Dutch gov't to give mayors more options to intervene in protests-turned-riots sooner
The Cabinet wants to give mayors more options to intervene in demonstrations that get out of hand and turn into riots, Ministers Pieter Heerma of Interior and David van Weel of Justice and Security wrote to parliament. They are working on an amendment to the law that safeguards the right to demonstrate, RTL Nieuws reports.
This follows weeks of anti-asylum protests devolving into riots and violence in several places, including in Loosdrecht, where rioters set fire to a temporary emergency shelter with asylum seekers inside. Extinction Rebellion activists also recently blocked the railway tracks near Utrecht Central Station, despite the mayor explicitly banning the action.
According to the Ministers, the recent riots again show that it is time to review the Demonstration Act, which has not been amended for 40 years. They want to make it easier for mayors to move demonstrations from one location to another if things threaten to get out of hand. The amendment will also allow mayors to intervene more easily if things go wrong during the demonstration.
“In general, this gives mayors a broader range of tools to intervene sooner. And it reduces the risk of demonstrations getting out of hand,” said Heerma.
Additionally, people who misbehave during demonstrations will be punished more severely. Judges will be able to use the fact that law violations happened during a demonstration as an aggravating circumstance in sentencing.
According to Heerma, these measures strike a balance between safeguarding the right to demonstrate and the ability to act against demonstrators who break the law. “Demonstrating is a fundamental right,” the CDA Minister said. “You should not treat that lightly. But on the other hand, and this is also evident from the conversations we have had with local authorities, there is a need to tighten up several matters."
The Tweede Kamer, the lower house of the Dutch parliament, will debate these measures after the summer recess.
