Amsterdam Cannabis Shop Will Close Doors For Foreign Tourists

Footage of a marijuana shop in Amsterdam in the film Eurotrip (Source: IMDB)

JAKARTA - Foreign tourists will be prohibited from entering coffee shops that also sell marijuana in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. This is part of a plan to prevent organized crime. The Netherlands also wants to cut back on drug tourism, which has drawn reactions from many residents and business owners.

Quoting The Guardian, Tuesday, January 12, 2021, this decision was supported by the police and prosecutors, even the Mayor of Amsterdam Femke Halsema. He has put forward a proposal allowing only Dutch residents to enter the 166 coffee shops selling marijuana. This policy is likely to take effect in 2022.

Government research shows 58 percent of foreign tourists visiting Amsterdam come to consume marijuana, said Halsema. While other research suggests Amsterdam would support fewer than 70 stalls selling marijuana if only locals were served.

"Amsterdam is an international city and we want to attract tourists, but because of its wealth, beauty and cultural institutions," said Halsema, adding that the marijuana market is too big and has a lot to do with organized crime.

Halsema said Amsterdam could remain open, friendly and tolerant. But at the same time it will make life more difficult for criminals and reduce mass tourism with low budgets.

Marijuana is technically illegal in the Netherlands. However, possession of less than five grams of cannabis was decriminalized in 1976 under a "policy of tolerance." Production remains illegal, but coffee shops are allowed to sell marijuana.

Halsema said the move would take months to become effective as there would need to be a consultation and transition period for coffee shop owners. Halsema also wants to first introduce schemes for approved vendors.

Similar bans are already in place in cities like Maastricht and Den Bosch. This is due to complaints that many visitors smoke marijuana and then cross the borders of Belgium, Germany and France.

Fearing a street market running out of control, Amsterdam does not impose a criterion for coffee shops selling marijuana which account for about one-third in the Netherlands. Instead, authorities banned smoking marijuana in some parts of the city and closed individual shops.

Driven by cheap flights and online ticket booking, the number of tourists in Amsterdam, a city of 850,000 inhabitants, soars to nearly 20 million visitors a year. Many of them are young and have limited budgets. There will be more than 29 million visitors expected by 2025.

The city has taken several steps to reduce overcrowding and disruption caused by over-tourism in the city center. The Amsterdam government is now limiting the number of shops that target visitors, putting pressure on Airbnb, halting new hotel construction and raising taxes.