WE LIVE HERE community - A community whose objective is to make visitors aware that residents live in the Red Light District and to take this into respect. 

Lennard Roubos, Development consultant, resident, and a volunteer at We Live Here Community, says there were three meetings between the residents of the three proposed locations and the municipality to relocate the Red Light district. But in all three meetings, no neighbourhood favoured locating the erotic centre in their area.

He says, “The sex workers here feel more safe and secure, have social relations, and are also against relocation. So how can you enforce the industry’s move to the north or south district? I don’t see the feasibility.”

He disagrees that solely British tourists cause issues. He thinks that three magnets attract travellers to Amsterdam. First, Amsterdam has distinctive soft drinks. Second, coffee shops, bars, and restaurants sell soft drugs. The third is the sex industry, particularly the windows that are rare elsewhere.

“There are stay away campaigns in Amsterdam, but we are not interested in that kind of promotion. Indeed, the council’s focus is to divert the interest of tourists more towards quality elements of our culture like concerts, museums, exhibitions, and beautiful canal architecture. Still, it will take quite a while and quite some energy to change that”, he adds.

Femke Halsema, Mayor of Amsterdam recently proposed limiting the sale of cannabis joints to international visitors, sparking heated debate in the municipal council. If tourists are prohibited from purchasing drugs at coffee shops, she believes fewer would damage the city. Many people are concerned about the fact that by this proposition, street drug dealers would be attracted.

“About 7 million tourists stayed in Amsterdam in a hotel or Airbnb last year. On average, staying two nights per person means 50 million overnight stays. The government seems to proclaim that the upper limit should be 20 million. But that bypasses the fact that many tourists are still coming to Amsterdam maybe for a day session, and Dutch tourists are not included in the figure.”, says Lennard.  

Hinse Mutter, Musician and Artistic director at Red Lights Arts and Culture Foundation, living in the Red Light area, thinks that the council is very sincere, and they do have political power now to indeed go forth with the next step of moving a lot of the windows to another location. He believes that the government is not having an honest dialogue with sex workers.

“It’s a day-to-day thing, and your behaviour as a person impacts a person who lives here. So, few residents don’t walk on certain streets anymore because it’s too busy. I know many people here who clean their porches every morning because tourists have peed on them. So that’s a big issue.”, says Hinse while stating that it is not evident that only British tourists are responsible for this bad behaviour.

It is a law in the Netherlands that people who do not live or work in the Netherlands cannot buy marijuana. Amsterdam is one of the cities that has not enforced this law but is considering implementing it. Enforcing this law will have more street drug dealers, according to Hinse.

“I think there would certainly be fewer people coming here. In this area, many people come here just to look at windows, architecture, or the museums.”, he adds.

Romario, a resident in Docklandsplot, says, “To be honest, I don’t think it is a good thing that the Red Light District is shifting over here because many houses are being built here for residents. It will interfere with us living here.”

Marigold, manager at Hash Marihuana & Hemp Museum, believes that the restrictions will significantly affect the number of tourists coming to the city because Amsterdam is popular with the cannabis culture. People are allowed to smoke, and though there are other parts of tourism like the arts and museums, the tourists will be fewer if there are restrictions.

"I think that’s a good thing for the citizens, but I wonder how this will work for small businesses and the people in the cannabis and sex industry because that’s quite a large sector, and people rely on this money. The city will look better, it’s going to be less dirty, and it will attract less shady people. It’s costly to live here, and you pay to be in this place, and then some other people are just coming in, making it very bad for you. So, I understand why the council wants to change it."

She is optimistic that the council will make it legal, like in California.

Elena, social worker and co-initiator of the Red Light District festival believes that the mayor is passionate about the relocation.

She says, “It is a pity because the exciting character of the neighbourhood includes the sex workers. It’s also a heritage harbour part of town. Sex work has been here for centuries. It isn’t the sex workers’ fault; it is the way that tourists misbehave.”

She witnesses some British tourists misbehaving, peeing, or puking in the district but also states that other European tourists create a nuisance too. According to Elena, if there is a relocation, the city will lose its character and charm with no fault of the sex workers, and tourists might opt for other destinations for holidays and parties.

On the council’s plan for dealing with the illegal drug dealers, she says, “I think that there is a shortage of staff employed by the council to take care of the dealers.”

“A British guy, after having some mushrooms, operated a dog with scissors in the district. There was a bloody mess. This is why the British stand out”, says Wendy, a local tour guide. However, Wendy blames all the tourists who over-drink alcohol, creating a nuisance in the district area, and thus, the latest anti-smoking banners and laws have been put in the De Wallen district.

“Now I can’t guide the tourists anymore on the street with sex windows because the inhabitants here have said you’re bothering the ladies, which is true,” adds Wendy.

To promote Amsterdam City for arts, culture, canals, museums, and architecture, and restricting tourists by introducing a tourist tax on stays, restrictions on smoking and alcohol consumption, and relocation of sex workers, Amsterdam City will likely face fewer tourists. These propositions and laws will affect tourists' choices and the lives of sex workers, coffee shops, restaurants, bars, and people dependent on tourism. Other measures must be considered to promote the city's holistic image, and strict measures must be taken to stop illegal drug dealings and nuisance in the Red Light District rather than blaming the stag parties and making British tourists the scapegoat.