Europe: In Bid to Fend Off "Drug Tourists," Some Dutch Border Towns to Close Coffee Shops
Citing an overwhelming number of French, German, and Belgian citizens coming to Holland to purchase marijuana and the public nuisances the crowds cause, the mayors of two Dutch border towns have announced they will close all their cannabis coffee shops, Radio Netherlands reported. But mayors of other border towns say the move will only transfer the problems to their towns.
Smokey coffee shop in Amsterdam (courtesy amsterdam.info)
"There are 25,000 drug tourists per week who visit these coffeeshops," said Mayor Han Polman of Bergen op Zoom. "That leads to a lot of nuisance, and there are links to illegality, there's criminal activity going on. People in our cities are asking us to make the streets safe so we have no choice but to close the coffee shops."
About 1.3 million people a year come to Holland to buy weed, Radio Netherlands said. The two mayors said the drug tourists caused problems such as driving dangerously, parking illegally, and public urination.
Maastricht Mayor Gerd Leers is facing the same problems, but has a different solution. He is proposing relocating all the coffee shops in his city to the border crossings with France, Belgium, and Germany. And he's not happy with the unilateral action taken by the two mayors.
"We're simply moving the problem," he said. "We're pushing it from Roosendaal to Breda, and then from Breda to Rotterdam. And what's much worse, is that we're pushing the problem into the illegal sphere. The drug runners are celebrating today because they realize they've just won lots of new customers. The demand for cannabis won't go away, it'll just find a new channel of supply."
Leers is calling for a summit of all border town mayors and the Justice Ministry to arrive at a common solution. "It's key that we now make a clear decision here in the Netherlands," he said. "We have to ask ourselves, are we going to hold on to our own Dutch system and maintain a different drug policy from our neighbors, or should we say no, because of the problems this causes we can't do that anymore?"
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redditTHE U.S. AKA THE EVIL EMPIRE IS DOOMED TO FOR FOR GOOD CAUSE
Comment posted by Anonymous on Fri, 10/31/2008 - 1:58pmThe rule of law does NOT exist in THE CORPORATE FASCIST, TYRANNICAL UNITED STATES.
One's Right to Travel, Right to Contract, the Right to Bear Arms, the Right to Vote
has been disregarded. Preachers put the DE FACTO GOVT. before G-d & the Right to Life of innocent fetuses!
The CRIMINALS are in the hen house & the chickens are routinely being slaughtered for the wicked evildoers fun & amusement!
The reason for the REVOLUTION is simple!!!
THE ATTORNEYS SOLD US OUT TO THE BANKSTERS, who willfully, knowingly, intentionally inflated the currency, to confiscate the wealth of We the People, which caused stress on the family & destroyed the American Dream.
Wake up All - as We are Witnessing the End of the Freedom!
dumb mayors
Comment posted by Anonymous on Wed, 11/05/2008 - 7:57amreject tourist money because beer hounds piss in the street.
great leaders those mayors.
``Blame America First'' is a
Comment posted by Anonymous on Fri, 10/31/2008 - 11:08am``Blame America First'' is a slogan that necons love to hate but that's what it all comes down to. It's just about impossible to call myself "proud American" while suffering the shame of living under the regime of "World's Policeman." If the US wasn't run by authoritarian busy-bodies the stoners of the world would be able to live in peace and not have to travel for quality Cannabis and their money could remain in their local economies.