AMSTERDAM -- A broad coalition of political parties in the Netherlands unveiled a pilot program to regulate marijuana farming on the model of tobacco, which opponents say would be tantamount to legalizing commercial cultivation. The test program is to be conducted in the southern city of Maastricht. [end]
Opponents of Regulation Say the Move Would Be Tantamount to Legalization AMSTERDAM, Netherlands -- A broad coalition of political parties announced a plan Friday to regulate marijuana farming on the model of tobacco, in what may be the most significant development in Dutch drug policy in years. Opponents in the government said the move would be tantamount to legalization. But the proponents, representing a large majority in parliament, have threatened a showdown if the government tries to block the proposal. Prime Minister Jan-Peter Balkenende and his Christian Democrat party oppose allowing cannabis cultivation because it would set the Netherlands another step apart from the rest of Europe. [continues 275 words]
Coalition of Parties Wants Commodity Treated Like Tobacco -- Virtual Legalization AMSTERDAM - A broad coalition of political parties announced a plan yesterday to regulate marijuana farming on the model of tobacco, in what may be the most significant development in Dutch drug policy in years. Opponents in the government said the move would be tantamount to legalization. But the proponents, representing a large majority in parliament, have threatened a showdown if the government tries to block the proposal. Prime Minister Jan-Peter Balkenende and his Christian Democrat party oppose allowing cannabis cultivation because it would set the Netherlands another step apart from the rest of Europe. [continues 448 words]
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands - A field reporter for a new Dutch television talk show plans to use heroin and other illegal drugs on the air during the weekly program on issues that concern young people, producers said Wednesday. The announcement of "Shoot Up and Swallow," scheduled to premiere Oct. 10, sparked an outcry. Even in the liberal Netherlands, where marijuana is sold and used openly, the proposed drug use by reporter Filemon Wesselink is illegal. "This is dangerous and it sets a bad example," said Pieter Heerma, spokesman for the governing center-right Christian Democrat party. "We're going to ask the justice minister for his view on what the law says about this, and his view on the dangers and risks involved." [continues 344 words]
The country that unleashed Big Brother on an unsuspecting world has taken reality television a step further: a late-night talkshow whose presenters will consume drugs and engage in sex acts on air, then discuss their experiences afterwards. The live Spuiten & Slikken show - which can be translated either as Inject & Swallow or Ejaculate & Swallow - starts on October 10 on the Dutch youth channel BNN, which last upset viewer sensibilities with a programme entitled This is How You Screw. "We're not setting out to shock, but to inform," said a show producer, Sjoerd van den Broek. "The idea is to treat these subjects like a piece of theatre, to review them if you like. There's been endless idle chat about these matters, but never an adult critique." [continues 178 words]
The DB NachtZug leaves Berlin at 10:25 p.m. In the bar car, it's hard to tell what time period the train is travelling through. The waiter is Fred Astaire. A would-be Gertrude Stein scribbles poetry furiously into her journal, then crosses it out, scribbles and crosses, scribbles and crosses. Beside us there's a pipe smoker in tweed with a waxed moustache. And in the corner are Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda, circa Easy Rider, ordering drinks six at a time. They're on their way to Amsterdam to smoke pot, after directing a spate of commercials. As the train clatters into the night, the bar car slowly empties, and the passengers dream their way through an old century. [continues 1491 words]
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands - The Dutch Health Ministry, unhappy with legal sales of medical marijuana through pharmacies, will re-evaluate its program later this year and may close it, a spokesman said yesterday. In a country where unauthorized marijuana has been easily available for decades, the government was surprised to find that prescription marijuana produced under stringent quality controls has been far less successful than predicted, said Health Ministry spokesman Bas Kuik. The government is selling less than one-third of the marijuana it thought it would and is losing money, said Mr. Kuik. Doctors who had lobbied for legalizing prescription marijuana in the 1990s failed to prescribe it once it was available in drugstores. Sales began in September 2003 and fell flat, Mr. Kuik said. [continues 57 words]
Netherlands: Famed 'Coffee Shops' Undercut Medical Marijuana AMSTERDAM (AP) -- The Dutch Health Ministry, unhappy with legal sales of medical marijuana through pharmacies, will reevaluate its program later this year and may close it, a spokesman said Monday. In a country where unauthorized marijuana has been easily available for decades, the government was surprised to find that prescription marijuana produced under stringent quality controls has been far less successful than predicted, said Health Ministry spokesman Bas Kuik. The Dutch were considering their reassessment as the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Monday that users of medical marijuana could be prosecuted under federal law even if their doctors had prescribed it legally according to state law. [continues 681 words]
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands - The Dutch Health Ministry, unhappy with legal sales of medical marijuana through pharmacies, will re-evaluate its program later this year and may close it, a spokesman said Monday. In a country where unauthorized marijuana has been available easily for decades, the government was surprised to find that prescription marijuana produced under stringent quality controls has been far less successful than predicted, Health Ministry spokesman Bas Kuik said. The Dutch were considering their reassessment as the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Monday that users of medical marijuana could be prosecuted under federal law even if their doctors had prescribed it legally according to state law. [continues 176 words]
