THC Entrepreneurs: Cannabis shops in Dutch city object to Weedpass, get Hallmark instead

HAARLEM, The Netherlands--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Dutch City of Haarlem has 16 tolerated coffeeshops, which are all united in THC, Team Haarlems' Coffeeshop-entrepreneurs. The Mayor of Haarlem does not want to introduce the Weedpass in his City, instead he wants to issue the local coffeeshops a Hallmark.

“Our Mayor also happens to be the Chairman of the Dutch Union of Mayors, he told us he will send the Hallmark-system to all his colleagues, in order to hold it up as an alternative for the Weedpass.”

Mayor Schneiders states that with the Hallmark it will be easier to avoid trouble around coffeeshops, by working together with the entrepreneurs. It will also secure a safe place for all visitors and prevent any youth to be able to enter the coffeeshops. The Hallmark will lead to an even better cooperation between the City and the coffeeshops, as they share the responsibility to observe and act in case of any disorder in and around the coffeeshops.

The Hallmark is the result of years of cooperation between the City and the 16 THC members. In 25 years of coffeeshop policy in Haarlem there has not been any criminal charges against or about the coffeeshops. THC has been communicating with the Mayor and the City Council about the local coffeeshop policy since its establishment in April 2010.

The Mayor's decision to come up with an alternative for the Weedpass may also have been influenced by the statement of the 16 THC shops before the Weedpass was introduced in the South of the Netherlands. After holding an inquiry in the 16 Haarlem coffeeshops it showed that 87.6 % of their regulars would not register for the Weedpass.

http://www.coffeeshopnieuws.nl/index.php/blog/3-articles/34-haarlems-coffeeshop-entrepreneurs-refuse-to-introduce-weedpass

Nol van Schaik, THC secretary, says: "Mayor Schneiders fully understood our stance, after we explained it to him in person. After the Weedpass was introduced in the South, with disastrous consequences for the Cities involved, the press showed the mess caused by the introduction. Although the responsible Minister and Mayor Hoes of Maastricht kept on stating they had the situation in the South under control, our Mayor did watch the news, and acted accordingly."

"Our Mayor also happens to be the Chairman of the Dutch Union of Mayors, he told us he will send the Hallmark-system to all his colleagues, in order to hold it up as an alternative for the Weedpass."

http://www.amsterdammarijuanaseedbank.com/news/hard-soft-drugs-policy-can-die-at-city-hall.html

http://www.coffeeshopnieuws.nl/index.php/blog/3-articles/155-statements-from-mayor-onno-hoes-make-further-implementation-of-the-weedpass-impossible