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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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Netherlands: Now's the time for some real Dutch tolerance Marc Chavannes nrchandelsblad Friday 12 Dec 2008 For centuries the Netherlands has been seen as a place where there is more personal freedom. In many respects this is true. But it does not come from a desire to be progressive. Rather, Dutch tolerance has traditionally evolved from pragmatic compromises, whether they be about unorthodox religious beliefs or prostitution. In this way, the Dutch decided to tolerate the sale of soft drugs in 1976. The act of reconciling sharply opposing standpoints in a workable compromise is called "gedogen" in Dutch, which translates as tolerating or turning a blind eye to something that is actually illegal. This does not only apply to sex and drugs, but to pollution laws and many other things besides. The Dutch fool themselves that they have strict laws while allowing them to be circumvented in favour of the economy. Via the back door The idea behind the coffee shops was to separate the sale of soft drugs from hard drugs thereby decriminalising the former. Both categories of drugs are banned under narcotics legislation. But the recreational consumption of cannabis was tolerated so the authorities could focus on fighting the bigger crime of peddling hard drugs. This veil of compromise has for years concealed a conundrum. Under the deal, the owner of the coffee shop is allowed to stock 500 grams of marijuana and customers aged 18 or over may purchase 5 grams a day for personal use. But many coffee shops sell far more of the drug than they are technically allowed to stock. So where does the rest of the stuff come from? That it arrives via the back door is no secret. Suppliers and growers run the risk of being arrested. Marijuana greenhouses are being raided and shut. The use of soft drugs in the Netherlands is lower than in many countries with a strict ban, and Holland has fewer old junkies. Thus why is there now talk about banning coffee shops, as Pieter van Geel, leader of the Christian Democrat parliamentary party recently, suggested? Of course an influx of foreign soft-drug tourists is annoying. If it helps to move coffee shops to industrial parks on the edge of cities as the city of Venlo is doing then all well and good. But there is no real reason to ditch the current policy and drive the sale of soft drugs back onto the streets and into the hands of criminals. To smoke or not to smoke Sometimes things get complicated. The introduction of a tobacco smoking ban in the summer means you can smoke marijuana in a coffee shop but not a cigarette. Explain that to an outsider! When the smoking ban was introduced, there seemed to be general agreement in society that non-smokers should not be subjected to the fumes of smokers in cafés and restaurants. Now it appears the alcohol-nicotine mix was essential, without it local cafes will die. As a recent large protest at the ban in The Hague showed, a measure to protect public health that appeared to be socially acceptable has produced intolerance. To me the solution seems to be simple: designate some cafés smoke-free and others not. Long live the coffee shop Following the mass influx of immigrants which changed the colour and religious base of Dutch cities and villages, things went awry and traditional tolerance turned into indifference. This has led to a struggle in the Labour party [the second biggest party in the coalition government] between a tough and a soft approach to problems related to immigrants. And to their coalition partner the Christian Democrats' hard line on soft drugs. The Netherlands, it appears, has to reinvent where real tolerance starts and ends. It is absurd to ban the supply of magic mushrooms as Holland is doing because every now and again a hallucinating tourist jumps off a bridge. How many people daily destroy their lives and the lives of their families by hitting the bottle? Fortunately from a very early age the Dutch are properly informed of the pros and cons of sex, drugs, alcohol and tobacco. My advice would then be: use what you want, at an age that you can cope, providing you indulge in moderation. More one cannot say. Prohibition in America delivered little success last century - as the war on drugs is delivering now. The Netherlands is unique thanks to its tolerance based on common sense. Those who would rather play netball or go shopping on a Saturday (and stay indoors for religious reasons on Sunday) should be able to. But banning these pastimes on a Sunday (as some want to do) is going past the limit. People should not be forced to inhale the fumes of smokers. But long live the smokers' cafe. And the coffee shop. http://www.nrc.nl/international/opinion/article2091206.ece/Nows_the_time_for_some_real_Dutch_tolerance
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