Fines: No tobacco. Only marijuana allowed!!!
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July 2, 2008 No tobacco in Dutch cafes, bars, but marijuana allowedTHE HAGUE - A TOBACCO smoking ban came into force on Tuesday in cafes, bars and restaurants throughout the Netherlands, with a uniquely Dutch exemption for marijuana smokers. While patrons are no longer allowed to light up cigarettes, they can still smoke marijuana in the country's specially licensed 'coffee' shops as long as their joints contain no tobacco.
Many regular marijuana users prefer their weed rolled with tobacco and, as joint content is hardly the easiest regulation to police, some coffee shops have opted to switch their business to over-the-counter sales only, or to erect specially designated smoking areas.
At the nearby Ceylon coffee shop, a handful of customers were enjoying their joints in a glass-partitioned smoking area separating them from the non-smoking sales kiosk.
As the law seeks to protect people from second-hand smoke inhalation, waiters are no longer allowed to serve their customers a cup of coffee inside the smoking room, so the owners put in a vending machine for nibbles and drinks.
The shop's manager, Ms Monique Beyersbergen, said she expected an initial slump in business, but hoped things should get back to normal within a few weeks, 'once people get used to the new set-up'.
The Netherlands has permitted marijuana use in licensed cafes since 1976.
With the introduction of the smoking ban, it joins a growing list of European countries who have stamped down on the habit in public places for health reasons.
The hospitality industry had feared a patron exodus, with one poll suggesting more than half of owners were considering closing shop.
Unconvinced, a grouping under the banner 'Save the small horeca (hotel, restaurant, cafe) enterprise' lodged a legal challenge to the law that was heard in the district court in The Hague on Tuesday.
Judgment is expected on Wednesday in the bid to exclude small enterprises from the smoking ban.
But as smokers fume at the legislation, their non-puffing counterparts are rubbing their hands in glee at the prospect of a night out in an unpolluted environment.
A study by Dutch healthcare research bureau Nivel recently found the hospitality sector could attract as many as 800,000 new clients among asthma sufferers and non-smokers.
The Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority said it had already started with inspections. Offenders face fines of up to 2,400 euros (S$5163.33).
Special 'smoking evenings' were held at bars, restaurants and cafes around the country on Monday evening, with smokers put out on the street at midnight.
Less than a quarter of the Netherlands' 16-million population are smokers. -- AFP
http://www.straitstimes.com/Latest%2BNews/World/STIStory_253804.html -
Wooot....
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woohoo!!!
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NO Spiffs pls!
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Originally posted by BadzMaro:
NO Spiffs pls!
maybe only bucket bongs allowed?
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unlike tobacco, weed is good for your health
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Originally posted by ChiBet:
unlike tobacco, weed is good for your health
so true, go holland!