Cartagena Mayor Seeks to Ban LALExpo; Organizers Say Show Will Go On

Cartagena Mayor Seeks to Ban LALExpo; Organizers Say Show Will Go On

CARTAGENA, Colombia — The mayor of Cartagena announced today that he has instructed his aides to place a ban on the upcoming Latin America Adult Business Expo (LALExpo).

LALExpo officials, however, said that the announcement of a proposed ban is just “politics” and that the show will go on as planned.

“We deal with this each year,” said Anthony Rivera, an organizer of the event and co-founder of AJ Studios. “It’s not new for us. Our lawyers are handling it.

“We do not need to request any permission from the mayor’s office, and they can’t legally cancel our event,” Rivera told XBIZ.

“The Cartagena Convention Center is a private entity, they are free to host any events they want. We have talked to them and they have no intentions to cancel us.”

LALExpo, the only business-oriented adult entertainment conference in South America, has been held three consecutive years. The conference is slated this year for July 10-12.

The show, which includes an awards program, mostly attracts online adult entertainment owners and executives, cam studios and cam models.

More than 900 people trekked to Cartagena to attend the 2016 LALExpo. But attendance was expected to balloon this year due to a larger venue at the Cartagena de Indias Convention Center, known as one of the largest and most impressive convention centers in Latin America.

Today, Cartagena’s mayor, Manuel Vicente Duque, instructed his interior minister to enforce a ban at the city’s convention center.

“We are not going to lend our city for this type of industry,” Duque said.

The governor of the Colombian state of Bolivar, Dumek Turbay, urged Duque to place a ban on LALExpo, stating the “pornographic industry is hurting the city … it is the reaffirmation of that stigma that we have that Cartagena is a destination of sex tourism. We will not allow it."

Rivera noted that LALExpo was a “hot topic” on Colombian TV and radio, as well as the local newspapers, today.

“We are very happy of the free press, and our sponsors should also be very happy their brands are getting a load of exposure now.”

Indeed, the media exposure today allowed even more publicity about the show.

Richard Bedoya, another organizer of LALExpo, explained to a local radio station  that the conference is a private event that simply does not promote prostitution or pornography.

"This is not an open event and there are no shows,” Bedoya said. “This is a gathering of professionals from the adult entertainment industry, which brings producers and experts to business circles in an emerging and growing market around the world. We do not promote prostitution, what we are looking for is to end the clandestine market.”

Rivera told XBIZ that LALExpo will issue a formal press release announcement in coming days.

Related:  

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

BranditScan Names Subgirl Newest Brand Ambassador

BranditScan has named content creator Subgirl its newest brand ambassador.

Arcom Reports Age Verification Enforcement Actions Against 5 Adult Sites

French media regulator Arcom released a statement Tuesday detailing recent actions to enforce age verification rules as set forth under France’s Security and Regulation of the Digital Space (SREN) law.

Pineapple Support, Clips4Sale to Host Performers' Partners Support Group

Pineapple Support and Clips4Sale are hosting a free online support group for partners and family members of adult industry professionals.

FSC Mourns the Loss of Board Director Emeritus Mark Kernes

Free Speech Coalition has released a statement regarding the passing of Board Director Emeritus Mark Kernes.

Alexa Creed Launches New Paysite

Creator Alexa Creed has launched a new membership site through MyMember.site.

Choice Talent Management Launches Fan Platform 'ChoiceFilmz'

Choice Talent Management CEO Chris Crisco has launched a new fan platform called ChoiceFilmz.

Dredd to Launch Official Site

Dredd has announced his new website OfficialDreddXXX.com, launching April 20.

New Pleasure Product Review Site 'ToyChats' Launches

ToyChats.com, a pleasure product review and discussion site, has officially launched.

AEBN Reveals Jade Venus as Top Trans Star for Q1 of 2025

AEBN has named its top trans stars for the first quarter of 2025, with Jade Venus landing atop the leaderboard.

SexLikeReal Debuts 'AI Passthrough' Feature

SexLikeReal has introduced an AI Passthrough for video editing during VR livestreaming.

Show More