Police compile sex-trade database ahead of EU membership

And following last weekend's nationwide raids on the country's brothels, police have gathered personal details on thousands of prostitutes, which they say will help the authorities track their movements when the Czech Republic joins the European Union next year. During last weekend's raids, the largest crackdown on prostitution in the country's history, police interviewed and compiled personal data on thousands of women working in 435 brothels across the country. An estimated 15,000 prostitutes, generally from countries in eastern Europe, work in the Czech Republic, most along the German and Austrian borders.