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Dutch Coffeeshops to close - UN pressure!

Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
The UN is also putting pressure on the Dutch government, for allowing cannabis coffeeshops to operate, as always, but this time, with a conservative Minister of Justice in Holland, in an already fallen cabinet, the new government will comply with the UN criticism, by trying to close as many coffeeshops as they can, within the limitations of the Dutch National Coffeeshop Policy.

Minister Donner’s plans for the new governments stance on coffeeshops have already leaked out, he wants to close 400 of the 800 regulated coffeeshops in the Netherlands.

The same Minister Donner that said he would not close the coffeeshops under pressure of Sweden and France, is now about to bow for the demands of the UN, by shouting out loud he will close all coffeeshops he can. Donner also admits the coffeeshops policy is up to the individual Mayor of the City or Municipality, and not a matter of the government, they only set out some shady guidelines in 1976.

This means that he will have to rely on the Mayors, to get his will done, this will turn out a mayor problem for Donner, coffeeshops have been accepted as a part of society in the Municipalities they are located, without causing any problems. Coffeeshops are registered leisure companies, they can not be closed by Minister Donner, he could forbid the sales of cannabis from coffeeshops, but then, who will maintain his Law?

No matter how I feel about it, if the UN and Donner manage to make the Dutch cannabis policy collaps, it will have its impact on all developments on cannabis legislation in the world, we, the coffeeshops, will finally be held up as an example, of the success of prohibition.

All together, this look like a worldwide attack on cannabis and coffeeshops, initiated by the UN and the US, who seemed to have reached agreement over the world endangering cannabis issue! The War on Cannabis has started…where is CNN?

- issued by Nol van Schaik, cannabis coffeeshop owner in Holland, co-founder of the deceased Dutch Experience coffeeshop, Stockport, UK.

:mad: :mad: :mad:

Comments

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    Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    :rolleyes:

    Two steps foward, three steps back.
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    Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    The problem is the big divide in the EU over what to do with cannabis, Portugal and the Swiz have or are going to relax the law on a wide amount of drugs, where as the Sweeds and the French are moving the other way.
    That and the UK is limping slowly towards sort of downgrading the law.
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    Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Oh and yes I do know that the Swiz arent part of the EU, I was talking geographicaly.
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    Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    :banghead: :rolleyes: :mad:
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    Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Here's the latest from Nol:

    Future Dutch Government wants to close 400 coffeeshops.

    Haarlem, the Netherlands, Feb 27, 2003
    By: Nol van Schaik, coffeeshopowner in the Netherlands.

    It starting to become clear that some of the Dutch cannabis coffeeshops are going to have a hard time in the near future, as soon as the new government is installed. The coalition that will be in power in the Dutch parliament, the Tweede Kamer, will consist of the CDA, a Christian Conservative party, and the PvdA, the major Dutch Socialist Party.

    The CDA has always been against coffeeshops, they want a zero-tolerance policy, but could not get any support for that in their latest attempt to rule Holland, with List Fortuyn (LPF) and the VVD.

    The LPF was in favour of full legalisation of cannabis, so a status quo was the only alternative, meaning the coffeeshops were left alone. The coalition only lasted 86 days, the new elections were last January, the CDA and the PvdA ended up as the two biggest parties in the Netherlands, and together they have enough Chairs to makeup a majority in government.

    The PvdA was involved in the two previous cabinets, which came up with the current cannabis policy in 1996, that policy, following the AHOJG criteria, caused the closure of about 650 coffeeshops since then.

    Today, the PvdA stated they agree with the CDA on their stance towards coffeeshops, a major disappointment for a lot of cannabis smokers that voted PvdA, like myself. The PvdA feels that coffeeshops in the surrounding of schools should be closed at short notice, like the CDA suggests.

    Van Heemst, the PvdA spokesman: “Years ago, we agreed that coffeeshops would be prohibited to be located near places where a lot of kids come together. In practice, I still see them there, in Rotterdam there is even a coffeeshop opposite a school for children with correctional education.”

    Donner, the present and new Minister of Justice, expects to be able to close 400 coffeeshops, out of the current 800, a decrease of 50%!

    Donner’s plans to act tough against coffeeshops will have a majority in the Tweede Kamer, the VVD is in favour too, who now state they already agreed upon that in the previous coalition, another group of backstabbers, they too participated in the Purple coalition, with the PvdA.

    Donner’s motivation for his crusade against cannabis is the Gateway theory, supposing that the use of cannabis will lead to the use of hard drugs, an old story, which has been found unfounded based on research in many countries, even the USA.

    Minister Donner does not seem to know how the Dutch figures on drug use and –abuse compare to the other countries in the EU, Holland is only 12th of the EU in cannabis consumption, with coffeeshops!

    Donner just bows for international pressure, but closing 50% of the coffeeshops will not make much of an impression to the critics, they want them all shut, and all cannabis growers locked up, like in the USA, they even lock people up for selling waterpipes!

    I suspect Donner is in bed with the DEA, they have about 80 agents in The Hague, so they must have been at least in touch with our Minister of Justice.

    Belgium is going to decriminalise the possession of 5 grams of cannabis for personal use, and the cultivation of 1 cannabis plant per person in March 2003, how long will the UN and the US allow that country to ‘step out of bounds’? I am sure the DEA in Brussels are already at it.

    END

    :mad:
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    Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Well the Swiz are moving further than most and they dont really have a history of bowing to pressure from anyone.

    I think the war is already lost, but not really even for the health issues, or personal liberty or any of the reasons that are put against the law as it stands. The police in the UK just dont have the money to enforce it, its the expence of the whole thing that will bring about a change and not really anything else.
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