Jump to content

Cannabis entrepreneur Arjan Roskam takes Dutch state to court on charges of violation of the Dutch constitution.


admin
 Share

Recommended Posts

Press Release – For Immediate Release

Amsterdam, The Netherlands (April 16, 2012) – Cannabis entrepreneur Arjan Roskam takes Dutch state to court on charges of violation of the Dutch constitution.

(Amsterdam) New proposals for anti-drug laws in The Netherlands call for restrictions being placed on who can buy cannabis in infamous Dutch coffee shops. The Dutch government is trying to set up a system that judges people by ethnicity and nationality in violation of the Dutch constitution. Far-right politicians have proposed legislation that would only allow Dutch residents to enter cannabis-selling coffee shops. This legislation would require Dutch residents to register as members of the cannabis-selling coffee shops and would prohibit any foreigners from becoming members. The membership system, also known as the “weed pass”, is not supported by any of the Amsterdam political parties besides the Christian Democratic Party.

Together with a legal team of 4 well-known cannabis-business-branch lawyers, Arjan Roskam (a well-known cannabis entrepreneur) has decided to take the Dutch state to court, claiming the new legislation is a violation of the Dutch constitution. According to Roskam “the introduction of the weed-pass, and banning tourists from coffee shops would only be possible through local regulation on the grounds that the visitors of coffee shops create a public disturbance. The legislation as proposed by the Dutch state calls for a national ban on tourists in coffee shops, however if the local municipality is against the legislation it is not possible for the Dutch state to enforce such a ban.” Roskam continues to explain, “Artikel (or) Clause 1 of the Dutch constitution states that all that are in The Netherlands will be treated equally, discriminating based on religion, lifestyle, political views, race, gender on any ground is not allowed. For this reason, the national ban on tourists visiting coffeeshops would violate our constitutional rights here in the Netherlands by discriminating against foreigners.”

Arjan Roskam and his legal team are scheduled for a court hearing on the 18th of April 2012 where they will challenge the Dutch state for violating the Dutch constitution.

  • Like 13
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Go Arjan ! Respect and best of luck ! you will most definitely win this discriminating foul unjust ban. We get the early 70ies back with people ripping off young smokers trying to get some hash and get black rubber with a small piece of hash glued to it. instead or hash mixed with PVC.. They light it, so you smell it and think wow what a nice piece for 20 gulden..lol

Junkies needing cash for their morning fix hunting for young smokers they can talk off their weed money offering to fetch some good hash/wed - just wait here I go inside and get the dope for you..never seen again..

Both actually happening to me (the 2 german junkies) and a friend (black dealers at Leidseplein). on just one day in 1974 or so before the coffee-shops came in fashion..

This would only lead to hard drug dealers having a renaissance in A'Dams streets selling speed, Acid, coke and Ecstacy besides the cannabis and in worst cases even heroin.

We had all that shit going on and didn't we learn anything out of it ?

This is good business. Imagine no more weed in coffee shops for US and european visitors. Dam's hotels could close down 50% of their rooms in the lower budget aerea .

Good luck.

Thumbs pressed on the 18th !

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Quite rightly so! Thanks and good luck Arjan and legal team on behalf of us tourists :)

I really want to come and smoke some of Holland's finest again :D

Press Release – For Immediate Release Amsterdam, The Netherlands (April 16, 2012) – Cannabis entrepreneur Arjan Roskam takes Dutch state to court on charges of violation of the Dutch constitution. (Amsterdam) Clause 1 of the Dutch constitution states that all that are in The Netherlands will be treated equally, discriminating based on religion, lifestyle, political views, race, gender on any ground is not allowed. For this reason, the national ban on tourists visiting coffeeshops would violate our constitutional rights here in the Netherlands by discriminating against foreigners.†Arjan Roskam and his legal team are scheduled for a court hearing on the 18th of April 2012 where they will challenge the Dutch state for violating the Dutch constitution.

Awesome stuff and good to know! everyone should be treated equally!

I wish you and the team the best, good luck guys

Peace

Link to comment
Share on other sites

@ gitmo if the weed is crap then why do people vist the Dam??? When i went it was some dank budz and i know my budz!!!!

Man trust me the dude is right, i've got, two dutch friends both told me they would get real good weed at 3/5 euros per gram!

Now some of them might go and get a baggy once in a while in Dam center but trust me the weed you're growing can't be that far from Dam's weed.

@Tokage I like your enthusiasm but can you really deny how big a buisness GHSC coffee's are, i mean the one reason i've bought green house seed was because the use to sell the best weed in town. Even if GH doesnt make a dollar from their coffee shop it still remains one of the best advertisment they have...

I love green house and have mad respect for Franco and Arjan but i cant help myself to see the move as a buisness move. I love it as a customer, but i would also love to get that old school GH weed back in the GH coffee shops!

All In all i dont see that shit happening any time soon, speaking with coffee shop owner and just using common sense one could guess that in those crisis time Dutch people are to smart to give to an other country the millions euros generated by the cannabis buisness.

If the coffee shop were to closed, i mean they already are peole selling weed coke and x on the street when weed is legal so youcan guess how it would end up if the coffee shop were made illegal.

If they really outlaw cannabis for tourist spain portugal or italy will jump on that shit sooner than later so dont be scared smokers ;)

Peace!

