 Long before the United States began making moves towards legalization, the city of Amsterdam, in the Netherlands, was known for their liberal policies towards cannabis, among other things.
Through the years, millions upon millions have visited Amsterdam for this very reason. In April of this year, Amsterdam’s mayor, Femke Halsema, said she wanted to make it her goal to end cannabis tourism. She told Amsterdam city councilors she believes that, “Many of the major problems in the city are fueled by the cannabis market: from nuisances caused by drug tourism to serious crime and violence.” Throughout the rest of The Netherlands, access to cannabis cafes is limited to residents only. Amsterdam remains the only location where tourists may visit them. Current estimations are that approximately three million foreign tourists visit Amsterdam’s 166 cannabis cafes every year. Amsterdam’s city councilors, on the other hand, said they were not convinced of the need to close the city’s cannabis cafes to tourists, and they feared an increase in street dealing if the Mayor got her way. Currently, Amsterdam has a serious shortage of police officers, as they have a deficit of about 300 officers and 20 wardens, which would make enforcing a ban difficult. A lengthy debate was recently held where residents, researchers, and representatives from coffee shops also spoke for more than an hour. The mayor stated that she, the public prosecutor, and the police chief believe the ban needs to be enforced in order to diminish the growth of the soft drug industry, address acute annoyance, and combat criminality. According to a report on the debate, a majority of parties oppose the ban proposal. One local party leader and councillor Sheher Khan said there was little evidence to support the idea that soft drugs helped the hard drug trade. He said his party’s main concern is that the ban would encourage illegal street trading. This week, Amsterdam’s city council is set to vote on the Mayor’s proposed ban. Ultimately, however, Mayor Halsema does not have to rely on majority support within the city council if she declares the situation to be ‘necessity’. It is within her powers to impose the measure, with or without majority council support. Comments are closed.
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