Amsterdam To Close Many Of Its Brothels, Marijuana Cafes, Sex Shops

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands — Amsterdam unveiled plans Saturday to close brothels, sex shops and marijuana cafes in its ancient city center as part of a major effort to drive organized crime out of the tourist haven.

The city is targeting businesses that "generate criminality," including gambling parlors, and the so-called "coffee shops" where marijuana is sold openly. Also targeted are peep shows, massage parlors and souvenir shops used by drug dealers for money-laundering.

"I think that the new reality will be more in line with our image as a tolerant and crazy place, rather than a free zone for criminals" said Lodewijk Asscher, a city council member and one of the main proponents of the plan.

The news comes just one day after Amsterdam's mayor said he would search for loopholes in new rules laid down by the national government that would close marijuana cafes near schools citywide. The measures announced Saturday would affect about 36 coffee shops in the center itself _ a little less than 20 percent of the city total.

Asscher underlined that the city center will remain true to its freewheeling reputation.

"It'll be a place with 200 windows (for prostitutes) and 30 coffee shops, which you can't find anywhere else in the world _ very exciting, but also with cultural attractions," he said. "And you won't have to be embarrassed to say you came."

Under the plan announced Saturday, Amsterdam will spend euro30 million to euro40 million ($38 million to $51 million) to bring hotels, restaurants, art galleries and boutiques to the center. It will also build new underground parking areas.

Amsterdam already had plans to close many brothels and some coffee shops, but plans announced Saturday go further.

Asscher said the city would reshape the area, using zoning rules, buying out businesses and offering assistance to upgrade stores. The city has shut brothels and sex clubs in the past by relying on a law allowing the closure of businesses with bookkeeping irregularities.

Prostitution will be allowed only in two areas in the district _ notably De Wallen ("The Walls"), a web of streets and alleys around the city's medieval retaining dam walls. The area has been a center of prostitution since before the city's golden shipping age in the 1600s.

Prostitution was legalized in the Netherlands in 2000, formalizing a long-standing tolerance policy.

Marijuana is technically illegal in the Netherlands, but prosecutors won't press charges for possession of small amounts. Coffee shops are able to sell it openly.

Comments

[kingmiller]

What, did Giulliani suddenly get elected mayor of Amesterdam? F%@k! Now everywhere is Disneyland and has a robotic vaccum cleaner at the ready!

[boing007]

KarateKid

Hard drugs, like cocaine and heroin; human trafficking from Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia; money laundering, you name it.

That tells me that the policing of this seamy side of freewheeling Amsterdam is being undermined by corrupt politicians, police and port authorities. They are not doing their job properly.

[boing007]

If the Netherlands feels it needs to exert some reasonable control, verywell. Let's not criticize her until she's as barbaric as the vast majority of enlightened countries around the world are right now.

This is just a step by step reduction of individual rights that will continue apace unless we do something about it. Time to fight back now before it becomes too late.

[on2them]

It is too late. They have been working on this for years. Amsterdam is not the same and everyone knows it. It is going conservative to meld with the EU.

In coffee shops, they also extended the no smoking zone so one can smoke grass but if you mix tobacco which many do over there, they have undercover tobacco police who write out expensive tickets.

They also made all of the coffee shops chose between liquor or smoke, which has completely devastated the once thriving shops into complete emptiness.

It will never be the same again.

[boing007]

If that's the case, then all buses, taxis, cars, trucks and other pollution producing vehicles should be banned from city streets and neighborhoods.

I should have added all factories, manufacturing plants, chemical and biological labs and offices that contribute daily to the greenhouse effect across the country.

[Bongborg]

Bah. Clean it up so the tourists don't see it. WTF do they think tourists go to Amsterdam for, anyway? To go to coffeeshops, smoke weed and hash, and look at whores in shopping windows. Idiots.

[Brillig]

Some of us go to visit the country - we have whores here

[Bongborg]

You mean right there with you naked right now?

[boing007]

I think it is right to forbid smoking in public places since it is crazy to expose innocent people to a toxic substance for the pleasure of a minority.

If that's the case, then all buses, taxis, cars, trucks and other pollution producing vehicles should be banned from city streets and neighborhoods.

[boing007]

NoPCZone

The Islamification of Europe gains traction should have been the headline. Underneath the public comments are pressures to make The Netherlands a more socially conservative society.

To my friends in Holland- tolerance is the mark of an open society and tolerance by individuals and groups of actions and behaviors of others is the price of everyone else's tolerance of your differences.

