Cannabis shops go up in smoke
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Reuters
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Kasım 24, 2008 00:00
AMSTERDAM - Almost a fifth of Amsterdam's popular marijuana-selling coffee shops are to be closed because they are too close to schools, the city council said Friday. Of the 228 such shops in the Dutch capital, 43 must close by the end of 2011 because they are within 250 meters of a secondary school, the council said
But the city, home to a quarter of the nation's cannabis coffee shops that are a big draw for tourists, threw its support behind a controversial Dutch policy permitting the sale of "soft drugs."
"There should be a system introduced in which it is clear where soft drugs come from," the city said in a statement.
In addition to marijuana, deemed a soft drug, some cafes also sell so-called "magic mushrooms," which have psychedelic properties. The policy on soft drugs in the Netherlands allows for the sale of marijuana at coffee shops, which the Dutch have allowed to operate since the 1960s, and possession of less than 5 grams. But the cultivation or supply of the drug to the shops, the so-called "back door" of the business, is banned. The policy is not without critics and Dutch mayors will meet on Friday to discuss a possible revamp.
The meeting was called after Bergen op Zoom and Roosendaal, located near the Belgian border, said recently they will close all coffee shops in their jurisdiction within two years to combat drug tourism and criminality, Dutch media has reported.
"There should be a system introduced in which it is clear where soft drugs come from," the city said in a statement.
In addition to marijuana, deemed a soft drug, some cafes also sell so-called "magic mushrooms," which have psychedelic properties. The policy on soft drugs in the Netherlands allows for the sale of marijuana at coffee shops, which the Dutch have allowed to operate since the 1960s, and possession of less than 5 grams. But the cultivation or supply of the drug to the shops, the so-called "back door" of the business, is banned. The policy is not without critics and Dutch mayors will meet on Friday to discuss a possible revamp.
The meeting was called after Bergen op Zoom and Roosendaal, located near the Belgian border, said recently they will close all coffee shops in their jurisdiction within two years to combat drug tourism and criminality, Dutch media has reported.