter , n.d. Gentrification Definition. [Online]

Available at: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gentrification

11. Municipality of Amsterdam, 2015 . Heart of Amsterdam, Future Perspective 1012,

Amsterdam, Netherlands : Municipality of Amsterdam.

12. Roger Bennett, S. S., 2003. The Rebranding of City Places: An International Comparative

Investigation. International Public Managament Review, 4(2), pp. 70-87.



13. Sobel, A., 2011. A Hamsterdam in Amsterdam. [Online]

Available at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/anne-peterson/a-hamsterdam-in-

amsterdam_b_787377.html

14. Soofi, M. A., 2006. A Sudden Visit to Pakistan: Heera Mandi – The Dream House of the

Whores. [Online]

Available at: http://blogcritics.org/a-sudden-visit-to-pakistan-heera/

15. Stephen Sheppard, W. C., n.d. Why is Gentrification a Problem?, Melbourne, Australia :

Centre for Creative Community Development .

16. Tieleman, J., June 2013. The Shifting CityScape of Amsterdam, Amsterdam: University of

Amsterdam.

17. Van Gent, W.P.C, 2013. Neo-liberalization, housing institutions and variegated

gentrification;How the ‘third wave’ broke in Amsterdam. International Journal of Urban

and Regional Research, 32(2), pp. 503-522.

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