Ps: Just to be clear i do love Gh dam etc... I know that people from that forum are smart people, open to constructive criticism and that's why i'm not 100% positive on this. I'm still glad Arjan made that move and truly believe as you said toke that he loves the plant. (Youv'e gotta admit that californias "medical marijuana system" seems to do the job though and as far as providing dutch with their stuff well...)

To be truly honnest it would have been easyer for me to be 100% behind someone like Franco who's not the GHSC owner, i kinda consider Arjan as the buisness guy and that might fuck up my own judgment...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

No way man i'm just a loyal customer saying that i wasnt impressed at all by the GH weed in my last trips in Dam...

You've gotta admire the man for beeing a pioneer in the weed buisness, again the only coffee shop i'd use to go was the green house and it is the very reason why i bought GH seeds.

I'm just saying that maybe because GH went so big they dont necesseraly have the time to be on top on everything, i understand that as well, but i believe this place is the best feed back for GH.

I'm not saying i'm not for Arjan move and respect him for doing it first etc but again as a customer i dont feel like his move was any urgency. Franco him self told on that very forum that the coffee shops were in no danger...

If you ask me getting the GH coffee shop back to where they were 3 years ago is far more urgent...

But again i dont mind being bitchy, i love Gh and the comunity it has created-even though i start seeing strain hunter as a total different things because of those vibes i felt at the Gh coffee and that "not that great" weed-i just want to explain my point, i'm a proud GH customer and want them to get back to their old school glory, i'd rather say that GH weed was better than barneys but i cant...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Go Arjan. All I can say is; I suppose it would take a huge pile of cash and a whole lot of conviction to push back when its time. I think thats why you have a big pile of cash in the first place. Thanks for moving on this , I know your bottom line is about forcing the powers that be, to pay attention to the constitutions or at least dont make it worse with wrong ideas or implementing more outdated legislation. You got my support.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There are reasons why the weed in most dutch coffee shops has become less excellent. The police has raided nearly all the big local greenhouses. It is pretty easy to do that once the police got the equipment. Special cameras Internet electricity company bills etc. etc. So most weed in holland is grown in germany, poland and who knows where and it is more difficult to get a steady supply by real skilled + committed growers. Many of those growers are bloody beginners just following orders...Then the latest Hydro craze for maximizing stock has also led to quality being so so. OTH there still is a lot of excellent stuff around. Maybe not that much and every strain on stock.

At least they got the GHS still got the best hash afaik. Ex Cheese Cream.

You cannot compare the californian laws and business with the dutch.

Yu got a perfect climate for top buds in Cali OUTDOORS, no contest with the rainy holland and that spirit to maximize an product on the market , that is a typical Us thing.

These shops can have large supplies, dutch shops are only allowed to have 500 grams in the house at any given time. No wonder the big shops have massive problems supplying the demand. This is why I always tell people to check small local coffee shops like my favorite De Karbouter. They have maybe 2 or 3 dozen customers per day and they have some amazing stuff most of the time. They can chose the best and the most goedkoep, unlike the giants who need to buy whatever they can get. No owner can personally test each strain coming in..lol

Why didn't other large shop owners file a lawsuit ? The Bulldog or Barneys are just as big if I am not mistaken.

Arjan stands behind what he does and if it wasn't for his enterprise mind neither Franco nor The Strainhunters would be doing what they are doing best.

So props where props are due.

Go Arjan, Thumbs up for tomorrow !

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I hope they win the case so it clear the all Amsterdam situation and everyone will be able to book for Htcc without stressing hehe

@Bam-Hole: Thanks for the answer, i never had consider the cali outdoor growing thing (is really most of Dam weed coming out of holland? I knew some was coming from other part of europe but most of it? How is that possible when growing is even less legal in most european country than it is in holland?) it makes a lot of sense.

I wasnt comparing both system buisness wise though, just saying that cali patient had plenty of weed to smoke so would Dutch people. So as far as medical marijuanna the dutch system with the card/pass would make sense...

Your argument made alot of sense though thanks for taking time to answer my questions, you understood my point ;)

Peace

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I do agre on most points, but check that interview by Franco at The Greenhouse, where he says that unlike years before more weed is grown outside of Holland for the local demand than say 10 years ago. The reasons are as you say- There was a Mafia kind of structure in the Arnhem era with murders and arson- You name it - very criminal structures with lots of cash money invvolved, so the police had to do something about it and they did ! Now that the rules and controls of big greenhouses are much stricter they go out for the other sides of the border and check german greenhouse growers to grow large scale. We read about that a lot in the newspapers and I am sure in eastern europe, where electricity is much cheaper AND the laws/controls are very lax there are nuff growers, too.

Of course there is the local grower. One example. My good friend live in Amsterdam since 1985 or so (he passed away 2 years ago and his flat went to his brother) who lived near the Jordaan most of the time had a neighbor with the same small 1 and a half chamber/kitchen flat who grow weed (I think even Sensie Seed began their enterprise at the basement of that house (Van Ostaadestrat 13) - He put Mylar all over the walls and grew whatever he could. You couldn't do that in 2012 anymore I am pretty sure..

Fact is that any big operation greenhouse has a large impact and depends on official supply and the risk is getting too high.

Sure some local growers are doing good I bet, but the Gold rush is passe.

I was pretty shocked to see how A'Dam has changed from the mid 90ies, when I was there every other month and 2007. The police is way more in control. There still is some freedom left, but the observation thing is getting heavy, not as extreme as in the UK, but they are on the same path it seems.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...