HOLLAND is planning to pilot a scheme to prevent tourists buying cannabis joints in coffee shops. Soft drugs are banned in the Netherlands but under its policy of tolerance, people are allowed to have up to 5g of cannabis in their possession. Government-regulated coffee shops can hold a stock of up to 500g. This policy has made the country, and Amsterdam in particular, a centre for "drug tourism". However, Ivo Hommes, a justice ministry spokesman, said: "We are developing a system whereby people not registered in the Netherlands will not be allowed into coffee shops." [continues 81 words]
Tourists hoping to buy a cannabis joint in Dutch coffee shops could be in for a rude awakening this year under a test plan to curb drug tourism. Soft drugs are legally banned in the Netherlands but under its policy of "tolerance", people are allowed to have less than 5 grams of cannabis in their possession. Government-regulated coffee shops can hold a stock of up to 500 grams. "We are developing a system whereby people not registered in the Netherlands will not be allowed into coffee shops," Justice Ministry spokesman Ivo Hommes said. [continues 380 words]
Amsterdam falls out of love with coffee shops as liberal stance on drugs begins to crumble For the past 18 years Michael Veling and his staff have been serving up such delights as White Widow and Blueberry in his wood-panelled coffee shop in the heart of Amsterdam. For as little as 805 (UKP 3.50) visitors can smoke a cannabis joint in Cafe De Kuil and sip a beer while listening to music ranging from Frank Zappa to Mozart. The 50-year-old bar owner and political activist said: "My main concern is to make sure there is a good mix of people at my coffee shop and that they get the best quality grass and marijuana." [continues 723 words]
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands -- A Dutch magazine was including an unusual freebie with its latest issue - two marijuana seeds in a small plastic bag. Nieuwe Revu Editor-in-Chief Mark Koster said the move was a publicity stunt accompanying the January 26 issue, which advocates legalising marijuana and other banned substances. Although Holland is famous for tolerating the sale of small amounts of marijuana and hashish in coffee shops, both are technically illegal and the government prosecutes possession of more than several grams. [continues 85 words]
Filled with men in business suits on mobile phones and featuring seminars on credit sales and production relocation, the international hemp fair has left behind its hippie image. Some 16,000 visitors were expected between Friday and Sunday at the 8th Highlife Hemp Fair - a mix between a motor show and an agricultural exhibition with even bikini-clad women distributing company prospectuses. However, any visitor spending some time at the show eventually knows what it means to be a "passive smoker". [continues 464 words]
TUCKED away in a quiet corner of this Dutch port city, Seniorenpand looks like an ordinary retirement home. Comfortable sofas huddle around a television set in the lounge. Puzzles and tattered paperbacks fill the shelves nearby. Residents chat about the weather over tea and coffee. But this retirement home has a twist. In the bedrooms, the elderly get high on heroin and cocaine. "I have been using drugs most of my adult life, and I can't stop now," says Gert-Jan, a 62-year-old resident. "Being old doesn't mean your addiction just goes away." [continues 410 words]
Loses Everything After Criticizing Price Of Government Drug Medicinal Marijuana Program Cautionary Tale For Canada NAALDWIJK, Netherlands--At James Burton's plantation in the heart of Holland's flower growing region, the faint smell of marijuana hangs in the air like a memory of happier times. "I thought I had reached nirvana," Burton says, surveying a huge greenhouse almost empty of the cannabis plants that once filled it. "Instead, financially, I lost everything." Burton had reason to believe heavenly bliss had arrived. [continues 1443 words]
BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) - Dutch Justice Minister Piet Hein Donner announced yesterday that access to popular Dutch 'coffee shops' to smoke marijuana could be cut for foreigners - including other EU citizens - as part of a new European Union drugs control policy. Donner, whose country holds the EU presidency, said a meeting of EU justice and interior ministers agreed on guidelines for setting up an eight-year drugs action plan in the 25-nation bloc. Under the strategy, EU countries would coordinate efforts to cut supplies of soft and hard drugs, as well as demand, through prevention programs and police enforcement. [continues 321 words]
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands - There's a whiff of crisis in the air at the Dutch Health Ministry: It's sitting on a pile of pot that it just can't sell. The Netherlands rolled out a program last year that allows patients to buy prescription marijuana at any pharmacy. Some medical insurance policies cover at least part of the cost, but often not enough to offset the pharmacy price. In a country where any adult can walk into a "coffee shop" and smoke a joint for much less than the government price, many say the experiment is a bust. [continues 149 words]
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands - There's a whiff of crisis in the air at the Dutch Health Ministry: It's sitting on a pile of pot that it just can't sell. The Netherlands rolled out a program last year that allows patients to buy prescription marijuana at any pharmacy. Some medical insurance policies cover at least part of the cost, but often not enough to offset the pharmacy price. In a country where any adult can walk into a "coffee shop" and smoke a joint for much less than the government price, many say the experiment is a bust. [continues 596 words]
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands -- There's a whiff of crisis in the air at the Dutch Health Ministry: It's sitting on a pile of pot that it just can't sell. The Netherlands rolled out a program last year that allows patients to buy prescription marijuana at any pharmacy. Some medical insurance policies cover at least part of the cost, but often not enough to offset the pharmacy price. In a country where any adult can walk into a "coffee shop" and smoke a joint for much less than the government price, many say the experiment is a bust. [continues 187 words]
Inside Netherlands
