|
Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
|
|
Netherlands: Amsterdam hopes haze of pot will help subdue fans MICHAEL HARVEY Times, The (UK) Saturday 10 Jun 2000 Date: 10 Jun, 2000 Source: Times, The (UK) Amsterdam hopes haze of pot will help subdue fans BY MICHAEL HARVEY EUROPE'S most libertarian city was nervously preparing to lay down the law last night to tens of thousands of football fans before the start of the Euro 2000. Hundreds of hooligans are expected to test Amsterdam's liberal principles to the limit. The city authorities are determined to extend as warm a welcome as possible. All the coffee shops, where cannabis is openly sold and smoked, will do a roaring trade, the hundreds of bars will be filled to overflowing and business is also expected to be brisk in the red-light district. Dutch and British police intelligence have highlighted Amsterdam as a favoured venue for suspected hooligans. Yesterday the first groups of English fans were beginning to gather in some of the main bars. Large steins of lager and a tendency to take off their football shirts in the hot sunshine marked them out from the milling crowds of other sightseers. The talk among local people is about how much the Brits drink and how violent they are going to be. However, in the coffee shops overlooking the canals, the haze of cannabis smoke is expected to neutralise some of the aggression. There are more than 230 coffee shops in the city and the average cost of cannabis, usually many times stronger than that available in Britain, is about UKP15 for a 5g bag. Many shops have been granted extended licences and some are installing large television screens to cash in on the tournament. Thousands of police will be on duty, mostly out of sight, with rapid response units of riot police on standby. Marleen Nieuwenhuis, spokesman for the civil authorities, said: "We want to give a hearty welcome but if anyone threatens public order we will act very firmly." Space is provided for more than 1,000 who can be detained for up to 12 hours if police believe they are a threat to public order. A wing of the main prison has been set aside and in the western port area a hangar has been equipped for more than 500 detainees with pens segregating fans from different countries and toilet facilities. Mattresses will be provided overnight and a huge video screen will show matches.
After you have finished reading this article you can click here to go back.
|
This page was created by the Cannabis Campaigners' Guide.
Feel free to link to this page!