My memories of my time in Europe ( I lived there for about 3 years back in the 1980's ) remind me that in most places one had to look for sexual establishments and the like. Most casual visitors wouldn't even notice. I guess the EU wants to remake Western Europe into a Disneyfied version of itself. I hear you can't even light up in a bar or club in Paris anymore. Doesn't sound like the Europe I fondly remember.

PC=Friendly Fascism. Look no further than New York Mayor Bloomberg.

[Brillig]

Why do nastiness and perversion deserve more tolerance than the norm?

NORMAL people need space too!

IT seems, if you want to be heard, you just do something immoral or perverted and bingo! you have rights - which infringe on the rights of the majority

[NoPCZone]

Having been to Amsterdam, I don't recall having seen people shagging in public- or toking a fattie either. I have seen both in N.Y.C., where there are strict public anti-smoking laws, anti-porno ordinances and laws against public lewd behavior.

[JohnDewey]

"Nastiness and perversion"? "NORMAL"?

Is that you, Larry Craig? Welcome to the Huffington Post! Now, please take that stick out of your a$$ and explain to the rest of us what, exactly, `normal' is.

[hortonhearsawho]

Its so Las Vegas, but as its own country.

[eatyourveggies]

It's funny how often conservatives such as Bush proclaim their "freedom" and "liberty." There was a period when Bush used either word in every other sentence.

But conservatives are the least free among us. Their list of "not allowed" to do, say, see, hear or touch is so long it wraps around them like a straight jacket.

But then they're not even aware of the prison that they've constructed to live in for the rest of their only life.

Oh well, too bad for them. The Dutch are among the most free of all people. Bravo to them.

[jake106]

Stop generalizing about a group that makes up almost 50% of the country. It doesn't work.

It would be just a silly for me to say that it is tragic that liberals all go through their life without any belief in God. It must be sad to have no hope for the afterlife.

See how stupid that sounds?

[Bongborg]

That's not fair. Conservatives have more experience sounding stupid. Do you have to cheat at everything?

[Brillig]

Doesn't sound stupid to me at all...I am amazed that just in order to promote tolerance of alternative lifestyles - whether as pertains to sexuality, drug use, gender, many liberals seem to feel it is ok to just mock or ignore GOD.

God made homosexuals, I guess, so to ignore HIM while defending their "rights" seems pretty silly. HE made prostitutes, pedophiles.

The fact that these people insist on going their own way does not deny the existence of GOD- merely proves the existence of an Anti-God force.

But, just as there is hot and cold, night and day, happy and sad, all types will exist and we need not overly concern ourselves about them - to say we 'tolerate' night and 'celebrate' day is ridiculous - we don't think about them at all, and just accept that they ARE.

Let the wheat and the tares grow together until the day of judgment, I say.

However, the "tares" need not think, that my tolerance means they are going to flout my beliefs or mock them.

[hortonhearsawho]

So, its just Bags to go now?

[hortonhearsawho]

tourism drops overnight...

[Flagrantlover]

Once Amsterdam goes conservative, it's all over in Europe.

I hope their real motives are to clean up organized crime and not just suppress indulgence.

That would be tragic!!!

[netzwerg]

They are talking about closing 20% of the existing coffee shops. I live in Amsterdam and the number of coffee shops became really too much. There are about 500 coffee-shops in amsterdam, so closing 100 would not make a big difference anyway.
By the way, coffee shops are not only in amsterdam, but in every dutch city you can find some.

Dont be afraid, europeans are much much much more reasonable about these issues than the US.

[omeo2013]

I suspect his has less to do with making Amsterdam safe for tourists and more to do with the political party that's running their parliament now: The Christian Democrats. There WILL still be coffee shops around in the future; there'll just be less of them. Amsterdam will remain the city of freedom and enlightenment for a long time to come.

[netzwerg]

there are about 500 coffee shops in amsterdam. in 5 minutes walking distance around my house here are about 20 alone. I actually live in a awesome part of town right near Museumsplein in an awesome old mercant 18th century building, but coffee-shops spread like nothing else in the last years, so i wouldn't mind closing some of them. You wont find many "amsterdamers" in there anyways, mostly tourists. Amsterdamers like me know where to get the real good weed, not the stuff they sell to tourists overpriced.

[wutheflip]

Well, if that's the case, I guess I'll just stay home then... aw, shucks

[firewmn]

I had a dang good time when I went in 2002 and have planned on going back in 2010 when the have the 10 year annual flower shows/displays.. Spectacular... and maybe I can get to the VanGough museum then too.. I was a little busy in a "fine" corner cafe for a couple of dazes....(!)

[firewmn]

oooppss. I mean 2012.. I just guess my typo addition proves how bad I wanna get there..!