quote dominixe :
Seems like the pendulum has swung again from liberalism to conservatism. No sex, marijuana or mushrooms in Holland?
This article has received quite a bit of coverage in Europe, but comes across as being sensationalist and misleading. Comments from punters:
Newsweek article of last night...
Is the party over?
The reality is that one of the major players in the sex industry has been pressured into "voluntarily" selling his property in the area, which amounts to about a third of the shop windows in
ONE of Amsterdam's Red Light Districts (RLDs). No one can predict the future with certainty, but prostitution remains legal in the Netherlands, and there are currently no stated plans to reduce the RLD further.
"The mayor denies wanting to rid Amsterdam of prostitution altogether – a move which would create enormous headaches for tourism authorities, as well as denting the city's revenues. But he is concerned the surfeit of sleaziness is turning the area into a mecca of drug dealing and petty crime. 'It is not about chasing prostitution out of the Wallen,' the mayor said. 'What we do want is to get rid of the underlying criminality.'"
What is not generally known is that there are two other RLDs in Amsterdam which are not in the least affected. Sure, they are smaller in scale, but being off the beaten (sex) tourist track, they are allegedly cheaper and more laid back than the main RLD in the Wallen. (Note: I have no first hand experience of this - a 10 minute encounter behind a screen in a shop window is NOT my style!).
It's also not generally known that most other major cities in the Netherlands have similar (smaller scale) RLDs, and some Belgian cities too. I didn't realise this myself until I took a train trip to Antwerp one day. As my train pulled out of Brussels North station, I casually glanced out of the window, and was amazed to get a close up view of a row of red-lit windows, with bored-looking women lazing around in their lingerie. Note for anyone planning a trip from Brussels to Antwerp: get a window seat on the right of the carriage on your departure from Brussels, and of course, a seat on your left as you return ;-)
