[Nicky91]

Amsterdam is a 'lawless jungle' at night according to official city ombudsman
Arre Zuurmond blames tourists from UK and other parts of the Netherlands
Street racing, drug dealing and illegal taxis are all said to be rife in the city
Mr Zuurmond said police were powerless and 'cannot handle the situation'

Amsterdam turns into a 'lawless jungle' after dark with the police powerless to intervene against crime and violence, the city's ombudsman has warned.

Around 18 million tourists visit each year - more than the population of the Netherlands - and authorities have been introducing strict penalties for 'public disturbances'.

They claim groups of 'unruly' young men 'frequently from the UK and other parts of the Netherlands' are causing trouble during stag parties and pub crawls, particularly in the Red Light district.

Official ombudsman Arre Zuurmond told Dutch paper Trouw problems have increased including illegal car and bike racing and open drug trading.

He said: 'The city centre becomes an urban jungle at night. Criminal money flourishes, there is no authority and the police can no longer handle the situation.

Mr Zuurmond said authorities set up three cameras in the busy Leidseplein square ringed by bars and clubs to monitor problems and were shocked at the results.

He said: 'One night we counted 900 offences, mainly between the hours of 2am and 4am. The atmosphere is grim, and there is an air of lawlessness.

'Scooters race through the pedestrian areas. There is a lot of shouting. Drugs are being bought. There is stealing. People pee and even poop on the streets.

'There is violence but no action. You can even pee on the van of a mobile (police) unit and the driver won't say anything.'

Mr Zuurmond, who has moved into the heart of the city for two weeks this summer to observe the problem first hand, also said 2,000 illegal taxis are roaming the streets at nights for fares and a flourishing black market with racketeers dealing in wads of cash.

In the Red Light district 'the streets are so packed in the evenings that there is a very unsafe public situation in the event of a fire or a heart attack as emergency services cannot get through,' he added.

He pointed to measures to clean up the New York underground 20 years ago, by focusing on one station at a time.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...powerless.html

[glibberglobber]

Nicky is it you who is causing all this?

"People pee and even poop on the street"

[Nicky91]

Originally Posted by glibberglobber

Nicky is it you who is causing all this?

no, it is because there's recently a new mayor, Femke Halsema, after the old mayor Eberhard van der laan had died of cancer, under Eberhard as mayor Amsterdam was doing great honestly


so now Femke has the job to follow into a huge legacy from one of the best amsterdam mayors

[Toy Soldier]

Sorry Nicky, and I know it also doesn't help those who live there, but The Netherlands have deliberately and openly been touting Amsterdam as a "tourist hot-spot" for drugs, hookers and stag parties for decades... And that's going to attract a certain sort of person / nightlife. This was pretty much inevitable

[Nicky91]

Originally Posted by Toy Soldier

Sorry Nicky, and I know it also doesn't help those who live there, but The Netherlands have deliberately and openly been touting Amsterdam as a "tourist hot-spot" for drugs, hookers and stag parties for decades... And that's going to attract a certain sort of person / nightlife. This was pretty much inevitable

yeah, a reason i personally don't go there myself

[Matthew.]

amsterdam seems like a right laugh

[kirklancaster]

Nothing eats away at that thin veneer that we call 'Law and Order' more than copious applications of 'Liberalism'.

[Nicky91]

Originally Posted by Matthew.

amsterdam seems like a right laugh

yes it does, i prefer Eindhoven honestly, home of the best dutch football team and light city with the best worldwide light and electronics company from the Netherlands, Philips

[Underscore]

Always the Brits

[Ammi]

..yeah as TS said, it’s an aspect of what Amsterdam is and has been which is inevitable...it’s not all Amsterdam is though..it’s a very beautiful, very cultured, very ‘lawful’ city....it’s one of my most favourite places in the world to visit, although I haven’t been there for quite a few years now...the art, the museums, the churches etc..the Van Gogh Museum is a place of total peace and thought...you don’t ever have to go to areas of other things..I’m not that person that it can attract, TS..but yeah, that bit is there as well...I guess that’s more daytime stuff though...at night..?...again I think the ‘jungle’ is only a very small part in comparison to the beauty...Male/Male couples and female/female couples walking along openly showing affection and love etc with no judgement felt...it’s a beautiful thing....and some excellent restaurants and bars etc...