Welcome to Bud Boulevard, Maastricht, Netherlands?

[nolvanschaik]

The Netherlands: Maastricht cannabis coffeeshops contradiction.

 

Dutch smokers only or a coffeeshop boulevard near Germany?

 

Source; NOS Teletext, Nov. 19, 2004

Donner: Experiment to prohibit drugstourism.

 

Dutch Justice Minister Donner wants to start an experiment to prohibit the sales of softdrugs (cannabis) to members from other EU states.

He wants to run the experiment in Maatricht.

Donner has previously been looking into possibilities to decrease the drugs tourism in the municipalities in the border areas with Belgium and Germany. He plans to introduce a system with passes and ID cards to ban sales of cannabis to citizens of other EU states.

Donner has agreed on discouraging drugs tourism with other EU Ministers.

 

Translation: Nol van Schaik.

 

Comment:

 

This looks like discrimination, because it excludes non Dutch EU citizens, not the Dutch, American, Egyptian, Mexican etc. citizens of the world!

Donner wants things, but does not get things done, according to the Maastricht Mayor, whom I just watched on a Dutch news program, Editie NL.

 

Mayor Leers of Maastricht admits he talked with Donner about the system with the passes and exclusion of citizens of the 24 other EU states, and said he was willing to cooperate with Donner, if Donner would pay for the costs involved in executing the plan

So far, said Mayor Leers, Donner did not do nor pay anything, so I will solve the problem myself now, for I have a City that is crowded by 1.5 million coffeeshop tourists per year.

That is why I will now move all 16 coffeeshops from the City Centre to an area closer to the (German) border, to a so-called coffeeshop boulevard. All coffeeshops will have to comply, those who will not will loose their license to sell cannabis. This way, the City will be freed from all traffic involved in drugs tourism.

The spokesman for the Maastricht coffeeshop Union does not like the plan, and suggests a number of coffeeshops to be moved to the edge of town, while the other part would reamin in the City. Mayor Leers said that would mean even more work for the police, for there would be two hotspots to cover, instead of one now.

 

As always, contradiction rules, but I think Mayor Leers will win, the two coffeeshop drive in Border Cannabis Outlet in Venlo must be in the back of his mind. This place opened discretely, but it is open, two coffeeshops on two floors of a former trucker restaurant, just across the border from Germany.

 

I’ll keep you posted,

 

Nol van Schaik.

[Pickle]

There is a similar problm in the town i live in.

 

Everyone likes the tourist dollar but the locals are openly hostile to anyone who wasn't born and raised here. I have been living here for 2 years and the only people who are even polite to me are the owners of one of the take away shops, the rest: the butcher, the newsagent, the three pubs, the supermarket, the other take away and any people you happen to meet in these shops or along the main street are sneering, short tempered, snappy and irritable. This is not the way to gain the tourist dollar.

 

I used to live in a quiet coastal town where the people had a sense of local pride but also enjoyed the holiday folk and everything that went with them. This small town didn't use advertising, they relied on word of mouth and every holiday period the caravan parks and camping areas would be full, beach parties every night and the pub would be rockin' with a local bands, the three shops in the town would be raking in the dough and holiday romance always left broken hearts and fond memories.

 

The town i live in now has town meetings to discuss the failing tourism industry and none of them even consider their rudeness and arrogance towards the people who help keep their businesses afloat is a major reason for no one visiting the town.

 

This Dutch Justice Minister Donner realy needs to consider his position, what does he think he is going to gain from turning away coffee shop tourism, which even though it doesn't appeal to him, brings tourist dollars, when he could spend his energy promoting your countries culture, landmarks and history as way to bring more tourists with more money and count his blessings that coffee shop tourism is helping tourism services like motels/hotels, restaraunts and so on to stay afloat and profit?

 

If i ever leave my fine country and visit yours, although a will enjoy visiting coffee shops, i would consider it a waste of a trip if i didn't soak up some local culture and see the sights.

Edited November 20, 2004 by Pickle

[WantDaChronic]

without the drug tourism what will be left :thumbdown

 

im sorta happy about the fact the rest of the world will still be able to purchase :thumbsup but its total discrimination that the rest of the EU wont be able to :thumbdown

[rosscopico0]

It sounds to me that they want to reduce the small time smuggling going on in Europe, cause theyre not preventing anyone else from buying........but wouldnt they be better off targeting the mr bigs???

 

Stupid pollies, do they actually think???

[jackfrost]

I think in general the EU as a whole wil one day in the near future ban all drugs for those countries in the EU, as these countries lose there sovereignty and currency to a few small minded wankers that are trying to control the world and drug industry for themselves.

Those countries in europe that dont join the EU will be forced into ecomonic hardship and punished. The EU is quickly becoming the new world power and it will continue to gain in strength, as it hedges the US dollar to bankruptcy.

 

Jack

[Rheinpirat]

Yea I heart that news- I used to live myself quite close to the boarder and enjoyed a nice spliff there.

 

Not only that- according to EU rights- this is legally considered to be "discrimination" it also undermines the whole idea of Dutch drug politics: The division of the markets that was aspired by the de facto legalisation in Holland would cease, as drug tourism would continue, with the only difference that trourists would buy the stuff from streatdealers. Hopefully the 'project' shows how paradox the situation is. There where is demand, there will be an offer. Economics as simple as that.