About 30 cameras are filming events on a street frequented by prostitutes and their clients for 24 hours daily.

Officially, the cameras help police fight crime, but the city authorities are also targeting the sex trade carried out by women from Eastern Europe, Latin America and Africa.

The number of men seeking out prostitutes went down on Monday when the cameras began functioning, but it was unclear whether the measure would have any long-term effect, reports said.
Some prostitutes said the cameras made them feel safer while others expressed concern that the images would lead to their families finding out that they were sex workers.

Spanish legislation leaves prostitution in a legal vacuum, prompting municipalities around the country to adopt various measures to regulate the trade, the daily El Pais reported.