Hundreds gather at Kasteel Groeneveld in Baarn to protest coronavirus measure

Hundreds of people held a demonstration on Saturday against the corona policy at Kasteel Groeneveld in Baarn (Utrecht). The castle was open on Saturday as part of a corona test pilot. Visitors are allowed to enter under strict conditions and with a negative corona test.

The demonstration started at 11 a.m. and was set up by a club called Police for freedom. There was talk of a "march for human connection." Police for freedom fight for the preservation of fundamental rights, such as freedom of speech and medical freedom, proclaim the protesters. The demonstrators did not keep their distance from each other, and only a few wore a face mask.

Marlo Reeders of the National Monuments Organization thinks it is "a great pity" that the action took place at Kasteel Groeneveld. "We were looking forward to the temporary opening and organized everything, including a string quartet to perform," she says. "When I arrived here, I talked to some of the protesters. The first thing I heard was: shouldn't you wear a face mask? No, I said, I was tested because I am visiting a monument."

"I also heard the same arguments that they had already expressed in emails to us in recent days: our fundamental rights are at risk, covid does not exist. Our mailbox really exploded," says Reeders. "That feels slightly threatening."

According to local broadcaster RTV Utrecht, the protesters had previously planned to go to Hilversum or Apeldoorn. But in Hilversum, the protest action was banned and in Apeldoorn an emergency ordinance was promulgated throughout the weekend to prevent demonstrations, Omroep Gelderland reports.

The demonstrators then decided to start their march in Baarn. They walked through the streets and forests under police escort and around 2.30 p.m., the organization called on everyone to go home.